[SpicyBolt]

Yeah, I was good for the new credit, but even retired now I'm way beyond the limit for the used credit. 40 year government pension and good 401k planning over the years, along with the max amount of Social Security pushes me beyond the limit. But that's fine, I'd rather be comfortable in my waning years...

Some think my 30 year Government pension from being a Letter Carrier has me in riches. I missed being in CSRS by 7 months though, and it's actually quite modest. My body wouldn't let me deliver mail any longer than 30 years, and I had zero desire to go into management.

We live comfortably in retirement due to investments, having zero debt and not living beyond our means. I've never known a household income in the 6 figures though, but that's OK.

That's pretty sad about the Dreamliner going down. I imagine you follow that pretty closely, and you live in Boeing territory too. I hope it's not more bad news for them.

 

[atc98092]

I missed being in CSRS by 7 months

I was initially in CSRS, but was changed to FERS without an option about a year later. I can't really complain though, since I made enough that I maxed out Social Security for the majority of my 40 years, so SS is a nice add-on to my pension. And my TSP is working well, in that my monthly withdrawals are only reducing my balance by about 60% of the amount taken due to interest earned. So it's going to last into my 90s, assuming I'm still around by then.

 

[grog]

kona electric, but if used be sure to but from a hyundai dealer to get full warranty. essentially the same as a Bolt EUV but a little smaller.

Actually a bit longer than the EUV (171" vs 168").

And not really an equivalent if you look at range vs price. In order to get the Bolt's range, you're paying over $40K. Sure, it charges faster but presumably that won't be an issue with the NextGen Bolt.

 

[atc98092]

Sure, it charges faster but presumably that won't be an issue with the NextGen Bolt.

The Kona EV doesn't charge a whole lot faster than the Bolt. The Kona/Niro twins can reach the low 80s kW when DC charging, but overall length of charge runs about the same as the Bolt. But the Kona/Niro does offer a few extra features that account for some of that higher cost. Dual zone HVAC, heat pump option, driver's seat memory are a few that are on the top of my head, but there's more.

 

[SpicyBolt]

I was initially in CSRS, but was changed to FERS without an option about a year later. I can't really complain though, since I made enough that I maxed out Social Security for the majority of my 40 years, so SS is a nice add-on to my pension. And my TSP is working well, in that my monthly withdrawals are only reducing my balance by about 60% of the amount taken due to interest earned. So it's going to last into my 90s, assuming I'm still around by then.

The TSP is a wonderful thing, plus I did an IRA. I waited until 67.5 to start SS, although initially I was going to wait until 70. I'm in the Income Fund in the TSP now, but more aggressive still in my IRA, which is now mostly Roth.

The 90's would be nice if its healthy. I just completed 20 radiation therapy sessions for prostate cancer but the prognosis is good. It was fully contained at least as far as they could tell. No guarantees with cancer.

I guess we are off topic a bit.. So, I'll just add that we don't anticipate looking for alternatives to the new Bolt, or even our current Bolts. We should be set for many years.

Don't forget the power hatch on the Kona and Niro I've rented both, the BEV versions. My last 9 rentals have been BEVs. I told Hertz last week, I'm trying to prevent them from total divestment of their EVs. I could use some help though.

 

[atc98092]

Don't forget the power hatch on the Kona and Niro I've rented both.

Yeah, the Niro EV is almost identical to my PHEV version. The ventilated seats are better than my EUV seats. The power tailgate is a nice feature, and has a hands-free option as well. Just walk up to it with the fob in your pocket, it beeps a couple of times, then opens. The car has to be locked for it to happen. It can be disabled in the system settings.

 

[SpicyBolt]

Yeah, the Niro EV is almost identical to my PHEV version. The ventilated seats are better than my EUV seats. The power tailgate is a nice feature, and has a hands-free option as well. Just walk up to it with the fob in your pocket, it beeps a couple of times, then opens. The car has to be locked for it to happen. It can be disabled in the system settings.

Are the ventilated seats connected to the HVAC in the Niro? They aren't in our EUV. In the EUV, they suck so couldn't be attached to the HVAC to any advantage. GM could have vented them to the outside though, for fart extraction mode.

 

[atc98092]

Are the ventilated seats connected to the HVAC in the Niro?

I don't think there's a direct connection, but I do believe the seat vent motors pull the air from the air duct in the console that goes to the rear seats. I have to say the air does feel like it's been cooled, and definitely feels cooler than my EUV seats did. I had both a first and now second generation Niro, and the seats in both seem to be this way.

 

[BehindBars]

The Kona EV doesn't charge a whole lot faster than the Bolt. The Kona/Niro twins can reach the low 80s kW when DC charging, but overall length of charge runs about the same as the Bolt. But the Kona/Niro does offer a few extra features that account for some of that higher cost. Dual zone HVAC, heat pump option, driver's seat memory are a few that are on the top of my head, but there's more.

