Bolt EV gripes

[Carney]

No CD player. (At least, no mention is made of one in the specs.)

No silver grill available for the Arctic Blue Metallic color.

Fast charge is extra instead of standard.

 

[voltage]

They did leave a lot of old school tech out of the Bolt which is a shame - some of us still us the CD player - :lol:

 

[Zoomit]

For each his own... but the last time I played a CD in a car was 2003. I'm grateful it doesn't have a CD player.

 

[GetOffYourGas]

Fast Charge should absolutely be standard. I think that those who buy (not lease) a Bolt without one are penny-wise and pound-foolish. It cannot be added later, and the resale value will probably drop more than the $750 cost of the port. Leasing avoids this issue, but it does have the potential to flood the post-lease market with less desirable cars.

 

[laev]

Fast charge should be standard but from a business perspective I understand why it's not

 

[GetOffYourGas]

Fast charge should be standard but from a business perspective I understand why it's not

I can understand the business case for leaving it off the entry-level trim. GM promised "under $30k", and they delivered. Some things didn't make the cut, and became options.

However, I disagree with any "business case" for leaving it off the Premium package. It should be optional on the LT and standard on the Premium. JMO, of course.

 

[NeilBlanchard]

CD's are way too bulky to carry around, and they get beat up. They do sound better than MP3's but I use 320K files, and there is barely any difference. Carrying around thousands of recordings is MUCH more convenient.

 

[GetOffYourGas]

The thing with CDs - they're still the latest technology for selling/distributing audio on a physical medium. Say I go to a conference, and want to buy a talk from my favorite speaker. They cannot *hand* me an MP3 (or pick your favorite format). They will hand me a CD.

That said, it's really just an occasional minor inconvenience. It means I have to take the CD home and transfer it to a USB stick. Of course, I cannot use my new MacBook Pro without an external CD drive, as that doesn't come with one anymore either.

 

[new2evs]

Fast Charge should absolutely be standard. I think that those who buy (not lease) a Bolt without one are penny-wise and pound-foolish. It cannot be added later, and the resale value will probably drop more than the $750 cost of the port. Leasing avoids this issue, but it does have the potential to flood the post-lease market with less desirable cars.

Totally agree with this

 

[laev]

Fast charge should be standard but from a business perspective I understand why it's not

I can understand the business case for leaving it off the entry-level trim. GM promised "under $30k", and they delivered. Some things didn't make the cut, and became options.

However, I disagree with any "business case" for leaving it off the Premium package. It should be optional on the LT and standard on the Premium. JMO, of course.

You make a good point n I think someone also stated there is a difference as well with a lease purchase and a full purchase

 

[evguy]

And remember that's US only - in Canada we get fast charging as standard equipment on both models.

(now the real question is why did Chevy make this a Canada-only thing? Maybe because they tried to give more value since the price is high here because of poor exchange rate?)

 

[c1987]

At least the DCFC is available to add on. My grip is no integrated GPS navigation map.

 

[DucRider]

My grip is no integrated GPS navigation map.

I actually put that in the plus column.

 

[Zoomit]

Two articles on a recent JD Power study on in car nav use:

https://amp.cnn.com/money/2016/10/10/autos/car-navigation-frustration/index.html

http://www.autoevolution.com/news/s...stems-are-ignored-by-most-drivers-112052.html

 

[wwhitney]

On the topic of NAV in the Bolt, the original announcement in January, 2016 said there would be a NAV system:

http://media.chevrolet.com/media/us/en/chevrolet/news.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2016/Jan/boltev/0106-boltev-reveal.html

Of course, the order guide doesn't discuss a NAV system. But it is apparently still planned:

http://www.hybridcars.com/early-bolt-evs-may-not-have-promised-navigation/

Cheers, Wayne

 

[michael]

My grip is no integrated GPS navigation map.

I actually put that in the plus column.

I agree. The day of integrated GPS is over. I use Waze exclusively

My gripes, however, are the lack of Homelink, and the apparent decision to use resistive heating rather than a heat pump

 

[c1987]

On the topic of NAV in the Bolt, the original announcement in January, 2016 said there would be a NAV system:

http://media.chevrolet.com/media/us/en/chevrolet/news.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2016/Jan/boltev/0106-boltev-reveal.html

Of course, the order guide doesn't discuss a NAV system. But it is apparently still planned:

http://www.hybridcars.com/early-bolt-evs-may-not-have-promised-navigation/

Cheers, Wayne

Maybe something is there. I know the Volt OnStar directions are substandard. I do not want to have to pull over to find a charge station on my phone when on a trip or call OnStar to route me there.

"EV Navigation Mapping: EV-specific navigation capability that designs routes to maximize range and provide locations of nearby charging station locations if needed"

 

[SparkE]

On the topic of NAV in the Bolt, the original announcement in January, 2016 said there would be a NAV system:

http://media.chevrolet.com/media/us/en/chevrolet/news.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2016/Jan/boltev/0106-boltev-reveal.html

Of course, the order guide doesn't discuss a NAV system. But it is apparently still planned:

http://www.hybridcars.com/early-bolt-evs-may-not-have-promised-navigation/

Cheers, Wayne

Maybe something is there. I know the Volt OnStar directions are substandard. I do not want to have to pull over to find a charge station on my phone when on a trip or call OnStar to route me there.

"EV Navigation Mapping: EV-specific navigation capability that designs routes to maximize range and provide locations of nearby charging station locations if needed"

What would be the MOST useful would be a feature to allow a smart phone to control (?a portion of?) the car's display. The driver then uses the phone's voice-activated features (or touch-screen on the car's display), and the phone can tell and/or show the driver what s/he needs to know. THAT would be the feature *I* would want. I would get ALL of the features of the phone, and when I upgraded my phone, then I'd also upgrade my feature set for the car.

 

[DucRider]

What would be the MOST useful would be a feature to allow a smart phone to control (?a portion of?) the car's display. The driver then uses the phone's voice-activated features (or touch-screen on the car's display), and the phone can tell and/or show the driver what s/he needs to know. THAT would be the feature *I* would want. I would get ALL of the features of the phone, and when I upgraded my phone, then I'd also upgrade my feature set for the car.

I think you just described Android Auto/Apple Car Play and how it will function on the Bolt.

 

[SparkE]

What would be the MOST useful would be a feature to allow a smart phone to control (?a portion of?) the car's display. The driver then uses the phone's voice-activated features (or touch-screen on the car's display), and the phone can tell and/or show the driver what s/he needs to know. THAT would be the feature *I* would want. I would get ALL of the features of the phone, and when I upgraded my phone, then I'd also upgrade my feature set for the car.

I think you just described Android Auto/Apple Car Play and how it will function on the Bolt.

Then I certainly don't need GPS functionality integrated into the vehicle.