Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
I'm looking very strongly at buying a Chevrolet Volt, and if you have an informed, personal-experience-based opinion about this vehicle, I'd very much like to hear what you have to say. We already have and enjoy a Prius (usually my wife's car) but a Volt would match my driving habits and style more closely, I believe. Typically I drive less than 20 - 30 miles in a day, and I very seldom drive out of town (for family trips we would probably take the Prius) -- so with a Volt, I could go for weeks without using or buying gasoline. My usual car is a Miata, but it's just not practical in the mountains in the winter. (I spun out on black ice yesterday, and that just about decided me. I love the car but do get tired of shifting gears all the time. You can't be cruising the Blue Ridge Parkway with the top down all the time.) I haven't decided whether I'm going to keep the Miata or trade it in. But right now I'd just like to learn what my fellow Bogleheadians have experienced with this car. How does it drive? How dependable is it? Are you happy with your decision to buy one? If you had one and got rid of it, why? Do the usual truisms about purchasing new vs. used apply here? Etc. Whatever you want to share about it.
Many thanks!
Many thanks!
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Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
I think it is a great buy. I don't have one yet but may just get one as well. The prices came down in late summer and if they are still that low, I may just buy a new one. It may not be the sexiest car but I think it is pretty darn sensible.
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Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Here's a thread called GM volt where ual driver shares his experiences with the volt
http://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtop ... 3#p1486153
http://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtop ... 3#p1486153
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
http://gm-volt.com/forum/
I recently ordered a Tesla and found their forums full of good information. I guess, Chevy forum should be similar. You may explore above forum, pose your questions and gain insight. There are sure to be additional forums independent of vendor as well. Cheers, Amit
I recently ordered a Tesla and found their forums full of good information. I guess, Chevy forum should be similar. You may explore above forum, pose your questions and gain insight. There are sure to be additional forums independent of vendor as well. Cheers, Amit
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Is there an accepted number that looks at the cost of electricity to charge the battery vs comparable usage of gasoline for the same mileage?
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
http://www.teslamotors.com/goelectric#savings
Above link at Tesla can be used for fuel savings. In my case I drive around 12K in a year and expect to save 2000 USD every year in fuel cost. Next year my office will put charger at office and then I will also save 500 USD extra as electic charge will be borne by my employer. You can put number of miles, gas cost and electric cost to come up with savings in your scenario. Please bear in mind that you have to compare with appropriate car. So Tesla can never bear Honda Accord in savings. But it will beat Mercedes S class easily and will come ahead of E-class in say 3-4 years.
Cheers, Amit
Above link at Tesla can be used for fuel savings. In my case I drive around 12K in a year and expect to save 2000 USD every year in fuel cost. Next year my office will put charger at office and then I will also save 500 USD extra as electic charge will be borne by my employer. You can put number of miles, gas cost and electric cost to come up with savings in your scenario. Please bear in mind that you have to compare with appropriate car. So Tesla can never bear Honda Accord in savings. But it will beat Mercedes S class easily and will come ahead of E-class in say 3-4 years.
Cheers, Amit
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Watch out for depreciation on these cars - volt, tesla. Look at completed listings on ebay. huge depreciation in 1-2 years with < 10,000 miles compared to lots of other cars. And, these cars are at the peak demand.
Costs of fender benders are also very very high in these cars bsaed on the forums i have seen.
Gas savings are nice - but only part of the picture. Comparable cars (size wise) can be had for far less money in some cases.
People seem to really like them however, if you can deal with the battery unknowns at 8-10 years out.
Costs of fender benders are also very very high in these cars bsaed on the forums i have seen.
Gas savings are nice - but only part of the picture. Comparable cars (size wise) can be had for far less money in some cases.
People seem to really like them however, if you can deal with the battery unknowns at 8-10 years out.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Depreciaiton is always a concern for luxury cars. Mercedez S class loses 50% of its value in 3 yeras & 30K miles. In fact on Tesla if you finance from Tesla, they assure that they will buy back in three years with the same depreciation as it prevalent in luxury cars (50% of the base value and 43% of the option cost). So yes, depreciation is biggest cost in case of luxury cars and not just electric cars.
