Chevy Bolt EV with an empty battery 

This actually happened to me the day of my Dad's funeral. It was wintertime, so my range was already reduced, i wasn't paying attention and forgot to charge my battery. I drove relatives from out of state all around the city that day and then realized upon coming home, the careless mistake i had made. It was very cold and dark and i live way out in the country with no streetlights available. All the bells and whistles were going off and then it was at no battery left at all! I said a prayer with my body tensed up like a snaredrum, but some how that little Bolt powered through and i made it up a very steep hillside and down my driveway literally shaking because we also don't have cell service where i live, but the Bolt came through for me and i was so very very grateful!

Very cool of you to get that stomach ache on behalf of all us Bolt owners, nice video.

Well done! You daringly captured the drama of EV anxiety!

That was fun, Bolt is an amazing little vehicle.

Nice chatting with you the other day Dave. Always good to meet like-minded individuals. I would definitely buy an electric car from you. So hard to find salesmen who know electric car technology. Keep it up!

Great video! Just bought a 2023 Bolt EUV this week, so it's very helpful to see your real-world experience. Hoping you will take the test one step further and run it until it stops. Do it on a less busy road, however. 🙂

I was sweating as much as you were! Great job and good to know how far "empty reserve" can go.

Cool video. I just bought a Bolt this weekend, and as a former Volt owner I was really curious how it behaves when it gets low on electrons... finding your video was really helpful, and kinda gives me the sense that in general (at least in warm weather) I can generally expect to get 10-12 miles after the battery goes to "LOW" if I'm careful. Thanks for doing the experiment for the rest of us!

need 1.21 Jiggawatts of power to send Dave B.......BACK TO THE FUTURE!!!!

Always good to keep a 220v inverter or a chain to recharge the car with Regen and 2 way radios. And a super bright flashlight on hand for signaling a pick up.

Reminds me of a Seinfeld episode where Kramer and the car salesmen push the car to range limit.....

Thank you Dave for doing this video. This will make a lot of new Bolt owners (including myself) more confident about their range. No more anxiety!

Great video @Dave, reminds me a little of my very first experience with my blue Bolt driving it home from the dealership. Even though I called ahead they didnt charge it for me and didn't know how to operate their level 2 charger so we had to wait at a local businesses level 2 while we had a bite to eat. Left with a partial charge and drove 140+ miles, arrived at night with the orange battery indicator but thankfully it was still showing range numbers. Haha. A great first EV experience.

great video...and a great car as well. I'm waiting till the 2020's arrive with the extended range before I commit. Any and all Bolt videos appreciated. you're one of the very few showing info on the Bolt . thanks

Impressed, only problem is... these cars are hard to find.. New Brunswick Canada.

Videos like this help to ease fears of consumers thanks

The exact calculation is that regen will get you 70% of what coasting will, but it will do so with speed control. If you are going uphill (as you state you are here) then D is more efficient, but on level or downhill you should use L always (including fwy).

Have only gotten to the amber/yellow indicator. I found the mileage indicators to be super accurate. FYI. Saw u passed a lot of slow moving trucks. Hiding behind them really ups the mileage.

I'm planning a long trip on a cold day and two of your videos have helped me to trust the Bolt's range calculation understand what happens when it gets very low.

Not only was that fun, but it made a believer out of me in the Chevy Bolt. You've proved it to me on the same roads I work/travel. 👍👍

Hey Dave B! I love your videos! Good information on this one! Getting my Bolt next year!

This is your best video every, very exciting Dave Thanks this was fun.

Excellent video: well done! I have hypermiled down to one bar but never below that, so your experience gives me more confidence. When I hypermile, on SoCal freeways, I always drive in L. This way I avoid suddenly going downhill and seeing my speed of 75+ MPH for example. L helps me feather with my foot to keep a steady speed. If I can find a truck in the right lane, given state law is 55 MPH for them, they usually cruise at 60; so I get behind one and add CC to my L. You were much more of a gambler then I, as I try to never drive more than 60 like you were doing; especially with your uphills coming up! But your gamble paid off for all of us! My best hypermile was an Uber passenger from LAX to almost DTLA and then to San Diego (La Jolla). I tried to keep at least 10 miles greater between the average GOM and my remaining miles to drive (especially with an uphill in southern Orange County to San Diego County). After I arrived at the DCFC one mile away from my drop off point, I had driven 283.3 miles since last charge, using 61.4 Kw and the GOM was still LOW and one bar. FWIW: I arranged with the passenger a backup plan to go to a DCFC in Oceanside for about 25 minutes to top off. As we approached Oceanside, I told her if it was just me, I would make the complete trip without stopping -- she said: "go for it!"

