[DaV8or]

I completely disagree with his assumptions about EV drivers, but he makes valid points with regards to overall adoption by ordinary car buyers. The Bolt is neither the most energy efficient electric car (based on hypothetical future Model 3 and gen2 Leaf), nor is it the most economical city/commuter/family car. It is a compromise, a compromise that works for me personally.

What say you?

http://jalopnik.com/chevy-still-doesnt-know-how-to-make-an-electric-car-ame-1785003431

 

[phil0909]

What say you?http://jalopnik.com/chevy-still-doesnt-know-how-to-make-an-electric-car-ame-1785003431

1. Well, of course Americans have bought the Bolt - I'm one of those Americans! But it's hard to disagree with the gist of the headline - clearly, gas cars are still a better value, and will be until the industry figures out how to lower battery/related costs enough. You can get a nicer car than the Bolt for the same money, and though Tesla pretends Model 3 will be as cost-effective as a BMW, they too are obviously years away from cost parity with gas vehicles. I bought the Bolt because it's cool, I like gadgets, I can afford it, and I don't need frills or good looks in a car. Most Americans will want to (or need to) spend their hard-earned money more wisely than I do! The Bolt and the Teslas are just fun for early adopters, not mainstream, high-value cars. Yet.

2. The writer seems foolishly obsessed with aerodynamics. Bottom line: despite it's less-than-stellar drag coefficient, Bolt DOES have great range. Why drone on (and on, and on) about an aerodynamics problem that turned out not to even be a problem? Results are results. Perhaps the guy's a Tesla fanatic, but he comes across here as a gibbering idiot.

3. I also disagree with his carping about the form factor. A micro-CUV/hatchback is a very popular segment. Sure, every car has to make compromises and Bolt is no exception. I think Bolt is a nice try by GM, moves the ball forward for the industry, and is not yet ready to dominate the sector. I'm enjoying mine!

 

[Posatronic]

Old article. Everyone has their opinions but I bet it sells a ton. Only thing to do is wait and see.

 

[bolt2nde]

Buying a Bolt today versus hoping to get a model 3 in 2018 or 2019 (or 2020) based on Tesla's ability to actually get it out the door and your position in a waiting list of more than 200,000 people was an easy choice. The other thing that people don't realize is that the Tesla commitment for a car at that price is for something stripped down. Chevy did an impressive job of making a rational base model and reasonable price for upgrades (except the DC fast charge option - that is pure gouging).
For me - the choice was a no-brainer. The Bolt is exactly the car that I wanted.

 

[phil0909]

Old article.

Yes it is, I had not noticed that. I should cut the guy some slack, then - he was still dead wrong about the impact of aerodynamics, but he had not yet been proven wrong at the time he wrote.0

 

[Bazinga]

I generally read Jalopnik articles as a source of amusement more than actual news and unbiased reviews. Their articles seems kind of click baity to me these days. For opinions, it's best to just read what everyone is saying on the forum as they're the ones using the Bolt as their daily driver.

 

[Cehjun]

Jalopnik's review dated January 26, 2017 seems complimentary of the Bolt:
http://jalopnik.com/the-2017-chevrolet-bolt-may-be-the-start-of-the-everyda-1791586154

 

[tedsan1964]

I agree, it always bugs me when people reviewing the car criticize the form factor. I *want* an easy-to-park, hatch/CUV format vehicle and have zero interest in a long sedan. I've been renting a Kia Soul which is roughly the same size and loved the large inside/small outside form factor. And looking around at the cars on the road, a lot of people agree. This is the fastest growing market segment after all.

 

[Cehjun]

Everyone is different. If my Bolt doesn’t build by the middle of Q2 I’m going to cancel it. And get a Camaro 1LT+1LE V6 stickshift in “Krypton” green. Looks like Lamborghini Huracan green.

I can use my remaining GM Card points, which are scheduled to evaporate December 2017, on the Camaro. GM EV’s aren’t eligible for GM Card points.

Hot hatch or hot sport coupe I like both.

 

[Cehjun]

Given this thread references Jalopnik. An organization known for cynicism and critical reviews.

Have a look at this recent article in Toronto Star Wheels section. A right-wing view looking at electric power sources & EV`s.

I don`t agree with him. As he`s imagining a ``clean sheet`` where infrastructure will be built from scratch for fuel cell vehicles. We`re way beyond that, into EV`s.

In an earlier article he liked the Bolt although he thought it would have been better with a diesel engine.
https://www.thestar.com/autos/2017/01/21/electric-cars-are-a-short-circuit.html

 

[Sean Nelson]

In an earlier article he liked the Bolt although he thought it would have been better with a diesel engine.
https://www.thestar.com/autos/2017/01/21/electric-cars-are-a-short-circuit.html

These guys all try to use the argument that EVs pollute because the grid isn't green. But that isn't the fault of the car, it's the fault of the grid. Clean up the grid and everything, electric cars included, magically cause less pollution.

As the cost of renewable power continues to drop grids and people will start to use more of it because it would be insane not to. And as and more EVs and powerwalls are able to store and deliver that power 24 x 7 the grid will become cleaner and cleaner. It's just a matter of time.

And for those of us whose electricity is already green, it's a done deal.

 

[Posatronic]

In an earlier article he liked the Bolt although he thought it would have been better with a diesel engine.
https://www.thestar.com/autos/2017/01/21/electric-cars-are-a-short-circuit.html

These guys all try to use the argument that EVs pollute because the grid isn't green. But that isn't the fault of the car, it's the fault of the grid. Clean up the grid and everything, electric cars included, magically cause less pollution.