It is financially a prudent strategy to buy a CPO luxury car and let some really rich guy pick initial 3 year depreciation. Cheers, Amit
It is financially a prudent strategy to buy a CPO luxury car and let some really rich guy pick initial 3 year depreciation. Cheers, Amit
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Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
I got a 2014 Chevrolet volt last month as a second car. My Testla is the primary car, but due to lack of supercharging stations and my need for a few long trips a month, I just have both cars. Also, my girlfriend totaled her car, so she has taken over the Testla as her drive to work is more than 40 miles each way.
I got a base volt, so after all the rebates and the USAA discount, the car was 26,000 out the door after the 7500 discount. And I financed it all at 0% for 4 years. So its is 541 bucks a month. I probably save about 200 bucks a month on gas as I drive a good bit, so figure in 10 years at current gas prices the car is practically free. I get free electricity from my condo and my job, so I never pay for electricity. They warranty the battery for 100,000 miles and 8 years.
If you go on the volt forums, there is someone with close to 100,000 miles on their 2011 volt with minimal battery depletion.
It drives nice on snow. So is this a boglehead car? I think so if you drive 40 miles each way to work or less and get free electricity. Just so you know, if you run the heater you will only get about 20 miles of electric range. The testla's range is also greatly decreased by heat.
The testla is a ridiculously fast car, but the volt has enough oomph for me. Its not slow. As far as range loss on my testla, maybe 10% after 30,000 miles. The testla is not a boglehead car. I bought it when it first came out. It eats thru expensive tires, but it is fun to drive. The volt cost me 25% of the testla.
I got a base volt, so after all the rebates and the USAA discount, the car was 26,000 out the door after the 7500 discount. And I financed it all at 0% for 4 years. So its is 541 bucks a month. I probably save about 200 bucks a month on gas as I drive a good bit, so figure in 10 years at current gas prices the car is practically free. I get free electricity from my condo and my job, so I never pay for electricity. They warranty the battery for 100,000 miles and 8 years.
If you go on the volt forums, there is someone with close to 100,000 miles on their 2011 volt with minimal battery depletion.
It drives nice on snow. So is this a boglehead car? I think so if you drive 40 miles each way to work or less and get free electricity. Just so you know, if you run the heater you will only get about 20 miles of electric range. The testla's range is also greatly decreased by heat.
The testla is a ridiculously fast car, but the volt has enough oomph for me. Its not slow. As far as range loss on my testla, maybe 10% after 30,000 miles. The testla is not a boglehead car. I bought it when it first came out. It eats thru expensive tires, but it is fun to drive. The volt cost me 25% of the testla.
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Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
I have had a Volt for a year. Love it. I live very close (< 2 mi) to work and use it as a commuting car and for errands/etc., so am able to use it primarily on electric. I charge almost entirely at home; it is rare that I have access to a charger out in the wild. My summary for the last 12 months according to the website is: Electric miles: 7,516, total miles: 8,145, 452 MPG, 18.01 gal fuel consumed. Haven't changed the oil yet in 12 months; it says I'm at 51% of oil life. I can't get the website to show me total kWh used over 12 months, it's timing out loading that for some reason. Looking at past months' reports in my email, on average I consume 33 to 38 kWh per 100 miles.
Biggest two nuisances are 1) the front bumper scrapes bottom all... the... time. I already had to buy a new airfoil for under the front bumper as I ruined the first one in the first six months. 2) My old car is a spacious Honda SUV with tons of visibility. The Volt is much more cramped. Still love it and drive it most of the time.
