Interested in the Bolt EV? What do you currently drive?

[Anonymous]

I have a 2013 Toyota RAV4EV and my wife drives a 2013 Volt. I'm very impressed with the engineering and overall package of the Volt. The RAV4EV has great performance, is very roomy, 135 mi real-world range, and now has CHAdeMO DC fast charging (thanks to Tony WIlliams). It fits my needs well but I want a car that is more reliable and better engineered. All of the Tesla stuff breaks on the RAV4s (motors, DC/DC converters, chargers, computers) and Toyota takes forever to fix them. This will be really expensive when the warranty runs out, so I have my eye on the Bolt as a possible purchase in a few years. I want something more reliable than what Tesla makes and our Volt has been great, so the Bolt is appealing to me.

I a;so have a RAV4 EV and my lease is ending July 21, 2016. Love the RAV roominess and performance, not the time in the shop (over 3 months cumulative). I feel like i'm in a bad window with my lease running out before the BOLT comes out. Will probably drive my Sienna until the BOLT or a 120 mile range alternatives comes out. Considering eGolf, LEAF, or i3 - but the current range is making me wait.

 

[Anonymous]

I am eagerly anticipating the arrival of the Bolt!

I drove a 2013 Nissan Leaf SV for 2 years. I enjoyed the car, but my commute was right at the edge of the vehicle range - especially during winter.

The Bolt's combination of range, price point and styling really appeals to me.

 

[cmg1]

I've got a 2013 Nissan Leaf and my lease will end in November. I'm usually happy with the Leaf, but range anxiety is definitely an issue.

I'm one of those people who until now wouldn't be caught dead driving a GM product. But there are only two vehicles available that fit my needs (costs less than a Tesla S, can make a round trip to work on electricity only, and the ability to make a round trip of about 160 miles without having to stop for a charging session): the Volt and the Bolt. The Tesla 3 doesn't count since the wait would be so long I could go through an entire lease on something else first.

So I put $500 down at a local dealer for the privilege of being the second person to place an order on a Bolt.

 

[portable]

I also drive a 2013 ford focus electric, nearing the end of my lease and can't wait for the "Chevy Bolt" to come out. The ford was a decent car, only had one instance with a "Stop Safely Now" Recall. But me and my wife were tired of the limited range. With the "Bolt" we will be able to "take the electric" without standing there trying to figure out if we will make it or not.

 

[rickp]

Currently have both a 2014 (lease ending July this year) and 2016 Spark EV. Got a great deal on the new Spark last week (net monthly lease cost after CARB rebate: $58) which will give me 3 years to evaluate the Bolt and the acquisition costs.

Love the Spark and at this time can easily live with the 80+ range limitation. It's convenient and fun to drive and has surprisingly good driver/passenger room. It's one of the most efficient EVs as well. Very satisfied with the last 3 years and don't see things changing with the newer car.

 

[DucRider]

Currently have both a 2014 (lease ending July this year) and 2016 Spark EV.

Can you feel much difference with the revised final drive and lower torque on the '16? They kept the same range and MPGe with the smaller battery, so wondering if there is any different feel when driving. Maybe only in sport mode?

I've driven both, but the '14 was a couple of years ago and so don't have the side-by-side opportunity you have.

 

[rickp]

I've only driven the new Spark from the dealer home and didn't really feel a noticeable difference. It seemed a little quicker off the line but that might be because it had newer tires and nothing inside the car; also, the curb weight of the 2016 is lighter because of the new battery. I'll take it out for a longer drive and update this later.

 

[summit]

rickp - slightly OT, which dealer/city did you get such a good lease of $58/mon on the SparkEV ?

Wife drives a 2016 Volt and I drive a 2014 iMiEV(+foldup bicycle)

 

[summit]

pickp - in case you don't already know, Bosch is currently offering $500 discount on their EVSE for new 2016 SparkEV owner/leaser, so it's essential free for their 16A version

 

[DaveN007]

I drive a 2015 C7 Z06, a 2011 BMW 335d M-Sport...and a Fiat 500e. And a 2017 NSX coming in June.

Bolt is a natural replacement for the 500e and maybe the BMW, but it is amazing for long trips. Lease on the Fiat is up in October.

I love this little car. Hopefully the Bolt preserves a bit of the fun factor.

 

[Eastocean]

I drive a 2013 Leaf SL. My lease expires in October. They have offered a 6 month extension. I never have more than 1 passenger. I also gave a tight garage, so a few less exterior inches is welcome. The cargo space inside is probably better than the future Leaf 2, but who knows. Nissan is being obscure.

