[michael nola]

Year after year, North American consumers are buying mid size to full size SUV in droves. People just can't get enough of them despite the gasoline price hike. Only a handful of forward thinking people buy sensible EV like the Bolt for it's effiency and compact size. A rebranded Bolt sized GM vehicle might have done better in Europe and Asia.

It's amazing that a sensibly priced compact EV can't compete with a very expensive SUV like the Model Y.
Tesla Model Y will continue to outsell a Bolt.
N.A. consumers are craving Chevy Traverse sized or Blazer sized electric SUV. Once these mid to large electric vehicles are in full production, you will begin to see a shift going towards OEM like General Motors. Until then Tesla will continue to dominate the market.

Americans like bling and big. Tesla's minimalist interior design may have to be spruced up to compete with the OEM's, not because of functionality, but just more stuff to touch and look at. Me, I'd like an interior like the Mazda 3, but that's just not glitzy enough for most.

 

[SpicyBolt]

I can't say for sure where Tesla will be in the next 5 years, but our dear legacy car manufacturers have been throwing at us "Tesla killers" since 2017, and, surprisingly, Tesla is still very far from being dethroned, in the US that is.

The legacy car manufacturers have not been throwing at us "Tesla killers" since 2017. The media has just portrayed them as such to generate clicks. Perhaps they succeeded in fooling some people.

 

[Zapster]

[O]ur dear legacy car manufacturers have been throwing at us "Tesla killers" since 2017

Did they call them that, or was that an invention of some besotted auto writer? (Look, It happens: Consider "national malaise," a phrase Jimmy Carter never said.) I couldn't find a single press release online from any of those darlings of yours containing that exact phrase. Please share.

 

[FlashBoltEUV]

I was able to go the LA Auto Show one day before opening day and met and talked with the GM engineers behind the Equinox, Blazer and Silverado. When I asked them about GM's plans for Bolt sized vehicles, HB's or sedans, they all went mum as they looked at each other. All had been forthcoming until I asked that question.

My guess is 2025 at the very earliest.

That would be my guess too. GM needs to earn back the R&D money for Ultium before they start using it for less profitable vehicle segments, so I fully expect the first two years of production at least to focus on the big ticket stuff. I think it took them five years to pay off the R&D for the Bolt before they could cut the price, but they were selling Bolts in much smaller numbers than they'll sell the Ultium vehicles.

 

[Vaughan Pratt]

I don't give GM credit for having any brains at all. They will keep the Bolt in production only until the Equinox EV is out. They thought that would be 2023, but they will soon realize it's harder than it looks to make an EV. In a few years they'll realize they need a Bolt-size vehicle again, then maybe the Tracker. Selling a non-Ultium vehicle won't sit well with the jugheads at GM and they won't bother to redesign the Bolt from the ground up to use it.

But I think until The Equinox arrives in quantity, the Bolt will be pushed hard, so 2023 should be fun for us Bolt fans.

I don't see the Equinox as a drop-in replacement for the Bolt. Here are the known lengths for present and future GM EVs.

Bolt EV 163.2"
Bolt EUV 169.5"
Chevy Equinox 190.4"
Chevy Blazer ~194"
Cadillac Lyriq 196.7"
GMC Hummer 216.8"
Chevy Silverado 233"

For comparison here are two EV versions of very popular small cars, both shorter than the Bolt EV.

BMW Mini EV 151.7"
Honda Fit EV 162"

The Bolt EV is 1.2" longer than the Honda Fit EV, but 27" shorter than the Chevy Equinox EV. I have the VIN of my Lyriq Debut Edition, I just don't have the car yet. It will be an upgrade from our 2019 Bolt EV provided my wife doesn't mind the increase in length of 33.2", almost three feet! It will barely fit in our garage, and is way more than we need. We've been amazed at how much stuff we've been able to fit behind the Bolt EV's rear seat when up, let alone when it's down.

For myself, my only interest in the Lyriq over the EUV is its allegedly superior sensing, which I expect will make it's Super Cruise more capable than the EUV's version. As soon as I can get a Bolt-sized BEV3 with Super Cruise I'll be happy to end my lease on the Lyriq, assuming we decide to go with it rather than an EUV with Super Cruise. The Equinox is too close in length to the Lyriq to justify moving to it from the Lyriq.

Our use case is a fortnightly run between Palo Alto and Pacific Grove, 180 miles of highway driving round trip on US-101. Since we'll both be 80 next year, approaching the age when your kids start wanting to take your keys away, we see Super Cruise as ideal for our use case. The more competent it is, the better.

 

[Dimitrij]

The legacy car manufacturers have not been throwing at us "Tesla killers" since 2017. The media has just portrayed them as such to generate clicks. Perhaps they succeeded in fooling some people.