Biggest two nuisances are 1) the front bumper scrapes bottom all... the... time. I already had to buy a new airfoil for under the front bumper as I ruined the first one in the first six months. 2) My old car is a spacious Honda SUV with tons of visibility. The Volt is much more cramped. Still love it and drive it most of the time.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Still have it. Still love it. Wouldn't change anything I wrote in that thread above. Still waiting for a Tesla Model S to depreciate into my price rangeDSInvestor wrote:Here's a thread called GM volt where ual driver shares his experiences with the volt
http://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtop ... 3#p1486153
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Neighbor has a Volt, and really likes it. He works 15 miles from home so he's able to run off just electricity 90% of the time.....which means he hasn't needed an oil change in 8 months. He did recommend getting the "upgraded" charger which speeds up the charging time to 3 hours (I think that's what he said). Sharp looking car.....definetely better looking than the Prius.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
I bought a Leaf last year. If your driving is really in the 20-30 mile range daily, you may not need to pay extra for the Volt vs. the Leaf. We have an SUV for out-of-town driving. Around town, the Leaf is no problem, very nice pick up and as a bonus, there are a rapidly growing number of places to charge it for free...
Not a pure financial transaction, but what car purchase is? I'm leasing for 3 years and will see how the battery degradation looks in 3 years before either buying my car or getting another.
Not a pure financial transaction, but what car purchase is? I'm leasing for 3 years and will see how the battery degradation looks in 3 years before either buying my car or getting another.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Well, if you have an electric car and live in metro-Atlanta, do not try to charge it at your children's school, or you will end up in jail, even for only 5 cents worth of electricity:
http://www.11alive.com/news/article/314 ... h-of-juice
http://www.11alive.com/news/article/314 ... h-of-juice
" Successful investing involves doing just a few things right, and avoiding serious mistakes." - J. Bogle
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
As it should be. Theft of public property is illegal. He was doing it because he thought he could get away with it. It wasn't even argued that he was low on charge, just a cheapskate thief that thought he could pull a fast one. This wasn't incidental usage such as a paper towel from a public restroom, which is different than taking a roll of toilet paper. This was for his personal benefit off premises. If the plug goes into the receptacle without permission it is theft--the ONLY question should be how much. If there isn't a sign that says it's OK to use as a recharging station, then it isn't.fishndoc wrote:Well, if you have an electric car and live in metro-Atlanta, do not try to charge it at your children's school, or you will end up in jail, even for only 5 cents worth of electricity...
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Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Reading the article it seems likely that he was charged because he was a jerk to a police officer which is rarely a good dividend play.fishndoc wrote:Well, if you have an electric car and live in metro-Atlanta, do not try to charge it at your children's school, or you will end up in jail
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Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
I was really prepared to like the Volt, but then I tried out the back seat. Headroom is really horrible in the back; even a short trip in the back seat would be very uncomfortable for my son or I (6'1). While I don't use the back seat a lot, I want it to be a viable option. I didn't even bother to drive the Volt because of this. The Ford C-max seemed much better in my book, though the plug-in version gives up a large chunk of luggage storage space for the battery.
I took the plunge - happy so far!
Just to close the loop: I bought a 2013 Volt, and really like it so far (haven't owned it long or driven it far yet). It was the last 2013 on the lot, and with the 2014's due in any time, I got a good deal (even before the tax credit), even though it was "semi" loaded with navigation system, leather, and heated seats (LOVE those heated seats in this awful winter!). I put about 20% down in cash to bring my payments down, and thanks to the USAA car buying service discount on the loan, my APR is just 1.09%. (It was still more than I spent on our other car, a Prius, but I like driving the Volt better than the Prius and believe the Volt will be a good deal in the long run - and I plan to keep it for the long haul.) I also traded in my 2001 Mazda Miata! Wah! That was actually easier to bear than I thought it would be, perhaps because the Volt is quite "zippy" in "Sport" mode. And there's very little guilt in putting the pedal to the metal when you know you're not burning any gasoline (maybe a little coal, though). To tell the truth, I haven't yet "put the pedal to the metal" because it's so engrained in me to drive as though there were an egg between my foot and the accelerator pedal. Also, in the Volt, there's a display right in front of your eyes all the time that shows you how thriftily or extravagantly you're driving.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Cool! Thanks for the follow-up.
