What is your opinion of the Chevrolet Volt?

[AdamK47]

GM makes terrible vehicles. I'm not sure why anyone would consider buying a Volt.

 

[herm0016]

When your at a light does it just blow cold air? That's been the tell for us. We'd have the heat going and stop at a light and bam, cold air.

No, seems odd. Are you in eco? The hvac in ours works like you would expect it to. I usually just use the heated seats because they are a much smaller load on the battery. sounds like the people selling the car did not check it out well at all. A lot of people are very misinformed on Volts. The heat does throttle to save energy, so if it is getting close to the set temperature, the air will get cooler to maintain that temp and use less energy. In a car when the engine is running, only the fan speed changes, not the output/temperature of the heater core. another way to know if the heat is working is to see the wattage being used on the dash when sitting still, the heat is 5 kw max I believe. These cars take a bit of getting used to.

Even the radio amplifier is a special, patented, low noise switch mode instead of linear to save energy!

GM makes terrible vehicles. I'm not sure why anyone would consider buying a Volt.

I am not sure why a lot of people buy a lot of things. Take your fanboy attitude right out of the garage. Volt has been Highly rated from its inception.

 

[WackyDan]

GM makes terrible vehicles. I'm not sure why anyone would consider buying a Volt.

I agree... As I still own one of the terrible GM's. That said, the Volt seems to be the exception to that rule.

 

[Herr Kutz]

It takes about 50% more energy to push an Equinox down the road, so it would need an upsized engine and a battery that's 50% larger (and 50% more expensive), otherwise it would have a lot less EV range.

If this were a valid response no manufacturer would make an SUV to begin with because it requires a more powerful engine to push the SUV. All they need to do is offer a PHEV SUV that has best in class fuel economy, not best out of all other (regardless of type) vehicles fuel economy.

 

[AdamK47]

I agree... As I still own one of the terrible GM's. That said, the Volt seems to be the exception to that rule.

They make some of the worst cars for fuel economy. I currently own a GM car and average only 12 MPG. That's just terrible.

 

[Yuriman]

If this were a valid response no manufacturer would make an SUV to begin with because it requires a more powerful engine to push the SUV. All they need to do is offer a PHEV SUV that has best in class fuel economy, not best out of all other (regardless of type) vehicles fuel economy.

The reason is cost. EV costs scale up considerably more than ICE vehicles when you're trying to maintain the same range.

 

[TurtleCrusher]

No, seems odd. Are you in eco? The hvac in ours works like you would expect it to. I usually just use the heated seats because they are a much smaller load on the battery. sounds like the people selling the car did not check it out well at all. A lot of people are very misinformed on Volts. The heat does throttle to save energy, so if it is getting close to the set temperature, the air will get cooler to maintain that temp and use less energy. In a car when the engine is running, only the fan speed changes, not the output/temperature of the heater core. another way to know if the heat is working is to see the wattage being used on the dash when sitting still, the heat is 5 kw max I believe. These cars take a bit of getting used to.

Even the radio amplifier is a special, patented, low noise switch mode instead of linear to save energy!



I am not sure why a lot of people buy a lot of things. Take your fanboy attitude right out of the garage. Volt has been Highly rated from its inception.

Not in Eco, in comfort. I tried every setting imaginable. It was only doing .5kw on the dash and was 100% climate power. Heat at 90/Hi. Cold fuckin air.

Update on the dealer situation: Charge issue covered under warranty, heater issue TBA. I'll know more details when they call me back.

 

[SearchMaster]

I am not sure why a lot of people buy a lot of things. Take your fanboy attitude right out of the garage. Volt has been Highly rated from its inception.

Psssst - he owns several GM products (Vette and/or CTS-V if I'm not mistaken, plus a lower end like a Sonic or Cruze).

 

[Meghan54]

Psssst - he owns several GM products (Vette and/or CTS-V if I'm not mistaken, plus a lower end like a Sonic or Cruze).

I figured as much, given the "I currently own a GM car and average only 12 MPG." comment. Hell, my truck averages 18....gotta really be flogging something to get down to 12 these days, or be driving something "big".

 

[TurtleCrusher]

Update: Charge issue covered under warranty, fixed today. Heat module(?) failed and is being replaced. I'll get the car tomorrow after it is completed. that is being covered by the dealer.

I looked at my OnStar and saw the car hasn't been charged for 600+ miles, long before the car was sold to a dealer at auction. I used this in my justification on why the car wasn't clearly inspected first. If you had plugged the car in and checked all electrical mode, they would have seen this charging and heating issue. Do you agree?

 

[AdamK47]

I figured as much, given the "I currently own a GM car and average only 12 MPG." comment. Hell, my truck averages 18....gotta really be flogging something to get down to 12 these days, or be driving something "big".

It's a Malibu. I think part of the reason for the poor gas mileage is due to a misfire. It also often times makes loud backfiring noises. It's only a 2015 and yet this GM junk already falling apart. Here's a video I took of it that shows the issue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeUnU2R4gXk

 

[herm0016]

Update: Charge issue covered under warranty, fixed today. Heat module(?) failed and is being replaced. I'll get the car tomorrow after it is completed. that is being covered by the dealer.

I looked at my OnStar and saw the car hasn't been charged for 600+ miles, long before the car was sold to a dealer at auction. I used this in my justification on why the car wasn't clearly inspected first. If you had plugged the car in and checked all electrical mode, they would have seen this charging and heating issue. Do you agree?

