[Torontonian69]

Isn’t it about time chevy released more changes than what came out for the 2018 model and now the 2019 model?
(http://thenewswheel.com/whats-changing-in-2019-for-the-chevrolet-bolt-ev-spoiler-alert-not-much/)
I am so disappointed range has not been addressed. Or at least a different bolt EV model for example bolt ev SUV, I don’t know... something.
It’s hard not to compare when Tesla has already released batteries that reach over 500 km and 1000 km range... :nerd:

 

[martinknutson]

Isn’t it about time chevy released more changes than what came out for the 2018 model and now the 2019 model?
(http://thenewswheel.com/whats-changing-in-2019-for-the-chevrolet-bolt-ev-spoiler-alert-not-much/)
I am so disappointed range has not been addressed. Or at least a different bolt EV model for example bolt ev SUV, I don’t know... something.
It’s hard not to compare when Tesla has already released batteries that reach over 500 km and 1000 km range... :nerd:

The 1000km Tesla (with the 200kw battery pack) isn't going into "production" until 2020. Hardly released.

http://europe.autonews.com/article/...esla-revives-roadster-with-a-range-of-1000-km

 

[ljpm]

Dang. I placed an order for an Orange Bolt last week. The salesperson told me they had sold their allotment of 2018s and unless one came available I would be getting a 2019. Back to the planning stage. I might even drop down to the LT now that I can get the drivers confidence package on the LT. Might not be all bad.

 

[TimBolt]

Mary Barba has promised an increase in Bolt production, and there’s also a Buick version of the Bolt coming.

Unfortunately, there’s no firm date yet for the Bolt production ramp-up or the Buick release.

Based on many recent posts about low Bolt inventory and lousy lease deals it’s likely Chevy is still throttling Bolt production.

Barra’s promised a very robust EV program at GM. We’re all waiting to see if she really meant it.

As for 2019, I wouldn’t expect any dramatic Bolt changes. It’s only the third year in the model cycle, and with a range of 238 miles the Bolt still has the best range of any EV under $40k.

 

[DaV8or]

What's wrong with the Bolt's range? It's still in a class all by itself. It is absolutely the best bang for the buck in BEVs. If you want Tesla range, you have to pay Tesla prices. I would be asking the reverse question- The 2019 Tesla Model 3 is about to be released and there is still no "affordable, $35,000" version??! WTF?!! Chevy's had theirs for over a year and soon Nissan will have a competing product too, what about it Tesla?

 

[DaV8or]

Dang. I placed an order for an Orange Bolt last week. The salesperson told me they had sold their allotment of 2018s and unless one came available I would be getting a 2019. Back to the planning stage. I might even drop down to the LT now that I can get the drivers confidence package on the LT. Might not be all bad.

It's not all bad. It's all good. I love my LT.

 

[frenchfry]

First of all, GM does not need to compete against Tesla or anybody else. They put out the best car for the money already. Even Nissan got caught with thier shorts around thier ankles. Its crazy to even think Chevy would make anything but mild cosmetic changes to the Bolt so early into the production cycle. The Bolt would technically not be due for an upgrade until 2021 at the earliest. And then, only a mild sheetmetal rework at best. The Bolt needs no battery upgrades. Its not meant for long distance travel. Remember its within 72 miles of the long range M3 and thats pretty **** impressive for a car that costs significantly less.

At the moment, it is still the only car capable of 230 miles under $30,000 US after federal tax credit. You'd have to be crazy to think Chevy needs to change anything on the car given Tesla still can't produce a decent example of the M3 let alone one that costs $35,000.
Granted, Hyundai will probably be the next to reach that threshold...yes even before Tesla...with the Kona and there may be others given how ass backwards Tesla has been acting lately. Musk's childish behavior on the last earnings call clearly showed the cracks in the armour...which is disappointing.
Given the absolute Christmas surprise GM gave us in early 2017 with the Bolt, I would bet another milestone achievement from GM is underway. Perhaps another model entirely with high 2's low 3's range in true SUV guise.

Yes, the Bolt is that good...and it needs no changes whatsoever to stay current and relevant for many years to come. Whether you get a 17, 18 or 19 the only issue here is watching the tax credit phase out for GM, as the car will remain the same.

Once gas prices rise (and they will) the Bolt will be well positioned to take full advantage given our early examples will clearly show the world that a battery pack designed by GM/built by LG can clearly reach 200 or even 300,000 miles...and are just as good if not better than Teslas on a per pack KW price comparison. Tesla's dirty little secret that no one wants to talk about...the price of parts which I have commented on many times. If you really crank the numbers..the Bolt is currently half the price of the current M3 offering on an equal per mile basis. I hate to say it but $13,000 for a new 60KW pack is cheap. Price an M3 pack and get back to me on that if you disagree.
Soon, the new LG factory in Michigan should be up and running and cranking out new packs, thus lowering the per KW cost. Then GM will get serious about volume.