Kona EV is available in bright yellow, which is reason enough for me to get one. If the new Boltium comes only in the dull boring colors typical of these times, I will seriously consider the Kona.

 

[SpicyBolt]

I don't think there's a direct connection, but I do believe the seat vent motors pull the air from the air duct in the console that goes to the rear seats. I have to say the air does feel like it's been cooled, and definitely feels cooler than my EUV seats did. I had both a first and now second generation Niro, and the seats in both seem to be this way.

So in the Niro, the air blows out the little perforations in the seat, unlike the EUV where the air is sucked into the perforations from the cabin air. Your Niro blows, and my EUV sucks.

 

[grog]

Kona EV is available in bright yellow, which is reason enough for me to get one. If the new Boltium comes only in the dull boring colors typical of these times, I will seriously consider the Kona.

I have a 23 Radiant Red Tintcoat and it gets complimented all the time. I've never had a car get that kind of response and I never have had a dull, boring color car. The Bright Blue Metallic is also eye catching. Like you, if I'd not been able to source a 23 Bolt in one of those two colors, I wouldn't have bought one.

The color chart:

https://www.chevybolt.org/threads/rainbow-of-bolts-all-the-colors-that-were-available.57094/?post_id=998630#post-998630

I wonder what sales data GM has on color. Of course if they didn't make a ton of the bold ones in the first place, that screws with the data.

And yeah, somebody in the next block bought a used 2020 in Oasis Blue last year and it's very pretty. One would hope GM will look back at the color chart and provide options like that from 17-20.

 

[BehindBars]

I have a 23 Radiant Red Tintcoat and it gets complimented all the time. I've never had a car get that kind of response and I never have had a dull, boring color car. The Bright Blue Metallic is also eye catching. Like you, if I'd not been able to source a 23 Bolt in one of those two colors, I wouldn't have bought one.

The color chart:

https://www.chevybolt.org/threads/rainbow-of-bolts-all-the-colors-that-were-available.57094/?post_id=998630#post-998630

I wonder what sales data GM has on color. Of course if they didn't make a ton of the bold ones in the first place, that screws with the data.

And yeah, somebody in the next block bought a used 2020 in Oasis Blue last year and it's very pretty. One would hope GM will look back at the color chart and provide options like that from 17-20.

We passed on buying a Radient Red EUV due to it being too dark. Bright Blue Metallic is a misleading name for that relatively dark blue on the Bolt, but I would have liked a Bolt in the Trail Blazer’s brighter Marina Blue color (or just as nice, Nitro Yellow). The early Bolts have some great colors, but then GM later fell in line with medium dark red, medium dark blue, and grey scale, like 98% of the cars made nowadays. We tried to buy Ice Blue but couldn’t find one.

Often a new car introduction will include an eye catching color option that will be shown in the brochures, press releases, web site, etc. Then as the model introduction wanes, the flashy colors go away. I hope to see something exciting on the initial rollout of the Boltium.

 

[SpicyBolt]

I have a 23 Radiant Red Tintcoat and it gets complimented all the time. I've never had a car get that kind of response and I never have had a dull, boring color car. The Bright Blue Metallic is also eye catching. Like you, if I'd not been able to source a 23 Bolt in one of those two colors, I wouldn't have bought one.

The color chart:

https://www.chevybolt.org/threads/rainbow-of-bolts-all-the-colors-that-were-available.57094/?post_id=998630#post-998630

I wonder what sales data GM has on color. Of course if they didn't make a ton of the bold ones in the first place, that screws with the data.

And yeah, somebody in the next block bought a used 2020 in Oasis Blue last year and it's very pretty. One would hope GM will look back at the color chart and provide options like that from 17-20.

Radiant Red Tintcoat is amazing! We ordered an EUV in Ice Blue Metallic for our trade repurchase but before it came in our salesman contacted us about an otherwise identical Bright Blue Metallic that became available due to a sale that fell through. We are actually glad this happened, although Ice Blue is nice, and has its fans.

The 2021 Bolt we gave up was Cayenne Orange Metallic which is why I'm SpicyBolt. That was a very nice color along with the other special color for 2020-2021 only, Oasis Blue. I also like Shock but that would have been over my wife's dead body.

Now we have two Bright Blue Bolts, a 2022 EV and a 2023 EUV. I'd be quite happy with two in your Radiant Red Tintcoat and we'd probably get even more compliments.

 

[rudiger]

I didn't see it mentioned, but the new, 2026 Leaf should be arriving at Nissan dealers soon. Depending on range (looks like the lowest trim will be a lackluster 187 miles) and how (and if) the tax credit applies, it will likely continue to be the closest competitor to the new Bolt.