Just got my bolt EuV premier thanks for the video. This definitely will teach me how to drive it efficiently.

Amazing. Great job and learning experience for me!!

Of course, I wouldn't do that to my Bolt (we treat each other with respect), but it's interesting to see other people push their luck.

Found this video today and said, "Yes! This is the stuff to watch!" Kramer would be proud, too! I loved all the information, including your rapid heart rate. Haha! (As drivers, and like you said, we've all felt that anxiety when running low on fuel and hoping to get to our destination.) Looks like GM Engineers made sure that the range goes a little farther then what it tells you, which is good. And good to know for this future Bolt EUV owner. I love your content. If I lived in NJ, I'd be coming to you for my vehicles. Thanks for such interesting content.

That was a really cool video I have heard that the Bolt is quite accurate with its estimations, and will allow you to run quite low in the battery and also will charge at a high rate at a low state of charge. it would have been really cool if you could have pulled into a high output DC fast charger and seen how it would charge from a essentially empty pack upward.

I’m considering purchasing my first EV, so I’ve been watching a lot of videos of the different cars out there that I can afford to get. This video gave me some encouragement to consider the Bolt and I’m actually going to look at one this Saturday. I’m not going to lie, I was having some anxiety towards the end of your experiment. 😬😂

I’m not buying your Bolt second hand lol. Glad you made it.

Dude, I suffered range anxiety just watching this. I thought that News Columb guy was crazy. Nice to know can push my Bolt EV if need be. Great video.

Love watching your bolt videos keep it up

Great video. I had just about the same exact route and charge level as you 2 years ago when I first got mine. I was traveling from Albany, NY to Hopatcong (175miles) when it was like 9° out late at night. I hit Denville hill with 20 left. I had slowed to 50mph at that point, then 45 mph as I passed your exit with 2 more to go. I made it too. I can tell you from friends of mine that pushed it further, you maybe had 2 miles left at best before it shut down. Spoiler alert: If you really needed, that Ikea has chargers, but certainly wouldn't make for a pushing the limit nail-biting video

If you end up with very low range, then drive as conservatively as possible to maximize the range. So drive at 40 MPH or as slowly as legally allowed and use the range saving features of the car to maximize regenerative energy to the battery.

WoW Dave B. You got more guts than I do. Really enjoyed the ride. A real nail biter.

Looked at this vehicle for the 2nd time today-❤️It Thinking about making this my new lease this year

I was Right there with you Awsome Thanks

You must be one of those people who gamble with the red light when the gauge is at near E. Love the videos.

Great video, but I did want to see when and how a Bolt would ultimately die, I’ll have to keep looking for such a video

Great video, thanks for sharing.

I am glad you made it. I got also range anxiety watching this video 😆

Absolutely awesome video.

BROOOOOOOO!!!!!!! 😱 LoL I was feeling anxious just watching it but you pulled it out ok!👌 well done mate!

I'm on my second Bolt a 2020 after taking my 2017 to over 45000 km here in the very rural Canadian prairies and have been in the same state of charge, climbing the 400 ft elevation bench hill for the last ten miles to our farm home and the only level two charger for miles, many times. Good job of showing how it can be done and how it feels when it is happening to you. My only comment to add re technique is I have found by a judicious reduction in speed by 5 to 10 km/hr on the highway while watching the GOM you can easily gain 2 or the klicks of range if you start the hypermiling process early enough. Anyway good video. Just had my battery recall done last week not that I believe there was much wrong with the old one, but better safe than sorry. Love(d) my Bolt(s) and will probably consider a third one. Great little car considering they really haven't changed them much since they were brought out in 2017. Over six years agoe. I don't say this lightly but GM really did pretty well on this one.

Cool video! Nice test to see how far it can go to low/almost empty battery! Dash looks interesting to show no battery (range) left...

I am buying a Bolt after my lease is up! Thanks for your review!

I was so anxious watching this! Awesome video!!!

ALSO: Be sure to turn your HVAC to either off, or sometimes I turn Heat and Air off and push the button to allow outside ventilation and turn down the fan to 1 and get some fresh air that way with minimal electricity drawn for the fan only.

Brave soul pushing the car to the limit

cool. just got a Bolt. I don't think I'll ever let it get that low but nice to know what would happen if it ever does.

Man the way I was just on the edge of my seat watching this ! Hahaha .. I just picked up a 2021 premier. It’s awesome !

Good test.

Thanks for doing what I don't want to do. Now I know without driving up my own blood pressure.

