Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

    With the Chevy Volt being in the news so much lately, I thought I would consider specific reasons why I would or would not purchase this car. I arrived at the decision that I would not and below are some of the reasons why...

    With sales of the Chevy Volt being as low as they have been, I started thinking about the specific reasons that would or would not cause me to buy one of these cars. After doing some research on the vehicle, it became obvious where the problems reside. The vehicle only gets 35 miles (EPA estimated, GM says it is 25-50 miles) on a single charge. Many Americans drive further than that in a single trip, or may make many trips totaling more than that number before gaining the ability to recharge the battery. In my situation, we travel 75-85 miles one way to work, so the overwhelming majority of my trip would be on gas and not battery. Ok, so what kind of fuel efficiency can we expect from the Volt? It is estimated to get 37 MPG on gas. By comparison, a 4-cylinder all-gas engine could get 35-40 MPG. Cars such as the Hyundai Elantra, Chevy Cruze, Ford Focus and others will easily be able to achieve these numbers. Further, you must buy a charging device that costs nearly $500 and pay an electrician to hook it up to your home's existing electrical grid. What if you live in an apartment or rent a house from a landlord who does not want alterations to their property? If that is the case, you cannot even get a charging station in your home.

    The number of people who would be able to charge this vehicle while they are at work is almost non-existent. How many work places in this country even have a charging station or are slated to do so anytime soon? There are an unlimited number of places which one might choose to drive to and not find a charging station. It seems as though the reality is the fact that you will be driving on gas much more often than driving on battery. If that is the case, you just bought yourself at $44 - 46,000 car which gets 30-something miles per gallon. At this time, there is a $7500 tax credit for buying this car. A couple of things to consider about this tax credit. You would still need to drive the vehicle for a minimum of 8 years to break even on the cost of driving something like a Honda Accord. Find cheaper car like a Ford Focus and that 8 year figure balloons substantially. Further, the Federal Government has spent an enormous amount of money subsidizing the Volt. Some estimates even have the total cost of taxpayer subsidies at $250,000 per Chevy Volt sold (Michigan Capitol Confidential). These subsidies exist while government tells our soldiers that they will need to start paying for their own healthcare.

    Back to the Volt itself; charging stations are simply too few and far between. Additionally, the need to get moving again before a full charge can be obtained is too great. It takes 10 hours to charge the Volt on a standard outlet or 4 hours on what is called a "Volt" supply.

    Another area of concern for me is the 9.2 second 0-60 acceleration time the car achieves. Weak cars are a hazard. When merging into traffic on a highway the ability to get the car up to traffic flow speed is crucial. The Chevy Volt is only achieving a 9.2 second 0-60 time for a high price. You can find a vehicle for $20,000 less than a Volt that could complete a 0-60 run in 6 seconds. If the car could achieve an all-electric range of something like 100 miles instead of 35, these numbers might be tolerable.

    I am not against this car for political reasons or the fact that I detest GM since they cut Pontiac, took bailout money and lied about paying it back. If they can somehow find a way to make this car successful, great. I do not hope for this car's failure. I do feel like this car was rushed to the American public before it was prepared for prime time due to political pressure. That is what can happen when private industry and government lie in bed together.
    Done: G6 2009.5 spoiler, Eibach Springs, Disc Italia cross-drilled and slotted rotors, Disc Italia ceramic brake pads, GT-R Exhaust, CRAB Intake, GM body kit, G6 GXP Street Edition Hood, recessed upper/lower grilles painted matte satin silver, red brake calipers w/decals, 35% tint
    Electric Blue body color matched: Stock GTP rims on inner portion only, Racingline strut bar, engine cover, battery cover & interior trim pieces

    My Progression Thread

  • #2
    Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

    All these issues I see with every electrical car or REAL hybrid. Watch the Top Gear episode of them testing the Nissan Leaf and I forget the other one they tested I think it was a Reno but they have an issue with the range and charging stations. The world is just not ready for this invention yet which is the biggest problem.

    The 0-60 time is actually better than what the Leaf will do plus I think is on par with most REAL hybrids that I've seen.