 

[Anonymous]

Coworker is (impatiently) waiting out the VW diesel scandal to see what he will be able to get for his TDI.
He's looking at an EV for next car, and is reading up about the Bolt and Tesla 3.

I'm telling you, people who owned a diesel because they believed in the efficiency may now be looking at electric driving instead, reality (instead of fake green marketing) is starting to sink in!

 

[wq2345]

Here is the list of EVs we've driven over the years including what we are using now:

2008 MiniE - what an awesome car that was! Great range too - once went 125 miles on it (driven Jun 2009- Jan 2012)

2011 Nissan Leaf - not a fan really, but good start by Nissan for the mass market (driven March 2011-March 2014)

2012 ActiveE - lovely car, range ~95 miles; but the i3 just never appealed enough to me (driven Jan 2012 - Jan 2014)

2013 Toyota RAV4EV - really a 40kW Model S, this car rocks. My wife absolutely loves it and its ~150 mile range. But I think we will be giving it back when lease ends in August. It has a known issue of EV system failure and not restarting (Gateway ECU error). Toyota's & Tesla's lack of support for the car also sucks even if you have a manufacturer's extended warranty. (driven Sep 2013 - Aug 2016?)
The BoltEV would replace this whenever we can get it later this year or earlier next year.

2014 Tesla Model S 85kW - Of course, I love this car. However, its high cost is a deterrent. If the BoltEV turns out great, we just might get another Bolt to replace this summer 2017 when I would use Tesla's buyback guarantee. (driven April 2014 - present)

Note: we did not go for the Model 3. I think it will be a LONG while before that becomes a reality.

 

[Geo]

I also had an Active E. Seems like a lot of us Electonauts went with the RAV4 EV.

My EVs have been -

MGB Conversion - lead acid batteries with a 50-60 mile range. Fun little car, but a bit of a death trap due to it's diminutive size and lack of air bags.

BMW Active E - Really liked the car. Range was OK, it drove like a BMW, went exactly where you pointed it. Still a little small.

RAV4 EV - I've had two of these (one was totaled). I love this car. Perfect size, 5 doors, decent range, good performance. I wish it had a bigger battery and fast charging. I was really tempted to pay for the third party fast charging upgrade.

Now I'm hoping the Bolt EV makes a good replacement for the RAV4. If so, I'll let my lease expire and make the switch.

 

[Rivu]

I drive a Ford Territory but I'm looking forward to replacing it with Chevy Bolt EV.

 

[Devin]

I drive a Ford Territory but I'm looking forward to replacing it with Chevy Bolt EV.

I heard that GM was thinking of doing away with Holden - is their plan to just use the Chevy brand in Australia now? If I recall they sell Silverados with Chevy branding (through a third party maybe?) but everything else is still Holden.

 

[mark111]

I currently own a first gen Nissan Leaf, and it's getting close to replacement time. Plus, if the Bolt is the first 'mass produced' 200-mile electric vehicle, I want in!

I own a Nissan Leaf too! I'm looking to replace it and Chevy Bolt EV is my first choice!

 

[NeilBlanchard]

My family has both a '15 Leaf S and a '15 e-Golf - we are leasing these. I am very interested in buying a Bolt EV, because we need a longer range EV, and we will drive it on all trips longer than we can do on a leased car.

The Bolt EV also promises to be very comfortable for us, and I like hatchbacks because they are so practical.

 

[Airbesar]

I have a 2002 WRX wagon. 207,000 miles. Love it.

I've never driven an EV or hybrid. I was all in on buying the new Ford Focus RS as the much hotter version of what I already had.

Then I put in solar panels a few months ago and heard about a prospective EV from Chevrolet that had a 200+ mile range. I thought again about climate change. Boom. Time for a greener life.

 

[GetOffYourGas]

I have a 2002 WRX wagon. 207,000 miles. Love it.

I've never driven an EV or hybrid. I was all in on buying the new Ford Focus RS as the much hotter version of what I already had.

Then I put in solar panels a few months ago and heard about a prospective EV from Chevrolet that had a 200+ mile range. I thought again about climate change. Boom. Time for a greener life.

I'll be interested to see how well the Bolt can be turned into a hot-hatch. It has decent performance specs. I suspect if you give it a suspension upgrade and some sticky tires, you can still have a lot of fun in it. Win-win!