Agree. Glad they are getting all fixed for you. Dealers suck.

 

[WackyDan]

They make some of the worst cars for fuel economy. I currently own a GM car and average only 12 MPG. That's just terrible.

Our's gets 35mpg on the highway and that is with the pushrod V6(3500).

 

[AdamK47]

Our's gets 35mpg on the highway and that is with the pushrod V6(3500).

There must be something wrong with it.

 

[Yuriman]

Our's gets 35mpg on the highway and that is with the pushrod V6(3500).

Is that via the (likely very optimistic) factory gauge, or measured at the pump?

I drove a Chevy Express 2500 for work for a while, and on a long trip I could reset the gauge when I filled up, drive until the tank was empty, and see "22mpg" on the gauge, whereas the miles driven divided by gallons used would generally be 16-17, an error of nearly 40%. By contrast, my Insight's instrumentation is generally within 0.2-0.4mpg (e.g. 68.1mpg vs 68.3mpg) over 6-800 miles.

 

[BurnItDwn]

Is that via the (likely very optimistic) factory gauge, or measured at the pump?

I drove a Chevy Express 2500 for work for a while, and on a long trip I could reset the gauge when I filled up, drive until the tank was empty, and see "22mpg" on the gauge, whereas the miles driven divided by gallons used would generally be 16-17, an error of nearly 40%. By contrast, my Insight's instrumentation is generally within 0.2-0.4mpg (e.g. 68.1mpg vs 68.3mpg) over 6-800 miles.

Ahh, see, you are counting the time spent on the entrance ramps and accelerating and local traffic too

"on the highway" he might get 35 ... if he maintains constant 50mph speed and doesn't go up any hills or speed up at all

 

[Elixer]

Was at the dealer today, getting recall work done, and the guy next to me has a Volt, and he goes, his insurance shot up 3x from what he was paying before, and they said the main reason for the much higher cost is if those get in an accident, special care must be taken because they need to test the battery packs individually, and that is a ton of work.
Anyone run into high insurance rates like this guy?

 

[Yuriman]

Sounds like nonsense to me. Nobody tests Prius battery packs individually, and it's essentially the same, just smaller.

 

[fleshconsumed]

Did he shop around for a better insurance deal? Different insurance companies can have vastly different premiums.

 

[WackyDan]

Is that via the (likely very optimistic) factory gauge, or measured at the pump?

I drove a Chevy Express 2500 for work for a while, and on a long trip I could reset the gauge when I filled up, drive until the tank was empty, and see "22mpg" on the gauge, whereas the miles driven divided by gallons used would generally be 16-17, an error of nearly 40%. By contrast, my Insight's instrumentation is generally within 0.2-0.4mpg (e.g. 68.1mpg vs 68.3mpg) over 6-800 miles.

Nope - that is verified at the pump from fill up to fill up. It's an 05 Malibu so those things were not as heavy as the other models sporting the 3500 V6. In and around town it sucks though.

 

[TurtleCrusher]

Was at the dealer today, getting recall work done, and the guy next to me has a Volt, and he goes, his insurance shot up 3x from what he was paying before, and they said the main reason for the much higher cost is if those get in an accident, special care must be taken because they need to test the battery packs individually, and that is a ton of work.
Anyone run into high insurance rates like this guy?

Nothing crazy. My insurance went up from $140 to $180, but I have a $200 deductible and this car is blue booked at nearly 3x the price.

 

[TurtleCrusher]

Agree. Glad they are getting all fixed for you. Dealers suck.

All good, getting a charge in each night with the portable EVSE charger. I snake it through an unused switchbox that I deleted from my shed/carport to securely charge it. I don't live in a good part of town and there's no way to rip the base through there.

The 8amp charging seems fast enough. Haven't used more than a half gallon of gas in a week. Electric-only drive is awesome.

 

[TurtleCrusher]

Since everyone wants an SUV I'm still trying to understand why they don't offer an Equinox version.

I feel like this would work for most people even with the same electric battery. Up the motor to 2L and you've probably got it matched properly for hybrid mode. How much more weight would an SUV version even be though? Between the Cruze (Volt frame) and the equinox it's only a 500-800lb difference.

My 2014 Volt weighs the same as the Equinox.

 

[tweakmonkey]

All good, getting a charge in each night with the portable EVSE charger. I snake it through an unused switchbox that I deleted from my shed/carport to securely charge it. I don't live in a good part of town and there's no way to rip the base through there.

The 8amp charging seems fast enough. Haven't used more than a half gallon of gas in a week. Electric-only drive is awesome.

It only charges at 8 amps? Can you select 12 somehow? Most the evs I’ve used have both modes or default to 12.

 

[Herr Kutz]

I feel like this would work for most people even with the same electric battery. Up the motor to 2L and you've probably got it matched properly for hybrid mode. How much more weight would an SUV version even be though? Between the Cruze (Volt frame) and the equinox it's only a 500-800lb difference.

My 2014 Volt weighs the same as the Equinox.

It absolutely would and they wouldn't even need a battery with a ~50mile range. Just enough to cover sitting in the kid dropoff/pickup line at school and driving the 2 mile round trip to the grocery store that the majority of these will be used for. I think it could be workable even if all electric range was 20 to maybe 30 miles.