Any suggestions for my Bolt test drive (Saturday)

[SeanNelson]

That kind of thing simply hasn't happened on the Prius C forum, even though that was a brand new from-the-ground-up model when it was introduced.

I'm fairly sure that the Prius C uses the Gen 2 engine, and I thought that it used a modified Yaris body platform.

Similar comments could be made about the Gen2 Volt, yet it's had what I'd consider to be more than its fair share of teething problems. The Volt continues to enjoy an outstanding owner's satisfaction rating despite its worse than average frequency of repair rating, because it does what it does better than any other car on the market. But now that Toyota has come out with an improved plug-in Prius GM needs to step up its game. You can already see plug-in Prius sales numbers catching up with the Volt despite its considerably weaker specs. Toyota has a deservedly strong reputation for building reliable cars, but despite its improvements GM has yet to match that.

...I've always been surprised at how people complain that the C is way too slow, when it uses the same drivetrain as the Gen 2
(presumably in a lighter body), which didn't get the same complaint...

I have a theory about that. The Prius C has a throttle graph that shows you how far you've depressed the accelerator pedal. The graph is divided into an "eco" range and a "power" range. But there's a secret - the top end of the "power" range is nowhere near the full range of pedal travel. If you stomp the pedal down beyond that maximum point on the graph you get a lot more power. The Prius C is not performance car, but I've never been in a situation where I hasn't had the power to do what I need it to do (although the engine revs up and sounds like a banshee when I push it like that).

 

[LeftieBiker]

LeftieBiker wrote:
...I've always been surprised at how people complain that the C is way too slow, when it uses the same drivetrain as the Gen 2
(presumably in a lighter body), which didn't get the same complaint...


I have a theory about that. The Prius C has a throttle graph that shows you how far you've depressed the accelerator pedal. The graph is divided into an "eco" range and a "power" range. But there's a secret - the top end of the "power" range is nowhere near the full range of pedal travel. If you stomp the pedal down beyond that maximum point on the graph you get a lot more power. The Prius C is not performance car, but I've never been in a situation where I hasn't had the power to do what I need it to do (although the engine revs up and sounds like a banshee when I push it like that).

It's amazing to think of a car's driver consulting a graph on the dash before flooring the pedal, but then Prius drivers do tend to do things a little differently...

 

[boltage]

You can already see plug-in Prius sales numbers catching up with the Volt despite its considerably weaker specs. Toyota has a deservedly strong reputation for building reliable cars, but despite its improvements GM has yet to match that.

The Prius Prime is attractively priced, to the point that, after PHEV incentives, it is price-competitive with the regular Prius. Someone may well find that the ability to get diamond lane stickers is more useful to him/her than the fifth seating position that is present in the regular Prius but not in the Prius Prime.

 

[oilerlord]

I just hope it's not a problem that disables the car, especially if that strands me somewhere inconvenient.

There are things in life that are beyond our control, and not worth worrying about. Automotive act-of-god stuff is what your BCAA membership is for.

 

[ScooterCT]

Sigh... We didn't get around to test driving the Bolt test drive today. We just ran out of time.

We drove a 2014 and 2017 Volt, which were adequate but just didn't grab us. I disliked the Volt regen brakes - I drifted through two stop signs before I got the hang of them. And even then they just felt wrong. The rear seats were pretty claustrophobic. The interior was GM mundane. It was surprisingly small inside. Neither one of us felt drawn to it, and we're both EV fans.

Next we drove the BMW I3, which I absolutely adored (my friend had zero interest). Totally unique, beautiful, high quality interior experience. Lots of eco cred, with recycled materials everywhere. Doors and hatch shut with a solid thunk - they felt like a Mercedes S. Incredibly cool thing to drive, with wonderful front visibility - lots of glass everywhere. The one pedal driving was absolutely perfectly tuned. Just overall a feeling of high quality throughout. Rear seats were kind of cramped. Too bad it was $55,000 new with a range extender. I would have walked out of the BMW dealership with an I3 if was a pure electric with 200+ mile range. But for the $55,000 they're asking for an I3, I can get a two year old Tesla S with reasonably low mileage direct from Tesla. Here in NE, you can get a used 2014 I3 with range extender for $18,000 asking price and only 9,000 miles on the odo. Maybe even a lower price with some bargaining. If the Bolt doesn't impress, I might have to get a used I3.

On the Bolt test drive next weekend! Hoping it impresses more on the road than it does on the auto show floor. I think if it impresses us, my friend might buy the Bolt.

 

[LeftieBiker]

A bit OT, but a guy on the Leaf forum follows the i3 on Facebook, and says that they have had numerous problems with the ReX version - including issues that brick the car at the side of the road.

 

[ScooterCT]

That's interesting about the reX system. The i3 salesman made a significant effort to show me the "call for help" button by the mirror, so BMW can send a tow truck. Range extension doesn't appeal to me as an engineer. It's an awkward interim hack to get from pure ICE to pure BEV. Really, range extenders cover the whole spectrum from a hybrid to the Volt. They're all the worst of both worlds. I understand why they sell, and why they're temporarily useful. But, if I might paraphrase the movie Dr. Strangeglove, "they lack purity of essence".

 

[LeftieBiker]

For now, at least, the Volt is the best ReX type car on the market - at least in the sense of being reliable, and having adequate power after charge is exhausted.