As the cost of renewable power continues to drop grids and people will start to use more of it because it would be insane not to. And as and more EVs and powerwalls are able to store and deliver that power 24 x 7 the grid will become cleaner and cleaner. It's just a matter of time.

And for those of us whose electricity is already green, it's a done deal.

I completely disagree with ALL of the articles about switching from gas to electric is "dirtier". They point out where does the electricity come from to asses the "cleanses". I agree that to be true but no one calculates where gas comes from. They only calculate the burning gas. No one uses any data on the 18 wheeler diesel to transport, or the carbon footprint of the refinery or the trucks(and 3 or 4 other ways of transportion)hauling to the refinery or the carbon footprint of getting the oil........ after reading tons of articles a ou that I bet if you take the co2's from one tank of gas and multiply by 5 and that's much better of a comparison.
You would of course have to add the strip mine carbon footprint for getting coal and transport ( although almost all coal is moved by train which is the most efficient transportation of materials).
Never seen anyone use ALL of that data in there calculations so they are all incorrect.
One article stated the electricity ( consumed by an EV car) was like adding a dryer to a household. ( not running continually but the total amount of the average house hold uses in a month. ) that to me seems very little addition to the grid as a big picture across America.

 

[TOM17]

Everyone is different. If my Bolt doesn’t build by the middle of Q2 I’m going to cancel it. And get a Camaro 1LT+1LE V6 stickshift in “Krypton” green. Looks like Lamborghini Huracan green.

I can use my remaining GM Card points, which are scheduled to evaporate December 2017, on the Camaro. GM EV’s aren’t eligible for GM Card points.

Hot hatch or hot sport coupe I like both.

The Chevy Bolt is eligible for a max of $1,000 from your GM Card.

 

[Cehjun]

The Chevy Bolt is eligible for a max of $1,000 from your GM Card.

I’m referring to the now-defunct GM Card that used to accumulate earnings at 5%. Redemption allowed only on a new GM vehicle. It was decommissioned in Canada about 5 years ago at which time it was announced that redemptions will cease as of December 2017. I happen to have $1,249 redemption allowance left on mine presently.


In Canada on gm.ca website there’s no GM Card allowances on EV’s. This seems factual, as previously Volt wasn’t shown at all. And Spark fell off the table after 2015 models:
http://www.gm.ca/gm/english/services/gm-card/redemption/allowances




Now in Canada the old GM Card was picked up by former GM partner TD Canada Trust (bank). In the form of TD’s Drivers Rewards card. But the rebate earn rate on that one is only 1% in general & 2% on gasoline purchases. I presently have earnings on TD Drivers Rewards which can be used on any vehicle purchase or lease, GM or not, EV or not. I’ll be cashing those on Bolt (if/when it arrives) or whatever vehicle I end up with.


In the States, what happened to the old original GM Card 5%-earner remaining redemption allowance balances when the card was killed ? I’ve searched gm.com and couldn’t find anything there.


If those old GM Card allowances are available for redemption on Bolt in the USA ? No fair ! !

 

[Cehjun]

These guys all try to use the argument that EVs pollute because the grid isn't green. But that isn't the fault of the car, it's the fault of the grid. Clean up the grid and everything, electric cars included, magically cause less pollution.

As the cost of renewable power continues to drop grids and people will start to use more of it because it would be insane not to. And as and more EVs and powerwalls are able to store and deliver that power 24 x 7 the grid will become cleaner and cleaner. It's just a matter of time.

And for those of us whose electricity is already green, it's a done deal.

IMO it’s fair to say that the grid varies a lot by State and Province and there’s no quick fix for everyone.
Here in Ontario it’s a disaster and not likely to improve soon: successive gov’ts over-estimated future demand especially industrial/manufacturing demand which has fled the province in recent years. Then they politically drove decisions to prematurely shut down coal and cancel a gas plant all the while signing up ridiculously expensive renewable contracts. My hydro bill rate per kWh has increased 16% year-over-year. There’s a virtual revolt taking place over hydro costs here. Ontario needs to export to NE states and at the same time agreed with Quebec to buy from them. Some analysts say it costs Ontario more to create power than we’re selling it to the States for.
Then there’s the possibility of Trumpism spillover in terms of philosophy, and who knows a trade barrier heaven forbid.
It won’t be a quick fix.

 

[eops]

One optimistic way to look at it is this is just the beginning and we have a long way to go to switch over from dirty to cleaner systems.
What we're experiencing through owning Bolt EV's now is the real infancy of it all.

Hence why these EV's are being pushed more as a techy thing and for those that want to be "green"
Over time it will be more of a requirement with gasoline, diesel, etc. being heavily discouraged.

 

[Cehjun]

Hence why these EV's are being pushed more as a techy thing and for those that want to be "green"

In addition to appealing to the techie / cool & green / leading-edge aspirationals while fortifying the brand.

The Bolt is a loud warning blast across the bow of one significant disruptor and other disruptors-in-waiting. A masterful piece strategically, GM again demonstrated there’s major hurdles to entry into this industry regardless of how you want to cut it. Ford jumped on the electric chatter bandwagon quite quickly after Bolt announced. The big domestic guys want to maintain their tri-gopoly consisting of N.A. pickup trucks and big SUV’s where the real money is made. The “best defense is a good offense” when it comes to keeping competition out.