An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered; an adventure is an inconvenience rightly considered. -- GK Chesterton
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Talk about making a mountain out of a molehill, make that an anthill. Thousands of dollars wasted over a theft of a nickle. Most people believe the punishment should fit the crime. What is a fitting punishment? Treble damages and probation? Community service (i.e. spend 20 hours sharing your experience with the Chevy Volt and the community)? More than a first time shoplifting offender? He was detained during the arrest for longer than some folks would consider fair punishment.placeholder wrote:Reading the article it seems likely that he was charged because he was a jerk to a police officer which is rarely a good dividend play.fishndoc wrote:Well, if you have an electric car and live in metro-Atlanta, do not try to charge it at your children's school, or you will end up in jail
Would it make a difference if it were a cell phone?
Maybe the police should stake out the supermarket produce section and catch those thief taking bites out of fruit.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/new ... d=10877845
Reminds me, I should unplug my Chevy Volt from the extension cord I have hooked up to my neighbor that's right next to the cable splitter.
And I guess you can get arrested in the US and abroad for stealing open unprotected WiFi:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-10784_3-9722006-7.html
http://www.pcworld.com/article/136326/article.html
Seriously, a nickle is pretty petty, but cumulatively it could start to add up. Many work places encourage electric cars and even have installed chargers and premium parking to get people to buy them, but they've been victims of their own success:
Electric-Car Owners Get Taxed for Not Paying Gas Taxes
http://www.businessweek.com/articles/20 ... -gas-taxes
And what if it was a teacher who parked his/her car all day and consumed $1/day, 20 days a year, 180 days a year? And what if a dozen teachers did this? Some would applaud this as saving the environment while others would be looking to clawback the $2000 extra in electric expenses.
Welcome to the world of unintended consequences. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unintended_consequences
Last edited by inbox788 on Fri Feb 07, 2014 5:00 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Re: I took the plunge - happy so far!
Congrats Bammerman! Check out the gm-volt.com forum if you're interested. It's the most active Volt forum on the internet.Bammerman wrote:Just to close the loop: I bought a 2013 Volt, and really like it so far (haven't owned it long or driven it far yet).
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Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
As I said mouthing off to a cop is rarely a good idea because it sounds like if he'd have apologized he'd gone on his way.inbox788 wrote:Talk about making a mountain out of a molehill, make that an anthill.
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Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Bought my Volt this week too. I sold the Nissan LEAF for the Volt. Never thought I would buy a car from Chevy but the Volt convinces me. In fact there was a report that the Volt is bringing Chevy many new customers -- nearly 7 out of 10 Volt customers are new to the brand.
My signature has been deleted.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
I checked out a Volt at a recent car show...the back seat looked small so that's a deal killer for me. Perhaps it's not as cramped as it looked.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
When evaluating the fuel cost of these cars the battery should be considered a consumable and its depreciation a part of the fuel cost.
nothing's perfect in this imperfect world
Macchiato: the back seat is rather small, but that's not a problem for me as I tend to drive from the front seat.
Just kidding. The back seat is kind of small and if you frequently haul large/tall people that might be an issue. But it's fine for not-large/not-tall passengers, I think. And the front seats are very comfortable.
Just kidding. The back seat is kind of small and if you frequently haul large/tall people that might be an issue. But it's fine for not-large/not-tall passengers, I think. And the front seats are very comfortable.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Excellent idea, but difficult to do. Same anxiety existed when Prius first started, and I heard estimates of $20,000 for complete battery system replacement, which would be more than the cost of the car today. Fortunately, those high estimates never came. Any early failures were covered under warranty. By the time the cars started going off warranty, the estimates had come down to around $5,000. I believe these were/are dealership prices. These days, I hear around $2,000-3,000. What some folks have done is gone to junkyards and salvaged battery systems from crashed cars. Also, individual battery components are now available, so in some cases, repairs and replacements can be done for under $1,000. Also, the failure rate has been relatively low. Hopefully the same story follows the Volt.hiddensee wrote:When evaluating the fuel cost of these cars the battery should be considered a consumable and its depreciation a part of the fuel cost.
http://green.autoblog.com/2014/01/10/ch ... ost-34000/
You'd never buy a Volt if you thought $34,000 bill was going to hit you in year 5 or 10. Assuming you had a $3,000 bill in year 10 with a 50% chance of occurrence, that's an additional $150 per year in battery costs. Puts in about the same cost as tires.
