[icharry]

Ok - its been 4868 miles (lifetime average 572.23MPG) and I had to buy my 1st tank of gas! WOOT. Per suggestions by others on this board I only put like 3.5 gallons in - no point in carrying the extra weight.

Is there a way to have the Total Range display LOW? I found that very frustrating. I was in HOLD mode on the freeway
and knew I had 5 miles EV for when I got to the surface streets, but the LOW was making me nervous... was not 100%
I could make it to my usual (when I had a gas car) station. Sadly I could have made it home on the last 3 miles of EV
and plugged in and gone another few days before I would have to drive far enough to use gas... but again I was worried about the low and any issues with damaging the fuel pump if I totally ran out.

Also, before I filled up when I would come to a stop sign the total power usage meter would show 0.5 kW... as soon as
I added the gas and started it up it reads 2 kW ????

Loving the Volt!

 

[srmarti]

0.5kw is about the minimum indication. 2kw after starting probably means the HVAC is running.

 

[saghost]

I don't know for a fact if it still works, but it used to be that the smartphone app electric screen would show the car's actual total estimate after it went to "Low" on both the instrument panel and the gas screen.

 

[wildgoose]

Remember gasoline acts as the coolant for the fuel pump. You don't want the level to be too low where the fuel pump is not adequately cooled, this is especially important on long road trips.

I keep mine at around 150 miles of gas range, a little less than half the capacity. This way, I have enough range should I need to go somewhere unexpected without visit the gas station, and knowing the fuel pump will be adequately cooled.

 

[freshcut]

Unless you have some odd reason for keeping the tank dry/nearly dry, I believe the manual suggests keeping the fuel level at about 3 bars.....which is about 1/4 tank. I find that if I get down to 1 bar and the fuel level shows low rather than a mileage estimate, my total range always shows low, even with a fully charged battery. I actually ran into this problem for about a week with the car constantly nagging that I had a low fuel warning and even kindly offered to navigate to a nearby gas station. I finally got tired of seeing it and donated $2 to OPEC.

 

[rdunniii]

Remember gasoline acts as the coolant for the fuel pump. You don't want the level to be too low where the fuel pump is not adequately cooled, this is especially important on long road trips.

I keep mine at around 150 miles of gas range, a little less than half the capacity. This way, I have enough range should I need to go somewhere unexpected without visit the gas station, and knowing the fuel pump will be adequately cooled.

It is fuel passing through the pump that cools it not fuel surrounding it.

 

[Tom17]

I barely use any gas and get my yearly Fuel Maintenance Mode. I drive it down to about 2 miles of range left (estimated) and start subtracting from the 38 to 40 miles range just before it goes to low. I only put 1.7 gallons in a year. Thanks to ARI_C, for pointing out that you need to put in just about 1.7 gallons to get the FMM to stop and Low indicator to disappear.

 

[icharry]

Good to know about the 1.7 gallons. I'll give it a try in 6months or so when I next need gas!

 

[caronjeff]

I have non-ethanol added 100% premium gas available up the road. If I was only using a few gallons annually like some here I would definitely pay up the 80 cents a gallon for it.

 

[llninja]

I envy everyone who can make it to FMM. I drive on Dino juice daily as my 65 mile round trip without charging in between consistently exceeds my gen1 range. I know, I know, get a gen2... but trading in seems like a waste of a perfectly good car.

 

[firehawk72]

I envy everyone who can make it to FMM. I drive on Dino juice daily as my 65 mile round trip without charging in between consistently exceeds my gen1 range. I know, I know, get a gen2... but trading in seems like a waste of a perfectly good car.

True, but I believe you would enjoy it so much that...


you would never look back nor regret it. I also understand you want an ELR (if my memory is correct) but that is not the practical side of your Dave Ramsey approach.


I see a Gen 2 in your future...





I would also like to add that I got such a screaming deal on my 2016 Volt that my wife and I decided we would be nutty not to trade.

 

[llninja]

True, but I believe you would enjoy it so much that...


you would never look back nor regret it. I also understand you want an ELR (if my memory is correct) but that is not the practical side of your Dave Ramsey approach.


I see a Gen 2 in your future...





I would also like to add that I got such a screaming deal on my 2016 Volt that my wife and I decided we would be nutty not to trade.

If I follow the Dave Ramsey approach to vehicles the total of my vehicles combined needs to be less than 50% of my annual household income and I need to pay cash for it. So a used ELR for about $30k is well within that guideline. Heck if I use last year's annual income a brand new Tesla P100D or BMW i8 also fits once I save up the cash to buy the vehicle. In fact, for as much as Dave Ramsey tells people not to lease, and only buy used cars, once you have $1M in net worth, his guidelines allow you to get whatever you want and even leasing is not frowned upon if it is a tiny percentage of your net worth.