The old Leaf had its flaws, but many people were quite satisfied with it for the very long time it stayed in production with only a solitary, mostly cosmetic update.

 

[cwerdna]

I didn't see it mentioned, but the new, 2026 Leaf should be arriving at Nissan dealers soon. Depending on range (looks like the lowest trim will be a lackluster 187 miles) and how (and if) the tax credit applies, it will likely continue to be the closest competitor to the new Bolt.

The old Leaf had its flaws, but many people were quite satisfied with it for the very long time it stayed in production with only a solitary, mostly cosmetic update.

I don't know how soon.

at the end mentions global launch June 17th. I interpret that as a press conference and full specs. If we're lucky, we might even get pricing, trim levels and features by trim level and packages.

My wild guess is that '26 Leaf won't arrive for sales at US dealers anywhere between July and Sept 1, 2025 but I have no inside info.

 

[rudiger]

I don't know how soon.

at the end mentions global launch June 17th. I interpret that as a press conference and full specs. If we're lucky, we might even get pricing, trim levels and features by trim level and packages.

My wild guess is that '26 Leaf won't arrive for sales at US dealers anywhere between July and Sept 1, 2025 but I have no inside info.

Vehicles arriving in Nissan showrooms in September would actually coincide with the traditional domestic timeline of the beginning of the fiscal year. In the past, the Pacific Rim has usually kept the model year in production beginning and ending with the calendar year. Considering the current, quite tenuous state of the federal tax credit (the Orange One's BBB is set to kill it), it would behoove Nissan to get the 2026 Leaf into showrooms ASAP.

I noticed the most recent video states that a 250km range can be achieved in 14 minutes of charging. That seems to be deliberately deceptive as 250km equates to 155 miles. Further, I would imagine that's only for the largest battery (and, thus, most expensive) 300 mile Leaf. IOW, for the 187 mile, small battery, cheaper base version Leaf, you would get ~half of the full range (~93 miles) in 14 minutes.

TBH, stopping every 93 miles for a 14 minute fill-up would still be doable for a road trip. Of course, that doesn't allow for any unforeseen contingencies since, to get that quick 14 minute charge, the beginning SOC would have to be low with little room for error.

That's the problem with these quoted, fastest charging times; imagine running the SOC down to just 20% for the fastest charging speed at the next DCFC station that was the only one for miles, only to find it was OOS or otherwise unavailable. Plenty of range anxiety stories on that one, resulting in a few EVers having to do the dreaded flatbed tow.

 

[bisco]

i looked at leaf and ariya when shopping two years ago. fed tax rebate made bolt a no brainer.
they might be more competitive this time around, who knows?

 

[Summit]

kona electric, but if used be sure to but from a hyundai dealer to get full warranty. essentially the same as a Bolt EUV but a little smaller.

I lean buy-USA; even the Bolt has a lot of foreign stuff. The Kia/Hyundai nudge is the 120vac, 3kw port on certain models... but no longer a concern for me, got a work around.

I recently and sadly found out that TSP funds invest in fossil industries, made me ill considering all the years:

Thrift Savings Plan | Fossil Free Funds

The Federal government's retirement plan has billions invested in fossil fuels putting the climate at risk.

fossilfreefunds.org

 

[jagplates]

I bought a 23 EUV Hertz castoff last June with no rebate and I am absolutely delighted with my decision. Still in warranty for nine months. Now if you can find one you qualify for the $4k rebate (most likely) . The savings should be HUGE vs a new Equinox. And the Consumer Reports frequency of repair chart is excellent for the 23 models.
Thats my recommendation for anyone looking for a car.

A 2023 Hertz Bolt is a screaming deal, especially if you can land one with the rebate. For my situation, i really needed the 360 degree cameras, so I ended up paying about $6000 more for a repossessed 2023 (10/2023) 2LT with 9500 miles. But, I would have gone with a Hertz car if it had the cameras.

 

[SpicyBolt]

I lean buy-USA; even the Bolt has a lot of foreign stuff. The Kia/Hyundai nudge is the 120vac, 3kw port on certain models... but no longer a concern for me, got a work around.

I recently and sadly found out that TSP funds invest in fossil industries, made me ill considering all the years:

Thrift Savings Plan | Fossil Free Funds

The Federal government's retirement plan has billions invested in fossil fuels putting the climate at risk.

fossilfreefunds.org

I'm in the TSP also. If it's any consolation, all the TSP funds are index funds that follow major indexes like the S&P 500. So, it's not like they are going out of their way to actively select fossil fuel industries.

I prefer USA too and with bonus points for UAW assembled. I'm a 40 year union member in the National Association of Letter Carriers. The Bolt will continue to be UAW assembled with the new one coming out of Fairfax, KS.