Practically, I'd just discount the mileage by about 10%, which wouldn't impact my decision in most cases. That's if buying a new car. As a used car buyer, I'd definite take into consider the failure of the battery along with drivetrain. I haven't heard anything about motors failing, but that could also be an expensive repair as well as the controllers. I didn't find any estimates, but did find this very old article about corroded connections. Costs today are very different.
http://www.hybridcars.com/hidden-costs/
MPG update
Just thought I'd provide an update. Now at about 1,600 miles since I bought the Volt (I don't drive far, as a rule) and my mileage is somewhere north of 250 mpg. In 1,600 miles I have burned a grand total of 5.1 gallons of gas. In really cold weather the car was predicting 25-30 miles on a full charge; now that it's warm, it's predicting 47 miles.
Next week I'm taking the car on its first real long-distance road trip, and when I get back I'll post updated stats.
Next week I'm taking the car on its first real long-distance road trip, and when I get back I'll post updated stats.
Re: MPG update
Oh no.....now you're going to ruin your 250+ mpg average!!Bammerman wrote:Next week I'm taking the car on its first real long-distance road trip, and when I get back I'll post updated stats.
Re: MPG update
How much has your monthly electric bill increased since buying the Volt?Bammerman wrote:Just thought I'd provide an update. Now at about 1,600 miles since I bought the Volt (I don't drive far, as a rule) and my mileage is somewhere north of 250 mpg. In 1,600 miles I have burned a grand total of 5.1 gallons of gas. In really cold weather the car was predicting 25-30 miles on a full charge; now that it's warm, it's predicting 47 miles.
electric bill cost of charging my Volt
ChinOOk: good question. I looked at my electric bills for the past three months. During this 3-month period in 2014 (Feb-April) I paid a total of $50.70 more than I paid for electric service for the same three months in 2013. That's $0.56 more per day over the 90 days. Of course that does not take into account any other factors affecting my electric usage. I don't remember what I paid for gas for the Volt but since it takes premium, let's say $4.00 per gallon, so that's $20 for the 5 gallons of gas I've burned so far. That means, I think, it cost me about $71 to drive the Volt 1,600 miles.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Too many variables to do a month to month comparison I think. When you charge the Volt, it's going to consume 10kWh of electricity assuming the battery is completely flat. If one looks on their electric bill, one can probably see what 1kWh of electricity is going to cost. I tell people it costs me around $1.00 to charge my Volt in my area (Midwest) and to drive it 30/40 miles winter/non-winter days. If you figure the average car in the US gets around 23mpg, it would cost several dollars in gas to go the same distance.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
This may not be a responsive answer, but after reading all the horrendous news about what appears to be a deliberate cover up of serious ignition switch defect for almost a decade resulting in death and injury of many innocent customers I for one will never trust that company again and certainly not reward it by buying or leasing one of their vehicles, regardless of reviews. And I have owned three Cadillacs and two Chevrolets over the years but never again.
updated stats
Just got back from my first road trip: 350 miles starting from a fresh battery, the Volt used 7.5 gallons of gas, for a total MPG of 46.5. (This brings my "lifetime" MPG in this car down to 176, wah!) This is very close to my highway MPG in my Prius of about 50. Of course, on a road trip, I cannot be sure I'll be able to charge the battery every night.
About GM: since we now know that corporations are people, we can, presumably, put them in jail when they break the law.