Patience my friends...more GM Christmas presents are on the way.

 

[Goose]

I love Tesla but for the money it’s hard to beat the Bolt. It’s less than $50k out the door with incentives and can go over 300km on a full charge; more than enough for what me and the wife needs in a day.
Instead of buying a $100k+ Tesla my wife and I decided to put the money towards buying a bolt cash and put the other $50k and adding it to to our investment pool. The steady returns we get from this pretty much grants adequate funds for unlimited driving plus maintenance for this car and future vehicles.
I gave the bolt to my wife now and have ordered another one. Hopefully I’ll get it by this fall because I’m officially spoiled by the bolt and hate going to the gas stations to buy gasoline.

 

[quirkySquirt]

I gave the bolt to my wife now...

My condolences.

...and have ordered another one...

woohoo!

Hopefully I’ll get it by this fall because I’m officially spoiled by the bolt and hate going to the gas stations to buy gasoline.

Preach it!

Wow, that was a roller-coaster of emotions.

 

[Jim Fallston Md.]

Dang. I placed an order for an Orange Bolt last week. The salesperson told me they had sold their allotment of 2018s and unless one came available I would be getting a 2019. Back to the planning stage. I might even drop down to the LT now that I can get the drivers confidence package on the LT. Might not be all bad.

You do know that there will not be Orange Bolts for MY 2019, No longer available.

 

[Chwkev]

My condolences.

woohoo!

Preach it!

Wow, that was a roller-coaster of emotions.

Nice reply!

 

[ljpm]

You do know that there will not be Orange Bolts for MY 2019, No longer available.

Ya, hence the 'dang'.

Looks like I am going to end up with the Shock which appears to be the Yellow gold of the Opel based on the bad pick of a color swatch provided by my salesperson.

 

[GlenandhisBolt1!]

And no Arctic Blue either. So sad. But the wider range of options on the LT is a big plus, esp. the safety stuff.

Don't count out a drive battery with more storage on 2019 Bolts, or at least some of them. This is likely more a function of availability than anything else. If they run out of the 60kWh batteries (with 6-1-1 technology), they will immediately start putting the 75kWh batteries (with 1-1-1 technology) into Bolts. The 75kWh batteries will likely be less expensive to produce than the 60kWh batteries.

 

[surgeonFWW]

Here is another twist on things which I honestly had not considered. Last week I “attended” a webinar on Fleet best practices. One speaker was from an entity that purchased 45 Leafs and ~70 Level 2 EVSE. They did NOT WANT higher range as their employees could attend to all their tasks and get back to home base to charge overnight within the range. They did not WANT their employees to attempt to use the EV for ANY personal purpose. Hence, they desired the low range. We (private owners/lessors) feel we want that 240 miles to get to granny’s house. But “nearly” everyone understanding the rEVolution knows that fleet purchases of 50-2000 EVs are what is going to drive production, not individual sales. I had never even considered the impact of Fleet EV adoption. I lived in my little cloud and preached range, range, range. Even a bigwig at Nissan said: range is not the issue, price point is. Thoughts?

 

[gern_blanston]

It's not all bad. It's all good. I love my LT.

This ^^^

 

[Torontonian69]

What's wrong with the Bolt's range? It's still in a class all by itself. It is absolutely the best bang for the buck in BEVs. If you want Tesla range, you have to pay Tesla prices. I would be asking the reverse question- The 2019 Tesla Model 3 is about to be released and there is still no "affordable, $35,000" version??! WTF?!! Chevy's had theirs for over a year and soon Nissan will have a competing product too, what about it Tesla?

You have a good point... it all depends on how we look at the situation and from what angle.

 

[Enzeder]

And no Arctic Blue either. So sad. But the wider range of options on the LT is a big plus, esp. the safety stuff.

Don't count out a drive battery with more storage on 2019 Bolts, or at least some of them. This is likely more a function of availability than anything else. If they run out of the 60kWh batteries (with 6-1-1 technology), they will immediately start putting the 75kWh batteries (with 1-1-1 technology) into Bolts. The 75kWh batteries will likely be less expensive to produce than the 60kWh batteries.

Please, for the love of all things bacon, tell me the 75 kWh pack could be bolted <snicker> into an older Bolt.

I hope, because that's kinda sorta what Tesla does: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/11/business/tesla-battery-irma-upgrade.html

 

[raitchison]

We (private owners/lessors) feel we want that 240 miles to get to granny’s house. But “nearly” everyone understanding the rEVolution knows that fleet purchases of 50-2000 EVs are what is going to drive production, not individual sales. I had never even considered the impact of Fleet EV adoption. I lived in my little cloud and preached range, range, range. Even a bigwig at Nissan said: range is not the issue, price point is. Thoughts?

