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So here's my hypothesis: The Bolt is the new 1st Gen Nissan Leaf, with hints of Kia Soul EV.
Because GM didn't have the means to get really far forward (a combination of a ceiling on their talent; the narrative of "let's wait and see what everyone else is doing"; short term profit taking with a quarterly focus at the expense of the long term strength of the company; and a dealer+service network that is not at all incentivized to electrify), the Bolt's resale value will resemble that of the 1st Gen Nissan Leaf and the Kia Soul EV.
The biggest reason has to do with fast charging. The Bolt could hop from DCFC to DCFC, but even die hard Bolt owners know the struggle ahead of them. 50kw charging is painfully slow. In my Soul EV, it took 45 minutes to add to 80ish miles. The problems: 1. even I have a limit as to how much Panda Express I can consume in a day, so one meal at the first stop would allow for 45 minutes. But by the 2nd and subsequent stops, all I'll want to do is lunges, pushups, a bathroom break, and a 20 minute nap / meditation. So with a 30 min max pit stop, the Bolt is realistically a great commuter, and a terrible American road trip car.
In terms of the Bolt's value prop as a commuter, it clearly does well there. But, if simple commuter duties are the real purpose, then look at the Volt, too. The Volt has the means to handle my roundtrip of 90 miles a day, as I have access to free charging at work. If the Bolt is best applied as a commuter, does it make sense to spend a few $K more on a Bolt when my commute allows all EV performance out of a Volt, for less cost?
Now, that points to only Tesla as offering range similar range to the Bolt, and a charge network that fits my 30 minute limit.
Notably, I can buy both a Bolt and a Volt for the price of a Tesla. Two cars for the price of one certainly adds a ton of flexibility. But that also means 2 insurance payments, plus an ICE motor that still needs oil changes, and slow charging all around. Also, the slow charging of the Bolt means that someone in the year 2026 might ask: How long does that take to charge? And be disappointed by that 50kw limit, the same way that we EV enthusiasts of today look at the 1st Gen Leaf's range and wonder how in the world was that ok? (Do a quick CL search for used Nissan Leaf, and see what the used market pricing communicates as to the forward value of that car).
2. I live in the country, and have ample space to park my fleet of cars. But for someone that perhaps has parking constraints, the idea of having a 2nd car to save time spent at chargers (which is the only resource I can't make more of) seems like a real value negative for cars that aren't Tesla. Maybe at some point in 10 years or so, Chargepoint, EVGo, and Electrify America (combined) may have deployed enough DCFC to offer near parity to Tesla's Supercharger network. Those networks will do a lot to help other (meaning, other than Tesla) EV manufaturers to not have as steep of a dive in the resale markets.
BTW, this is a hypothesis. I had a Soul EV and man that car lost value! I got lucky that I recognized it very quickly, and only lost 1k, but the battery degradation was absurd. I also have a Rav4 EV. The best part of that car are the parts not made by Toyota, lol. What I'm trying to flesh out here is will I be better off with a Bolt + a Volt, or stop with the middling steps and just get a Tesla already?
Because GM didn't have the means to get really far forward (a combination of a ceiling on their talent; the narrative of "let's wait and see what everyone else is doing"; short term profit taking with a quarterly focus at the expense of the long term strength of the company; and a dealer+service network that is not at all incentivized to electrify), the Bolt's resale value will resemble that of the 1st Gen Nissan Leaf and the Kia Soul EV.
The biggest reason has to do with fast charging. The Bolt could hop from DCFC to DCFC, but even die hard Bolt owners know the struggle ahead of them. 50kw charging is painfully slow. In my Soul EV, it took 45 minutes to add to 80ish miles. The problems: 1. even I have a limit as to how much Panda Express I can consume in a day, so one meal at the first stop would allow for 45 minutes. But by the 2nd and subsequent stops, all I'll want to do is lunges, pushups, a bathroom break, and a 20 minute nap / meditation. So with a 30 min max pit stop, the Bolt is realistically a great commuter, and a terrible American road trip car.
In terms of the Bolt's value prop as a commuter, it clearly does well there. But, if simple commuter duties are the real purpose, then look at the Volt, too. The Volt has the means to handle my roundtrip of 90 miles a day, as I have access to free charging at work. If the Bolt is best applied as a commuter, does it make sense to spend a few $K more on a Bolt when my commute allows all EV performance out of a Volt, for less cost?
Now, that points to only Tesla as offering range similar range to the Bolt, and a charge network that fits my 30 minute limit.
Notably, I can buy both a Bolt and a Volt for the price of a Tesla. Two cars for the price of one certainly adds a ton of flexibility. But that also means 2 insurance payments, plus an ICE motor that still needs oil changes, and slow charging all around. Also, the slow charging of the Bolt means that someone in the year 2026 might ask: How long does that take to charge? And be disappointed by that 50kw limit, the same way that we EV enthusiasts of today look at the 1st Gen Leaf's range and wonder how in the world was that ok? (Do a quick CL search for used Nissan Leaf, and see what the used market pricing communicates as to the forward value of that car).
2. I live in the country, and have ample space to park my fleet of cars. But for someone that perhaps has parking constraints, the idea of having a 2nd car to save time spent at chargers (which is the only resource I can't make more of) seems like a real value negative for cars that aren't Tesla. Maybe at some point in 10 years or so, Chargepoint, EVGo, and Electrify America (combined) may have deployed enough DCFC to offer near parity to Tesla's Supercharger network. Those networks will do a lot to help other (meaning, other than Tesla) EV manufaturers to not have as steep of a dive in the resale markets.
BTW, this is a hypothesis. I had a Soul EV and man that car lost value! I got lucky that I recognized it very quickly, and only lost 1k, but the battery degradation was absurd. I also have a Rav4 EV. The best part of that car are the parts not made by Toyota, lol. What I'm trying to flesh out here is will I be better off with a Bolt + a Volt, or stop with the middling steps and just get a Tesla already?
