BluestarE3
Active Member
Audi's follow-through as far as actually building and actively selling their concept electric vehicles hasn't been exactly stellar over the years.
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Chevy Bolt a "Commuter Car?" Not Available Until April? Help!
- Thread starter MSEV
- Start date
I agree. Audi in particular and the VW group in general has lost enough credibility that we should probably only look at what they are currently producing.
Some people seem to not like GM. But the Bolt and Volt are real cars, not promises.
If you were VW, why spend now when you can wait 6-7 months and then spend it against your Dieselgate mandate? I would wait if it were me and I was just deciding as a business exec.
andrerodpt
Member
Don't know if this was discussed here but... GM will produce over 30,000 Chevy Bolt EVs in 2017, says battery supplier LG Chem
Where's the bottleneck? Why so few? Can't produce batteries fast enough? Artificially cap so it won't cannibalize ICE vehicles sales? What gives? GM clearly is big enough to produce a lot more, right?
Where's the bottleneck? Why so few? Can't produce batteries fast enough? Artificially cap so it won't cannibalize ICE vehicles sales? What gives? GM clearly is big enough to produce a lot more, right?
Consumer demand dictates how many cars you should make. That will be the limiting factor.
You need over 1 out of 4 Prius buyers to buy a Bolt instead.
There is also the issue of the Volt. The Chevrolet Volt is very good car. It will compete against the Bolt.
And? For most people who think about things from a pragmatic perspective, the Volt is a better choice for 2017.
It's not a conspiracy. I know that breaks a lot of folks hearts, that GM doesn't have Darth Vader and Freddy Kruger on the board of directors, but the EV efforts of GM are a pet project of the CEO who is an automotive electrical engineer and Stanford biz grad.
She is very smart, but she doesn't get a choice to fail at EVs, which is a tough sell with cheap gas and expensive batteries, and a public who thinks economy "green" tech means slower, poor handling, overpriced hybrids.
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stopcrazypp
Well-Known Member
LG's battery production capacity last I looked earlier this year would support about 50k Bolts, so it's not like they can make a whole lot more unless they expand (which comes with its own risks of overcapacity).
GM has always said about 30k Bolts was their expected demand. Given their poor execution with the Volt (on paper it should have sold a lot more units, but sales have been slow for various reasons, including their own dealers/marketing), they probably want to be cautious about their projections. But on the other hand, I scoff at their suggestion/hype that their car is game changer EV for the masses given that low volume. It's still stuck at Leaf levels of volume, and very far from the volume of a mainstream car.
andrerodpt
Member
Exactly. With a projected production of 30.000 units, this so called "Tesla Killer" is just a small annoyance in that marketspace.
rhumbliner
Member
I'm happy GM is getting into the BEV market -- I really am. As an environmentalist I am hopeful they can make a difference. But I don't see how anyone can say the Bolt is a real car, yet. Until it ships as a production model, it is just a promise.
I agree the Volt is a real car. But we've only seen (and driven) pre-production models of the Bolt, not production models. Originally, GM promised the Bolt would be available in all 50 states by the end of 2016. Then they backed off and said only 2 states (Oregon & California) would receive them, and then they backed off again and said maybe only Lyft would receive them. Fine, I understand new models can take time and delays are to be expected. We saw that with Tesla.
Regardless how smart GM's CEO is, until they ship the Bolt to retail buyers (even in just 2 states) I would only consider it a promise.
No, that last part never happened. GM has consistently said that non-Lyft retail Bolt EVs will be at dealers by the end of 2016.
The first non-Lyft retail orders have been given an estimated factory production date of mid-November which is less than a month from now. Those cars are expected to be at their dealership and delivered to customers before the end of the year.
flankspeed8
Member
The Buick brand has had quite a renaissance lately. Some of my friends who are younger than me have started driving them. I see that they were just rated the 3rd most reliable brand from CR today. Apparently a first for a domestic company. They make some stylish and well built cars. Sadly, still come with the dealer experience though....
SageBrush
REJECT Fascism
SageBrush
REJECT Fascism
All 100 of them ?
In 2020 no one will care that the "2016" promises were actually "2017" as a practical matter for California and Oregon, and perhaps "2018" for all of the country. All it really means is that GM corporate culture spins the truth any opportunity that arises. No skin off my back though since there is zero chance I would give my money to that scum-bucket of a company.
The earliest "TPW" or estimated week of production I have seen for a retail Bolt EV is Nov. 13 but it's possible that Lyft or other final production cars are scheduled to be built before then.
For CR to say anything nice about a GM is amazing. It probably got somebody fired for it.
Yes, Buick is a premium brand. Always has been. Buick has a loyal following who will only buy Buicks, hence why Oldsmobile and Pontiac are dead, but they kept Buick.
In 2020 the world of cars will be very much different.
It will be interesting to find out what VIN#'s are getting in the public's hands.
I'm not convinced the dealer order guide is in it's final state. It looks goofy. But so does the Caddy CT6 hybrid order guide. Not right it seems. We will see.
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