About GM: since we now know that corporations are people, we can, presumably, put them in jail when they break the law.
Re: updated stats
Good to hear that you are enjoying the vehicle. I have nothing against that specific model but no trust in the company or its products. Just saw that the company recalled another 3 million vehicles yesterday which brings total recalls so far this year to around 13 million. That sure says a lot about quality engineering and safety of vehicles when built and sold. And I do believe that the individuals responsible for the criminal cover up should end up in prison.Bammerman wrote:Just got back from my first road trip: 350 miles starting from a fresh battery, the Volt used 7.5 gallons of gas, for a total MPG of 46.5. (This brings my "lifetime" MPG in this car down to 176, wah!) This is very close to my highway MPG in my Prius of about 50. Of course, on a road trip, I cannot be sure I'll be able to charge the battery every night.
About GM: since we now know that corporations are people, we can, presumably, put them in jail when they break the law.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Not sidetrack the thread, but I was curious about your thoughts on Leaf vs. Volt-- is it mostly a range question?indexfundfan wrote:Bought my Volt this week too. I sold the Nissan LEAF for the Volt. Never thought I would buy a car from Chevy but the Volt convinces me. In fact there was a report that the Volt is bringing Chevy many new customers -- nearly 7 out of 10 Volt customers are new to the brand.
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
So which one do you trust? In recent years the following companies have had scandals involving delayed recalls for safety issues including:jdb wrote:This may not be a responsive answer, but after reading all the horrendous news about what appears to be a deliberate cover up of serious ignition switch defect for almost a decade resulting in death and injury of many innocent customers I for one will never trust that company again and certainly not reward it by buying or leasing one of their vehicles, regardless of reviews. And I have owned three Cadillacs and two Chevrolets over the years but never again.
GM, Ford, Chrysler
Toyota, Honda, Nissan
VW, BMW, Mercedes, Audi
Why single out GM?
Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
Same reason the DOJ is apparently singling out the company and certain individuals for probable criminal prosecution. This apparently from what I have read in the newspapers was an intentional cover up of serious safety defect for purpose of saving money. In essence from the initial newspaper reports sounds almost as knowingly putting customers in harms way over almost a decade to save lots of money. Goes beyond the standard inadvertent safety defect causing recalls. I'm a little surprised more Americans not outraged by hearing of such apparent criminal conduct. But have nothing against the Volt so this discussion probably belongs elsewhere so will stop the hijacking of this thread and let the discussion of the car proceed, won't bother anyone about this issue on this site. Sorry for the digression.Jack wrote:So which one do you trust? In recent years the following companies have had scandals involving delayed recalls for safety issues including:jdb wrote:This may not be a responsive answer, but after reading all the horrendous news about what appears to be a deliberate cover up of serious ignition switch defect for almost a decade resulting in death and injury of many innocent customers I for one will never trust that company again and certainly not reward it by buying or leasing one of their vehicles, regardless of reviews. And I have owned three Cadillacs and two Chevrolets over the years but never again.
GM, Ford, Chrysler
Toyota, Honda, Nissan
VW, BMW, Mercedes, Audi
Why single out GM?
Last edited by jdb on Fri May 16, 2014 2:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Do you own / have you owned a Chevrolet Volt?
We just got an electric car (guaranteed street parking outside of our house - can't beat that) and looked heavily at the Leaf and the Volt. We ended up going with the Leaf, which is a great car and a lot of fun to drive. The 80+ mile range (more like 60 if you have the A/C on) fits almost all of our driving needs, though it would be nice to have a gasoline tank as a backup for longer trips.Iorek wrote:Not sidetrack the thread, but I was curious about your thoughts on Leaf vs. Volt-- is it mostly a range question?
For us, using street parking, a lot of it came down to the location of the charging port. Our house is on the right side of the street, so we didn't want to stretch our charging station cord across the car onto the street side. The Leaf's port is on the nose. The Prius plug-in is at the backside. The Volt and Ford plug-ins are all on the driver's side. That probably doesn't mean much to all the suburban types out there, but it was a major consideration for us.
