Interesting to see how 2019 treats the Bolt, with the credit phaseout and everything. And will the Bolt get a sister version this year??
We all hope so!
The dealer I bought mine from has -10 -2018 Volts on his lot and no 2019's.
And probably will remain that way unless someone factory ordered a '19.
If by "around 200k", you are horribly incorrectly rounding up from the actual 2018 sales number, 139k, I guess you are right.
Well, it’s closer to 200k than it is to zero.
In China, quite possibly.
That was my train of thought today, more or less. Honestly, I expected 3-4K Bolts, given that the 2019 model is here, and that now is the last month to claim tax credits in 2019. I don't think it's an inventory problem. And I wouldn't be surprised if GM - looking at what they have been doing - moved Bolt's production abroad in the next few months, to a place it would be in higher demand.
This is absolutely shocking!
GJETSON is rightly pointing out the relative lack of traction for all of the non-Tesla EV offerings. Total 2018 EV sales were about 360k, versus 200k in 2017, but nearly all of that increase is attributable to the dramatic increase in Tesla sales as Model 3 production gained traction.
GM is facing an existential problem with regard to dealerships and EVs. For dealerships, these vehicles are a terrible disaster because there's nothing to do once a vehicle leaves the lot. Really the entire automobile industry short of tire dealers faces this problem. A tacit wall of silence at the dealership level from dealers with an iota of imagination is absolutely no surprise.
Maybe, but I don't think so. There has been a lot of press recently about the Hyundai Kona and the Kia Niro and I bet a lot of people are holding off to check those cars out before buying. I know I would. The Bolt now has some real head to head competition and because Hyundai went second, they made sure to best the Bolt in many areas. Unless they make some major changes for 2020, or lower the price a bunch, I can't see Bolt numbers going up anymore. The Hyundai products look very compelling and the price is on par.
They're only pitiful numbers if you look at this as a Tesla vs. Chevy competition. I don't think it is IMO. If you look at it as a specialty, or niche vehicle in Chevy's line up, then the numbers are on par with other specialty vehicles in the marketplace.
Tesla's real problem is going to be how to keep making a profit moving forward selling cheaper cars at the promised $35k, when they can only hit the profit mark by charging crazy prices for mandatory options on their cars. No full tax credit means people might consider looking at those other EVs without a Tesla tag. Musk promised to make up half the difference for the next quarter, but he can't do that forever.