So at the moment, a gen2 is not in my future. The ELR will be purchased if and only if someone t-bones my volt and I need a replacement car right away. Otherwise the next vehicle will likely be a new Subaru Outback, unless GM fast tracks the FNR-X or Volvo or Jaguar get the I-PACE or V60 cross country hybrid to market. A cadillac electric CUV would also be an option if they get off their butts and build it. Plus if the CTS continues to drive nicely without needing major repairs, that Outback might morph into a Subyukonade gas guzzler. A CT6 might even find its way into my garage, especially if the pattern holds true like the ELR, the car's price drops roughly in half after 2 years. I'm still waiting for someone on this forum to jump in and buy one then share the real-world ownership experiences. Someone please buy one in the interest of science.

I buy cars about once a decade, so the next purchase might happen in 2021-3 where hopefully there will be many more EVs to choose from.

 

[firehawk72]

If I follow the Dave Ramsey approach to vehicles the total of my vehicles combined needs to be less than 50% of my annual household income and I need to pay cash for it. So a used ELR for about $30k is well within that guideline. Heck if I use last year's annual income a brand new Tesla P100 or BMW i8 also fits once I save up the cash to buy the vehicle. In fact, for as much as Dave Ramsey tells people not to lease, and only buy used cars, once you have $1M in net worth, his guidelines allow you to get whatever you want and even leasing is not frowned upon if it is a tiny percentage of your net worth.

So at the moment, a gen2 is not in my future. The ELR will be purchased if and only if someone t-bones my volt and I need a replacement car right away. Otherwise the next vehicle will likely be a new Subaru Outback, unless GM fast tracks the FNR-X or Volvo or Jaguar get the I-PACE or V60 cross country hybrid to market. A cadillac electric CUV would also be an option if they get off their butts and build it. Plus if the CTS continues to drive nicely without needing major repairs, that Outback might morph into a Subyukonade gas guzzler.

I agree. On the "practical side" I was looking more at the range of Gen 2 over the range of an ELR. Nothing wrong with getting what you want as long as you can afford it. I wish more people were better stewards of their money. I told my wife, "If I can buy this Volt for what I think I can, I want to buy it." She was totally on board. I do miss a few features that my old Volt had, but overall, I it was a good financial move if there ever is such a thing when dealing with a depreciating asset.

 

[llninja]

I agree. On the "practical side" I was looking more at the range of Gen 2 over the range of an ELR. Nothing wrong with getting what you want as long as you can afford it. I wish more people were better stewards of their money. I told my wife, "If I can buy this Volt for what I think I can, I want to buy it." She was totally on board. I do miss a few features that my old Volt had, but overall, I it was a good financial move if there ever is such a thing when dealing with a depreciating asset.

I"m loving compounding interest...my net worth increased by over $10k yesterday with me sitting on my butt. It doesn't happen every day, but it's nice when it does.

Back to topic, just put a couple gallons to top tier fuel in when the car tells you to and don't worry about it.

 

[wws]

LL: You should just get a Model X and be done with it. It even has a tow rating for your Airstream.

 

[llninja]

ll: You should just get a Model X and be done with it. It even has a tow rating for your Airstream.

I don't want a model X. The quality issues with those falcon wing doors and the avalanche of snow that will make its way into the cabin has turned me off from the model X. Plus the 24 foot airstream might be cutting the tow ratings a bit close with the model X. My 3/4 ton Suburban is probably overkill, but safety first. A model X also can't handle towing a full rack wagon or utility trailer of hay. Plus the cost of the model X exceeds the prices of the Suburban and Subaru combined.

 

[NinjaVolt]

Great choice, the Subaru Outback is an outstanding vehicle. Virtually unstoppable in snow and ours had no big issues.
We had it for over 17 yrs and would have likely bought another but we succumbed to the temptation of the gen2.
The only thing to note is Subbies will use more fuel than a comparable size FWD wagon due to the AWD, wide tires and higher ground clearance. But You probably already know that.

 

[bjrosen]

Gas weighs 6lb/gallon, not filling your tank is saving you a lousy 30lbs, that's insignificant. Keep a full tank and you'll never have any range anxiety. If you don't normally burn any gas you should treat yourself to an annual roadtrip so that you burn the gas up, take a Saturday drive up to the mountains or down to the seashore.

 

[TSquare]

I have non-ethanol added 100% premium gas available up the road. If I was only using a few gallons annually like some here I would definitely pay up the 80 cents a gallon for it.

I guess you don't get out much. Gas hasn't been 80 cents a gallon in about 40 years.

 

[wizard_of-ahs]

I'm pretty sure he's talking about the difference in price for the non ethanol