I do agree that OTA updates for all functions would be an improvement. I do not agree that OTA updates should be used as a delivery system for features that were sold but were not functional at delivery. This is not a good omen. Promise the moon, collect dollars for it, but don't deliver it at time of sale. If the whole auto industry goes that way, and consumer goods as well, it would not be an improvement.
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Chevy Bolt - 200 mile range for $30k base price (after incentive)
- Thread starter FredTMC
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I do agree that OTA updates for all functions would be an improvement. I do not agree that OTA updates should be used as a delivery system for features that were sold but were not functional at delivery. This is not a good omen. Promise the moon, collect dollars for it, but don't deliver it at time of sale. If the whole auto industry goes that way, and consumer goods as well, it would not be an improvement.
So this isn't specific to the Bolt, but I have tested this and confirmed it works in the Bolt too.
YoutubeAuto for Android Auto brings YouTube, even Plex to your car
So Android Auto users can now watch----er, I mean entertain passengers by playing Youtube videos for them in the center display of their car! Just like Tesla owners can!
YoutubeAuto for Android Auto brings YouTube, even Plex to your car
So Android Auto users can now watch----er, I mean entertain passengers by playing Youtube videos for them in the center display of their car! Just like Tesla owners can!
So this isn't specific to the Bolt, but I have tested this and confirmed it works in the Bolt too.
YoutubeAuto for Android Auto brings YouTube, even Plex to your car
So Android Auto users can now watch----er, I mean entertain passengers by playing Youtube videos for them in the center display of their car! Just like Tesla owners can!
GM cars originally had this feature, then it was disabled for all future cars. It can still be 'forced' to do it, but it is not authorized or documented. Last car we owned that had it enabled was a 2009 model. That same model no longer has it.
It is not safe. Do it at your own risk, but don't blame the automaker.
GM has announced they are introducing 2 new models over the next couple of years based on the Bolt platform. The first one is widely rumored to be a Buick due around 2019.
After that, they will be bringing out BEVs based on a new platform design in 2021 with a new battery chemistry that is currently being developed. They claim the new platform will have faster DC charging.
These are typically the stations built by BTC for EVgo. Some of them are in the process of being upgraded to 125A. I regularly se one in the CA Central Valley that displays a rate of 130A while it is charging my Bolt.
Interesting confirmation of my opinion that GM is leading the race to full autonomy:
Report: GM and Waymo lead driverless car race; Tesla lags far behind
Report: GM and Waymo lead driverless car race; Tesla lags far behind
According to this article, the 5k 2018 Bolts allocated for Korea sold out in 3 hours. Title is "GM Korea Bolt EV Pre-orders Sell Out in Just 3 Hours"
한국GM '볼트 EV' 사전계약 3시간 만에 완판
한국GM '볼트 EV' 사전계약 3시간 만에 완판
Blog entry about my recent road trip to NYC in my Bolt.
bro1999's blog: Lessons Learned From a Long Distance Winter Road Trip in a Bolt EV
The one line takeaway? Gas cars are still King for road trips for the time being. Especially if you have an impatient wife.
bro1999's blog: Lessons Learned From a Long Distance Winter Road Trip in a Bolt EV
The one line takeaway? Gas cars are still King for road trips for the time being. Especially if you have an impatient wife.
Merrill
Merrill
Your one line takeaway isn't particularly supported by the facts presented. It should be more like "The Bolt's charging taper and limited CCS locations make road trips more challenging than with ICE cars."
IMO, the EREV class vehicles are still the most pragmatic choice in transportation. The advantages of EV drive, with the ability to refuel in 2 minutes if necessary, but with better real life range. Drive any speed you want, in all terrain situations, and all temperatures.
Even the Teslas have a drawback on EV supported roads. You spend more time traveling than an EREV/ICE if your trip requires a recharge stop. 85 mph x 3hr will cover 250 miles through the mountains and deserts in the winter. So far, there isn't an EV that can do it, but very few ICE cars that can't.
But for most drivers, long distance trips are fairly rare.
PS - You should keep the MyChevrolet app open for road trips so you don't get surprises, like the hotel valet didn't plug your car in. Or your car stopped charging while you were dining.
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Yes and no. Some of the advantages of an EV, some of the advantages of an ICE. Some of the drawbacks of each, too - at least as currently executed. All the complexity, cost, and weight of a full ICE drivetrain, including the ever more expensive emissions controls and the testing for them and much of the maintenance. Compromised EV performance due to the smaller battery pack. Gas anxiety for longer city drives. Less usable interior volume for an exterior size than either ICE or BEV due to all the parts needed.