IMO yes and no, for those kinds of fleet customers price point is definitely going to be the major factor, likewise since fleet customers tend to not keep their vehicles very long the shortcomings in the Nissan battery management system (or lack therof) won't be much of an issue either.

But fleet sales are generally very low profit sales for automakers, Chrysler and GM have been relying heavily on fleet sales to boost their sales numbers for decades but it's not made them a lot of money and in some cases can harm the brand reputation. I can tell you nearly every time I've ever driven a Chrysler product it's been in a rental car and my experience has not caused me to consider any Chrysler product for myself (I did briefly consider the Dodge Magnum when it first came out because it was so damned sexy but I quickly learned you couldn't even buy one with a manual transmission).

Let's look at the ever popular truck segment, without a doubt most fleet trucks (pickups) are either Dodge or Chevy/GMC because they are cheaper but Ford still sells more F-Series trucks in total (though combined GMC and Chevy truck sales are usually somewhat close to Ford's). I also don't doubt that Ford's profit per unit is higher with them not constantly chasing the bottom end of the market (not that Ford turns away fleet customers either).

If we're talking about driving EV adoption that means getting people to consider an EV where they previously wouldn't. For most first time EV buyers range is going to be probably the single most important factor. Yes they'd like to spend less but not to buy a car that won't meet 90% let alone 99% of their vehicle needs.

 

[DaV8or]

Here is another twist on things which I honestly had not considered. Last week I “attended” a webinar on Fleet best practices. One speaker was from an entity that purchased 45 Leafs and ~70 Level 2 EVSE. They did NOT WANT higher range as their employees could attend to all their tasks and get back to home base to charge overnight within the range. They did not WANT their employees to attempt to use the EV for ANY personal purpose. Hence, they desired the low range. We (private owners/lessors) feel we want that 240 miles to get to granny’s house. But “nearly” everyone understanding the rEVolution knows that fleet purchases of 50-2000 EVs are what is going to drive production, not individual sales. I had never even considered the impact of Fleet EV adoption. I lived in my little cloud and preached range, range, range. Even a bigwig at Nissan said: range is not the issue, price point is. Thoughts?

I'd have to disagree. I think range is very important and I don't think fleet sales are going to be any great driver. If you strip out rental cars for the fleet sales figures, the number starts to look pretty tiny. I know of no company that is planning to rent Bolts, or any BEVs on a large scale.

As to range, if the Bolt had come to market with anything less than 200 miles range, I would still be driving 100% gasoline. The only BEVs that work for me at present are the Bolt, the Jaguar iPace and all of the Teslas. I can't afford the Jaguar, or the Teslas and don't really want a Model 3. I'm sure I'm not the first Bolt buyer where this car is their first BEV because they were waiting for affordable range. In addition, this car has converted a lot of hybrid drivers to all electric and I bet if the range were lower, the Bolt would still be a no sale for them.

Having said all that, some people don't need the range, so a low cost short range version the Bolt should be considered by Chevrolet. It's easy to take range out of the car, but it's tough to add it in if it wasn't designed for it. In addition, can see how Chevy could offer a battery upgrade program. Say you buy the cheap, base Bolt with say a 30Kw battery and short range, but in the future, you want more performance but don't want to buy a whole new car. They could offer battery exchanges where they give you some sort of a pro rated credit on your old battery towards the new battery and then they could use the old batteries for energy storage units like Tesla does, or just sell them on the open market for others to use. This has the added benefit of keeping their dealer service centers busy in the era of more and more BEVs.

 

[Lbrooks51115]

I'd have to disagree. I think range is very important and I don't think fleet sales are going to be any great driver. If you strip out rental cars for the fleet sales figures, the number starts to look pretty tiny. I know of no company that is planning to rent Bolts, or any BEVs on a large scale.

As to range, if the Bolt had come to market with anything less than 200 miles range, I would still be driving 100% gasoline. The only BEVs that work for me at present are the Bolt, the Jaguar iPace and all of the Teslas. I can't afford the Jaguar, or the Teslas and don't really want a Model 3. I'm sure I'm not the first Bolt buyer where this car is their first BEV because they were waiting for affordable range. In addition, this car has converted a lot of hybrid drivers to all electric and I bet if the range were lower, the Bolt would still be a no sale for them.

Spot on regarding x hybrid driver converting to electric. Leased the 2012 Leaf but the range was too much of an issue so did not renew the lease despite the generous tax breaks in GA at the time. I specifically purchSe the Bolt because of the extended range. On a completely unrelated note I do think GM is making a huge PR blunder by being overly transparent about not being all in. I am a life time Toyota guy and I could have never imagined purchasing a Chevy. GM and it's dealerships clearly send mixed signals about the Bolt and in my own mind I make a clear distinction between the Bolt and the Chevrolet brand. If Toyota came out with an indentical Vehicle tomorrow I might seriously consider trading it in because I know they would be all in and so would the dealerships.