    My overall thing is I will never buy a hybrid because I'm not in the point of my life where I don't mind spending more money for a little fun in car.

    Car Domain | ForeverPontiac.com | Progression

    Originally posted by WoodburyMan
    G6Performance - now with TWO Hampsters!

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

      this car was built with the daily city driver in mind. like poeple in los angeles for instance. people driving less than 65 or 70 miles per day would notice about 1000 miles per tank for a combines total of 35-40 miles electric and 30 miles/1gallon gas with a 16 gallon tank. from the volts first ineption I have ALWAYS wanted one. lets say gas is 4 bucks a gollon and you fill up with 50 bucks every 2 weeks, only do local city driving and you but on a WHOPPING 70 MILES PER DAY and you fill up every 2 weeks....1000 miles for 100 bucks isnt bad at all I'll take that any day.

      basically at the end of the day it all comes down to if you are going to buy a volt than you have to be wise enough to determine how it's going to be used. no long trips to vegas better left to a pruis, because lets face it this volt beats out the pruis on a daily commute. but the pruis wins by a long shot on drives longer than 70 miles.

      1 i dont know anyone who would willingly put 70 miles per day on their own vehicle
      2 this car looks a bazillion times sicker than a pruis
      3 this information was based on one charge per night while you sleep. no charge necessary while at work to acheive 1000 miles per tank

      4 gm released a statistic not too long ago that on average volt owners were reporting 1000 miles per tank which agrees with my point of view.

      reasonable doubt's?

      when considering purchasing one of these things is repair costs...this car is very advanced and you cant take it to just your average joe mechanic. at this point who knows what the true cost of ownership might be. buyer beware.

      the other down side is this car might not be fun to drive...once you get past the new car phase i mean when everything is new and working in peak condition. this car will save you literally hundreds per month, but look at how much extra your're forking over for the car up front. that might not be very cost effective.

      because you have to fork over so much money up front just to jump on that 1000 mile per tank selling point, you might find yourself looking at a comaro 2ss with rs bumblebee edition when your wife told you to go and buy a volt. which is around the same price as this car but gets 12mpg city and 18 highway



      i watched 1 episode of the British top gear and they said they were getting 60mpg out of an audi tt and at that point i learned never to trust anything top gear says. maybe mpg is different in Britain, and no they were not talking about kpg
      Last edited by samurai; 03-04-2012, 02:18 PM.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

        You don't know anyone who willingly puts 70 miles per day on their car? Really? Most Americans live in suburban sprawl and put a ton of miles on their vehicles. If GM is wondering why the Volt isn't selling, how about the fact that the car only appeals to a small niche and they aren't even buying it.

        You say it is marketed to those in the city, but they are not buying this car either. If you take out government sales of the Volt, private sales are remarkably low. Also, only a very specific situation would warrant the cost savings on fuel. The vast majority of people who would buy this car would need to drive the Volt for 8 years at a MINIMUM to see a break even on the cost. The technology is just not ready yet.
        Done: G6 2009.5 spoiler, Eibach Springs, Disc Italia cross-drilled and slotted rotors, Disc Italia ceramic brake pads, GT-R Exhaust, CRAB Intake, GM body kit, G6 GXP Street Edition Hood, recessed upper/lower grilles painted matte satin silver, red brake calipers w/decals, 35% tint
        Electric Blue body color matched: Stock GTP rims on inner portion only, Racingline strut bar, engine cover, battery cover & interior trim pieces

        My Progression Thread

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

          i agree, one thing i left out of my post was consumers are still more likely to buy a Prius because the cost of owning it just came down not too long ago. but they were priced similarly when the 2nd gen was released. it was 32 grand for a Prius with nav and 25 for one without. after the government rebate the volt drops to around the price of the newly released Prius. It's not for everyone But hey, volts are still cool without a doubt. no i barely drive 70 miles per day and i hate it. i don't want to put so many cars on my g6 i got on 06 with 60k miles and this commute is stacking on the miles like you wouldn't believe and i hate it.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

            not to mention by the time you get your eletric bill each month it will probably not be any less than paying for gas..........and agreed on the 70 miles a day the closest ive been able to stay is 30 miles from work, the just i just finished it was 60 miles one way to work....... its crazy of someone to think that ppl wouldnt willingly put 70 miles a day on their vehicle lol