In the future that might not be true. I could easily see a 100+ mile BEV design with a small one moving part air-cooled microturbine ala Capstone added removing much of the compromising that current PHEVs suffer from.
Then again, as charging infrastructure improves and batteries become cheaper and more dense, the need for a range extender becomes smaller, too.
My Volt was a great car, and I don't regret having it. But I don't believe it's the ideal pattern for the future, or free from compromises.
My personal takeaway is: “never charge the car while you are sitting in the car or standing around nearby twiddling your thumbs”.
If you don’t have other useful things to do while charging on a road trip then it’s better to take a (P)HEV or the train, airplane etc. That’s true in a Tesla also.
Fortunately, for the multiple places I have gone this has rarely been a problem over the past year. It’s trickier when traveling with passengers — even more so with young kids. Trickier still in the winter with shortened ranges and an extra need to be vigilant about keeping some battery in reserve.
If you don’t have other useful things to do while charging on a road trip then it’s better to take a (P)HEV or the train, airplane etc. That’s true in a Tesla also.
Fortunately, for the multiple places I have gone this has rarely been a problem over the past year. It’s trickier when traveling with passengers — even more so with young kids. Trickier still in the winter with shortened ranges and an extra need to be vigilant about keeping some battery in reserve.
(note: this is for other readers)
In the case of the Volt, which like the i3 EREV variant, the EV is primary drive. It always operates like an EV drive. Complexity and cost are certainly not advantages, but the weight of the Volt is the same or far less than a 2017 Porsche 911 Turbo (depending on options). The EV performance is better than all EVs but the Bolt, the i3 (close though), and the Teslas.
Gas anxiety, assuming you mean the psychological anxiety of trying to avoid using gas, is both good and bad, but is 100% optional. It only affects you if you want it to. For those who experience gas anxiety, they are focused on vehicle efficiency. Which isn't exactly a bad thing. But if you don't know anything about cars or the Volt, it never kicks in.
Because you can operate it safely with hatch open in EV mode, you can put a pretty big object in a Volt.
The biggest downside is the backseats, which have about the same headroom as a Model S. It is not a true 5 seater, it's a 4.5 seater, much like our CT6. It is not really intended for 5 adults, but it can be done. The CT6 has a large rear seating area, but only amenities for 2 people: 2 HDTVs, 2 wireless headphones, 2 reclining massage seats, 2 cupholders, 2 USBs, 2 ashtrays, etc.
But for long distance travel with up to 4 people, it is a good choice, especially if time is important.
A Tesla would have taken longer than a gas car. Hence my statement remains true.
If the sole metric involved is duration of fueling during the road trip, yes. (Total trip time can go either way depending on trip length and other needs for stops.)
That isn't my only concern in a roadtrip. ICE refueling time is also not multitasked, while Tesla charging time generally is.
That is an interesting spin on the fact liquid refueling is very fast. Wash windshield and headlights while adding 400 miles isn't one of the drawbacks.
EV tech is superior in most ways, but as of 2018, remote refueling is not one of the advantages.
Refueling during your sleep or refueling while you're working more than makes up for it.
WannabeOwner
Well-Known Member
Bit different fuelling an ICE in EU. Generally do not have credit-card-in-pump and much rarer still is insert-nozzle-on-auto, so we have to a) stand and pump and b) stand in line to pay. In that regard Tesla fuelling is far better ...
Also longer road-trip journey distances in UK much rarer, for most drivers, than USA. For me, a Road Trip that involves 2+ "max" recharges has not happened yet. I have had 2 recharges in a day, one on the outbound and another on the return, but for that journey I can sometimes (better than 50% ...) find destination charging of some sort, so that journey then fits my normal Supercharging pattern which is "just enough to get to destination" and is typically 5 - 10 minutes to get me the 25-50 miles I need, extra, to reach my destination. I can go get a coffee and have a pee, or do emails etc., whereas for ICE I would stand-and-pump and then go and do Coffee & Pee ... if I had a 300 mile range EV I would very very rarely need to Supercharge. (I drive 27K miles p.a.)
I Supercharge about once a month, other day-to-day travel is less than 200-ish mile range. In UK Travelling Salesmen may Supercharge more, but that type of driver would normally have "Paperwork" to do during that time
So by my rough calculation the time I save, in a year, not fuelling an ICE pretty much matches the time that I spend sitting at a supercharger - except that, with EV, I am now able to multi-task that time
I will agree that a 70+ S/X/LR3 would have been easier for this trip than the Bolt. A S/X60 maybe a push or even slightly worse due to less range.
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