I don’t have range anxiety. I have charger anxiety. The fear that it will either be in use, broken,or outputting a much lower kilowatt than advertised. Getting home is no different than with a gas car. Just turn off all non essential features and drive slower. If you had just put your hazards on and slowed to 45-50 mph you would have been even better. Nice to see you push it though. I ran my bolt down pretty low once as well. Your stress test confirms what others have posted about before. ALL Chevy dealerships need to get on board with having a level 3 charger in each dealership. That way the prospective buyer will have more confidence in their purchase. Though the biggest point to make is to have them purchase and install a level 2 charger at their residence FIRST!!! Here in nyc if I didn’t do that it would have been a nightmare. We are slowly seeing Electrify America chargers going online which is a good thing. In 5 years times this anxiety will be a thing of the past.

awesome vid glad you made it to a charger without the car shutting down. I will say though you are braver then me. looking to make the switch to evs for my first time and researching alot before I make the jump.

You should've drove around the parking lot to see how it shuts down. Thank for the video.

Incredible nerves of bolt wid it's operator,great buffer4peace of mind iused2do same thing wid my cab al d tymz25mls aftr light can't deny hailing passenger who kud hav some very dire need,but most of oder cabbies put off duty sign were always heading2gas stations

Running any EV’s battery to such a low SOC (state of charge) is very hard on it. I have only gotten our 2019 Bolt down to this level once with almost 12K on the odometer. I, since that occurrence, try to keep at least 20 - 25 miles of buffer. You could have reduced your speed and/or drafted behind a semi or other large vehicle to help your range. At least you did the right thing by immediately charging the battery. Try to keep the SOC between 20 - 80% to minimize battery degradation. I plan on driving my Bolt for many years.

Just got a 2017 Bolt w/ 17.5k miles. I just did my first long range drive (~140 mi) starting at 85% charge and had about 34% left at the end, but was wondering what happens when you completely drain the battery. Good to know there is some reserve. Makes me think of when your gas light is on but you can still go about 10-20 miles. Thanks for this!

I love the video. But it was still very nerve-wracking! I'm glad you made it!

I’m not saying you should draft semis to extend range, but it would absolutely work.

Great video! 👍

I'm having trouble watching this video because it brings back bad memories of range anxiety for me!

My wife wants you stranded on that freeway...lmao...she still wants to know what exactly happens "when you are absolutely at no power what is the car saying?' What can I say? She's tough. Great video BTW (I think she's means tooling around that lot near the charger so that you were only a small push away from it) We have a Bolt 1LT and a 2LT.

I’ve been down to 1 orange bar 2-3 times in my 2020 Bolt, including today in winter. No fast chargers in my area, so I topped up to 25 miles at a slow charger with 12 miles to home. It’s not a good feeling to see the range disappear. Anyhow - good to know there is a sort bar state where the car still keeps going. I guess I have not cut it as close as I thought. 😅 Thinking of trading up next year to the newer charging platform.

Dave will do it..I know it..He doesn't know how to fail.

Love the video! Watching here from abu dhabi..

I just got my Bolt this week and I’ve enjoyed your videos. Though I was feeling tense and nervous the last few minutes of this video.

Ten feet later it would say battery exhausted, shift to park. There is no propulsion at this point and you either find an extension cord or a friend to tow you. Consider 20mi remaining as empty.

The tension.

That was fun. I've gotten to the different messages.

Great video. I was imagining the car was going to stop along with power steering..Glad you made it. Do you observe the 80/20 rule as a way to conserve the battery life in the long run?

Don't most/all ICE cars have a bit of range beyond their advertised range estimates? I had a Rogue that could do another 60 miles after "empty". Maybe EVs do something similar? Good on you for doing this video. I've had my Bolt for a week now and it's a blast.

5.7 mi/kWh - that's some fine hypermiling!

Thank you for this informative video. That was a roller coaster ride lol

Such anxiety watching this. Also from jersey, take that route 80 to route 15 drive all the time to visit family. That hill is way steeper than it looks on camera! Cool video

Really cool video, I would have drive 200 feet back and forth till it stall with 2 friend to push it near the plug though! :)

👍🏼Glad you made it home

I think I saw you on RT 80 in blue Bolt, you were maybe passing me , I have red Bolt with Chevy emblem blacked out ....

