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Not everybody wants a crossover. I prefer the standard Bolt's hatchback form factor and it's more tidy, compact footprint. And Americans love the MINI Cooper, VW GTi and others of that category (like the Mazda 3). And the Bolt competes very well with all of those both on price and performance. The Bolt had a hard time selling because no one knew it existed. There was no advertising for it. And most dealers knew nothing about them, so they couldn't sell them to people that didn't know, either. Had zero to do with it's form factor.
And to Coldjensen's point, why should they look like normal cars? They don't need an engine compartment or a grille or any other normal car styling that is based around having a combustion engine in it. The nice thing about an EV is you CAN get creative with it and move styling past gaping grilles.
What makes it a crossover? Because it has a "U" in its in name? Six inches longer. Less than a quarter inch taller and wider. The trunk behind the rear seat is even smaller...
Not everybody wants a crossover. I prefer the standard Bolt's hatchback form factor and it's more tidy, compact footprint. And Americans love the MINI Cooper, VW GTi and others of that category (like the Mazda 3). And the Bolt competes very well with all of those both on price and performance. The Bolt had a hard time selling because no one knew it existed. There was no advertising for it. And most dealers knew nothing about them, so they couldn't sell them to people that didn't know, either. Had zero to do with it's form factor.
And to Coldjensen's point, why should they look like normal cars? They don't need an engine compartment or a grille or any other normal car styling that is based around having a combustion engine in it. The nice thing about an EV is you CAN get creative with it and move styling past gaping grilles.
I have to disagree there, I don't think Americans in general love the Mini Cooper or the VW GTi, otherwise they would have sold better. Even with the Mazda 3, most I see are sedans, not hatchbacks.
I give the regular Bolt another year or two, and it'll be discontinued once the Bolt EUV gets going. It won't make any sense for GM to keep making it.
I have to disagree there, I don't think Americans in general love the Mini Cooper or the VW GTi, otherwise they would have sold better. Even with the Mazda 3, most I see are sedans, not hatchbacks.
I give the regular Bolt another year or two, and it'll be discontinued once the Bolt EUV gets going. It won't make any sense for GM to keep making it.
The EV version is $2K less, but the EUV version looks nicer and is a good deal bigger, especially the back seat, and the ride should be more composed with the longer wheelbase. The EUV still starts $3.4K under the Hyundai Kona EV base price, which I think should be cross-shopped, and the Kona EV is also smaller, so the price of the new EUV is quite competitive. I also think the new EUV Bolt will clearly outsell the new EV Bolt.
It still only has a 250 mile range, which means in cold weather while running the heat, you'll be lucky to get 175 miles. That will be unacceptable to most people.
In the Volt FB group 90% of the comments about it are negative.
Unless it is really cold we rely on the heated seats and steering wheel which uses much less energy than HVAC.
Unless it is really cold we rely on the heated seats and steering wheel which uses much less energy than HVAC.
And pre-heating the cabin while plugged in. Lasts a long time when you turn off the heat when you get in and just use the heated seats and steering wheel. Ups the range in our Bolt to 220 (and 240 if you are gentle with it)
Unless it is really cold we rely on the heated seats and steering wheel which uses much less energy than HVAC.
That’s fine for warmer climates like where you and I live, I do the same in my Volt, but for someone who lives somewhere like Wisconsin, I’m not sure that heated seats will be enough.
And preheating is fine when you’re at home and the car is plugged in, but it won’t work when the car is sitting in a frigid parking lot unplugged all day while you’re at work. It’s just something people in cold states will have to think about.
That’s fine for warmer climates like where you and I live, I do the same in my Volt, but for someone who lives somewhere like Wisconsin, I’m not sure that heated seats will be enough.
And preheating is fine when you’re at home and the car is plugged in, but it won’t work when the car is sitting in a frigid parking lot unplugged all day while you’re at work. It’s just something people in cold states will have to think about.
Right, so people who have lived and driven in northern climates are familiar with engine block heaters which you in the south might not have come across before. Those can draw a pretty large amount of power, 15A as I recall would generally cover it. It's interesting because that should be pretty decent for level 1 charging. In some respect, it's a bit of infrastructure already built in. Massachusetts, generally not considered a warm weather state, actually does pretty well in EV sales compared to other states that are not California. So does Colorado which while not high in latitude has large parts pretty high in altitude.
I think the real tricky part is when you're talking about Fairbanks, Alaska where the temperature differential between the outside and a warm passenger cabin, say in the 70s or so can be regularly in excess of 100 degrees difference which makes a 50 degree difference seem pretty quaint in comparison.
Aside from Alaska, adoption rates among states currently seem to be correlate a bit more with median income level than outside temperature. After all, tropical paradise Norway has for years double digit EV adoption rates and plugins are the majority of new vehicles sold there today.
I was thinking there are two things that were probably reasonably doable for this refresh that did not happen.
I think one is a sports package / trim for the Bolt EV hatchback to cement that hot hatch quality it has. If it's not an actual powertrain beefing up which might be too costly for the profits possible, then at least some suspension adjustments and a bit of cosmetic flair.
Another is upping the fast charger rate even a little bit. It would seem like the Bolt's fairly large battery and active battery thermal management system could be improved to allow for faster peak charging and overall charging speed. than what it has now. Yes, this does take a bit more resources, but I think this is one area where it's probably worth a little more effort. The Kona EV and Niro EV have similarly sized batteries and from the same battery manufacturer and top out at 75kW and it'd be great if the Bolts did at least that instead of the 50kW.
Last edited by OyCrumbler; 04-24-2021 at 08:20 AM..
I was thinking there are two things that were probably reasonably doable for this refresh that did not happen.
I think one is a sports package / trim for the Bolt EV hatchback to cement that hot hatch quality it has. If it's not an actual powertrain beefing up which might be too costly for the profits possible, then at least some suspension adjustments and a bit of cosmetic flair.
Another is upping the fast charger rate even a little bit. It would seem like the Bolt's fairly large battery and active battery thermal management system could be improved to allow for faster peak charging and overall charging speed. than what it has now. Yes, this does take a bit more resources, but I think this is one area where it's probably worth a little more effort. The Kona EV and Niro EV have similarly sized batteries and from the same battery manufacturer and top out at 75kW and it'd be great if the Bolts did at least that instead of the 50kW.
You can't get around those narrow LRR tires though, they're not the best for spirited driving. A wider tire with better handling would likely decrease range.
The new VW ID.4 base price is $40k and qualifies for the $7500 federal tax credit. That's equivalent to $32,500.
The new Chevy EUV is $34,000 and does not qualify for the $7500 federal tax credit.
The ID.4 is a step up from the EUV in size, has more power, and a little bit more range, but costs $1,500 less after taking the tax credit into account. Seems like GM is getting screwed here as the tax credit situation is putting GM at a competitive disadvantage to VW, Hyundai, etc., and any other carmaker who hasn't burned through their tax credit allotments. Same goes for Tesla, who has also exhausted their credits.
Congress needs to fix this so all manufacturers are on a level playing field.
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