I would say that pretty much verything that commercial media does is done to "generate clicks", as you put it, because that's how the media generate their revenue. Of course they will come up with catchy phrases and witticisms in pursuit of their business goals.

I would venture to say that most readers are typically able to detect elements of figurative speech such as idioms, hyperboles, allegories etc. that are not to be interpreted literally. I would think people shouldn't find it difficult to understand that "Tesla killer" was a media cliche, obviously, no-one wasn't going to kill anyone

 

[Zapster]

I would say that pretty much everything that commercial media does is done to "generate clicks", as you put it, because that's how the media generate their revenue. Of course they will come up with catchy phrases and witticisms in pursuit of their business goals.

The point is that the phrase was misattributed. YMMV, but I don't like it when other people put words in my mouth.

 

[Dimitrij]

The point is that the phrase was misattributed. YMMV, but I don't like it when other people put words in my mouth.

What phrase, "Tesla killer"? I personally don't know or care who coined it, and neither does the overwhelming majority of the posters here; it's kind of popped up a while ago and didn't go away, so I guess it's a now a de facto part of the EV-themed slang. The conversation is about the sales figures, wound't we do well to stick to the subject?

 

[jlmcreda]

I'm usually the last to find out stuff, but chevy sold 16000+ bolts in Last Q4 and 15000+ in Q3. Electretek says its the best selling in US of "mainstream" (non teslas). And thats with people like me maneuvering to get mine in Q1 2023 to get the rebate. Is gm really going to discontinue the bolt? It doesnt seem to make good buisness sense, but i expect to hear "...it doesn't fit into our production planning for the ultium battery chassis"

I think that's probably an accurate statement. The Bolt was engineered for an older battery and motor technology. The Ultium is causing a re-design. I think they'll
come out with something similar to the Bolt, but using the new stuff. They've got to like their numbers especially given the challenges the LG chemical batteries
caused.

 

[Zapster]

What phrase, "Tesla killer"? I personally don't know or care who coined it?

That explains the carelessness then, doesn't it?

 

[Dimitrij]

That explains the carelessness then, doesn't it?

So, what do you think about the Q4 sales figures?

 

[Zapster]

So, what do you think about the Q4 sales figures?

I think they're extraordinarily good. Gratifying even.

 

[michael nola]

That would be my guess too. GM needs to earn back the R&D money for Ultium before they start using it for less profitable vehicle segments, so I fully expect the first two years of production at least to focus on the big ticket stuff. I think it took them five years to pay off the R&D for the Bolt before they could cut the price, but they were selling Bolts in much smaller numbers than they'll sell the Ultium vehicles.

Agree. GM has to make as much money as fast as they can before going to the lower priced vehicles though the Equinox is pretty low priced. I was surprised at how big it is, way too big for my needs. They should sell a lot of them, assuming it drives as well as it looks.

 

[Tom&SarahInYpsi]

The sales of the Bolt really have been astonishing. While they may not make much money, the Bolt might be viewed as a gateway vehicle to higher end EV’s in the future. Many Bolt early adopters will have home charging capability in place, so one of the perceived barriers to entry will have been already addressed.
We will see.

Nice turn of phrase ("gateway vehicle"). In fact, last month, we added a second EV to our garage, having learned a lot from driving our now 2-year old Bolt, including having installed L2 charging in our garage. Based on our Bolt experience, we confidently traded in our Subaru Forester on a VW ID.4 AWD Pro S and no longer have ICE vehicle at all. (We might have opted for another GM EV, but the time line for Blazer roll-out was not going to work for us.)
It's been interesting to compare the two EVs, but that's a topic for another post!

 

[kent]

So Chevy is busy building cars but I still can't get a battery.

I expect Q1 sales will be very good. With or without the tax credit it is still an affordable EV. With interests rates continuing to go up people who borrow to purchase or lease will face higher costs. Lots of big pickups and SUVs available. Luxury cars are in very good supply. Says to me people are looking at less expensive alternatives. Tesla is pretty sharp at pricing so they will probably see and realize it before most others.

Not worried about it being discontinued but GM has a long history of running with something and then dropping it. Think Fiero, Solstice, Saturn, Volt, ... They have worked very hard to get the Bolt back after the fire problem. Bolt nameplate is very recognizable and they need to keep it going forward but who knows. I'm not surprised at the sales volume, it's a great small car/crossover/whatever.

I still haven't gotten a battery either. C'mon GM, finish the job.

 

[SpicyBolt]

I still haven't gotten a battery either. C'mon GM, finish the job.

Someone's gotta be last. Maybe it's between you, and @RoadTripBiker .