Found myself smiling & nervously saying shite we aint gna make, yea were good. Damn were def not making it. Yea low propulsion were good. Oh no we aint making it we got hills 😁😂😂. Honestly felt at times as if i were the one risking getting stuck on the highway lol. 👍👍👍

Just bought my bolt two days ago

If you look closely at the dashboard numbers, you can calculate the exact number of kWh consumed since you reset the odometer when the range estimator hit "Low" - just divide miles traveled by average miles/kWh. You burned through 1.75 kWh in 5 miles climbing up that hill, but with the rest flat and downtown, you made it the other 8 miles using just 0.5 kWh. Assuming you've done this trip many times before (with a well-charged battery) and looking at the energy meter, you would know the moment you crested that hill that even though there was 8 miles remaining, you only need 0.5 more kWh to reach the charger, and it's the kWh, not the miles, that really matters here. What made it exciting is that you didn't know exactly how many kWh you had to play with.

it would be good to also know how far will it really go with 4 additional passengers in the car. Or additional 4 of 180lbs into the car. and redo the test again and have torque pro running to log the data. that way it can analyze the soc of the bolt and the cell voltage and pack voltage.

I am truly intrigued by the Chevy Bolt.

Another good video would be a charge rate video at a level 3 charger. Do one now when it’s not terribly cold and another in the real winter in your area, say from 10% to 80% state of charge. That would also show distance different due to weather temp on the gom. Sound like a good project? I think any new buyer should know this going into a purchase.

Call me old school, way to much anxiety! My dad taught me never to be on the highway without a least a half tank of fuel. Love the technology and doing good with the environment, but I think I will stay with my gas engines. I could never run that short.... Great information

Wow, and I thought I was pushing things when I let my GOM get down to 20 miles remaining!

Ran my Bolt to the point where the computer said charge soon. Had about 130 average kilometers left when I got home. Plugged in & in about 2 minutes the screen said it was at FULL CHARGE! What ? Now the screen says service vehicle soon. I have just enough juice to get to the dealership. The batteries are the new ones installed Feb 2022 - so that shouldn't be the issue. Strange to say the least after watching this video.

Haven’t finished watching it but the answer is yes, you will. I bet it’s like the Leaf I own where it lies to you to keep you conservative. You should IMHO set 60 cruise VIA GPS. This makes a decent difference but is not too slow for a freeway. Also, use Waze to switch to a side street or slower highway, shorter route. Not I huge deal.

at the end I'm like " don't use the blinker" aaaahhhhh!!!

I almost bought a Bolt 6-10 months ago and the used bolt premier was going for $17-$19k in my area with less than 30k miles and now the same used bolts are around $22-24k ;/ I should’ve blight one ahhhh

Yeesh. You & Eric Way pushing your Bolts this far just makes me twitch. Good for Science(tm) I suppose, but still... yeesh. I'm curious how much power went in to get it to full, or whatever you charged to. I'll look below to see if someone else asked but if not, how far did you charge (percentage-wise) and how many kWhs got put in?

You took a chance. Had you suddenly lost power on the freeway with a semi behind you it could have had a bad ending. But, at least now you know!

So this didn’t really test to see if the car has extra battery just in case to get the “low” message. The last estimate said 12 miles. You went 13. All we know is it has 1 extra mile “in the tank”. What we need is a video of someone running it till it stops. Like I know my truck has about 3 gallons of gas left when I hit E and get the message on my dash to fill up. It’s easy with the gas car cause you don’t have to run it dry. Just fill it up when it’s on E subtract the amount of gas you put in from the size of the tank, and you know how much is in reserve. It’s tougher with batteries to know how much is in reserve once you hit. “Low”. And I don’t blame you for not driving it till the batteries are dead. I don’t think I’d wanna do that with mine either. But hoping somebody out there is willing to do it. lol

great video, but we still don't know what would happen if running out of battery... btw, if you reduce your high way speed to 55, you could drive longer.

Amazing video!!! I follow your videos for a while... What program are you using for editing???

I test drove the Bolt. I like it very much and with the current rebates on it is very attractively priced. The 2020 has better seats and, of course, more range. However, it did have two things I did not like. The headline is too low for me and bending to get in is unpleasant. Secondly, the premier has this funky triangular thing behind the mirror which restricts my vision to the right. I suppose if I was shorter it would be OK. The one thing Nissan does it provides better access for big guys then chevy. In almost every other way the chevy is a better product

Next video suggestion, Run it till it s empty, cause right now , we re all at the same place…” nobody knows how far we can go on empty…

Driving uphill with a low battery causes lots of current to flow - due to low battery volts. This increased current creates lots of heat in the battery (bad) and accelerates the drop in voltage, getting you closer to “bricking” the car. It could stop on the hill. This is bad practice, if you know about the uphill run in advance. Try to work your trips to be at a charger with a 10% or so state of charge. This gives you about 10-12 miles, just in case the charger you intend to stop at is blocked ( “ICED”) or not working.

Great, second hand range anxiety. I never let the gas tank get below a quarter tank. Glad you made it home okay. Maybe you can do a video about not making it home to see what it entails to tow the Bolt.