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

              i like the Volt. due to cost and commute it is not practical for me to own one. that said i belive this is the future of cars. as of right now this car is a great technological breakthrough its an elctric car that truthfuly has unlimited mileage yes beyond like 40 miles its all on gas but still you dont have to look for a charging staton instantly when your out of juice. At this time it sucks that range is so low but as long as technology keeps advancing range will go up and up until eventually you get that 100 miles from a charge at which point the car will apeal to the masses in a greater way

              Remember if "the" and "and" are spelled right its not a genuine Ahuhn post


              Dear God, please send clothes to all those poor ladies in Daddy's computer. Amen.
              Originally posted by snowmanG6
              you would try to tape a poptart to her then give her a bag a skittles and tell her to fart a rainbow

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

                i dont like it at all. ive drove several at the dealer i work at and its 50 miles per charge. once the battery runs dead it will turn on the gas engine to charge the battery periodically. you can go more than 50 miles but thats just on electric only. altough i will say they are faster than 4 cyl mailibu cause i race one of the other guys from work. lol

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

                  At this point, a hybrid makes more sense than a Volt or a Leaf.

                  With a hybrid, you won't have any charging issues, it's a lot cheaper, and you don't have to change your driving pattern at all.
                  Just like any other gasoline only car, you just fill it up and drive off and you get instant gas mileage savings.

                  A plug-in hybrid such as the Volt is a fantastic idea. Unfortunately the battery technology and the re-charging infrastructure are still years behind in development.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

                    I wouldn't get a volt for the price tag alone! I could spend a lot less and by a hybrid that gets good gas mileage or many other small cars! I like the design but the price just isn't worth it in my opinion!

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

                      Originally posted by SexyG6 View Post
                      not to mention by the time you get your eletric bill each month it will probably not be any less than paying for gas..........and agreed on the 70 miles a day the closest ive been able to stay is 30 miles from work, the just i just finished it was 60 miles one way to work....... its crazy of someone to think that ppl wouldnt willingly put 70 miles a day on their vehicle lol
                      I'm less than 10 miles away from work 9.4 to be exact.

                      But technology will only get better. To me the battery is an inefficient source to store energy at the current point in time.

                      Car Domain | ForeverPontiac.com | Progression

                      Originally posted by WoodburyMan
                      G6Performance - now with TWO Hampsters!

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt



                        lol
                        Mods: GT-R exhaust, CRABs O3 w/FPU, 35% tint, 5000K HID lows/fogs, upper/lower recessed grilles, Racingline strut bar, concept darts, white LED map/dome/mirror/trunk/license/reverse lights

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

                          ^^Good article. lol. I am not against the electric car idea taking off and becoming more widely used. I just wish that politics wouldn't force a technology onto the market before it has fully matured. In the current environment GM just isn't going to sell many Volts. I don't understand why they don't know that. Then again, this is the company that pushed an Aztek and a Montana onto their "performance" division.
                          Done: G6 2009.5 spoiler, Eibach Springs, Disc Italia cross-drilled and slotted rotors, Disc Italia ceramic brake pads, GT-R Exhaust, CRAB Intake, GM body kit, G6 GXP Street Edition Hood, recessed upper/lower grilles painted matte satin silver, red brake calipers w/decals, 35% tint
                          Electric Blue body color matched: Stock GTP rims on inner portion only, Racingline strut bar, engine cover, battery cover & interior trim pieces

                          My Progression Thread

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

                            ^ very true!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Thoughts about the Chevy Volt

                              Originally posted by ungerdog View Post
                              ^^Good article. lol. I am not against the electric car idea taking off and becoming more widely used. I just wish that politics wouldn't force a technology onto the market before it has fully matured. In the current environment GM just isn't going to sell many Volts. I don't understand why they don't know that.

                              Car Domain | ForeverPontiac.com | Progression

                              Originally posted by WoodburyMan
                              G6Performance - now with TWO Hampsters!

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X