Did not consider any all-electric cars -except, of course, T
I did not consider any all-electric cars (except, of course, the Tesla, ha ha) because of "range anxiety". Just not something I wanted to have to think about at all, and I don't with a Volt. Normally I do not drive far (very seldom more than 20-40 miles, which made the Volt perfect for me) but ever now and again, I do.
Back to the corporate monster thing: unless I plan to walk or bike everywhere -- and I don't -- I have to go with some brand of big, expensive, potentially dangerous heavy equipment. I do my best to do the research and make a smart decision, but just like most big things in life, you just can't know everything in advance.
Back to the corporate monster thing: unless I plan to walk or bike everywhere -- and I don't -- I have to go with some brand of big, expensive, potentially dangerous heavy equipment. I do my best to do the research and make a smart decision, but just like most big things in life, you just can't know everything in advance.
One year's operating costs
I thought it might interest some of you to hear what my operating costs have been for my first year's ownership of this 2013 Chevy Volt:
I've driven just 6,944 miles since purchasing the car new on January 23, 2014. Most of those miles were driven in and around my home town. I took one road trip of about 600 miles, and this accounts for most of the gasoline burned. The car's computer indicates that, of all the miles driven, some 5,851 were "electric", saving 234 gallons of gasoline.
According to the Volt's trip odometer, I have burned 38.5 gallons of gasoline in the year that I've operated the car. I bought most of these on the road trip back in May, whey prices were higher, and I estimate an average cost of $3.41 per gallon of premium gas, for a total of $131.
Of course it costs money to charge the car's battery; I estimated this cost by comparing my electricity bills for the past 12 months with the bills for the preceding 12 months. Since I do not use electricity to heat my house and have not changed my habits or acquired or lost any electric-powered appliances, I think it's reasonable to believe that any significant change in my electric bills must be due to charging the Volt. I spent $208 more on electricity during the year that I've owned the Volt, compared to the 12 months prior to my purchase of the Volt. That works out to $0.57 per day to charge up the battery each night.
So I figure that it cost me a total of $339 ($131 for gasoline and $208 for electricity) to drive the Volt 6,944 miles in the year I've owned the car. That's $0.049 per mile, or $0.93 per day.
And I just happen to be doing my taxes these days too, so I should also mention that it was a lot of fun to enter the $7,500 credit in my tax calculations!
And I really like the car. It's very solid, drives well, is fun to drive -- it can really get up and go.
I've driven just 6,944 miles since purchasing the car new on January 23, 2014. Most of those miles were driven in and around my home town. I took one road trip of about 600 miles, and this accounts for most of the gasoline burned. The car's computer indicates that, of all the miles driven, some 5,851 were "electric", saving 234 gallons of gasoline.
According to the Volt's trip odometer, I have burned 38.5 gallons of gasoline in the year that I've operated the car. I bought most of these on the road trip back in May, whey prices were higher, and I estimate an average cost of $3.41 per gallon of premium gas, for a total of $131.
Of course it costs money to charge the car's battery; I estimated this cost by comparing my electricity bills for the past 12 months with the bills for the preceding 12 months. Since I do not use electricity to heat my house and have not changed my habits or acquired or lost any electric-powered appliances, I think it's reasonable to believe that any significant change in my electric bills must be due to charging the Volt. I spent $208 more on electricity during the year that I've owned the Volt, compared to the 12 months prior to my purchase of the Volt. That works out to $0.57 per day to charge up the battery each night.
So I figure that it cost me a total of $339 ($131 for gasoline and $208 for electricity) to drive the Volt 6,944 miles in the year I've owned the car. That's $0.049 per mile, or $0.93 per day.
And I just happen to be doing my taxes these days too, so I should also mention that it was a lot of fun to enter the $7,500 credit in my tax calculations!
And I really like the car. It's very solid, drives well, is fun to drive -- it can really get up and go.