[mrbungledisco]

Hello, I just sold my TDI back to VW the other day, and I have been seriously looking at Gen 1 Chevy Volts as a replacement. I test drove a couple yesterday, and I had a question for anyone that can answer...the 2nd Volt I test drove had not been charged up at all when I got there, but I still tested it out anyways to see how it runs on the gas generator. I noticed at around 35-40mph, the engine was revving really high, like it was stuck in 1st gear and couldn't get out. The dealer told me it's a "well, it's commuter car and that it does that to keep up with the demand". I was a little concerned, because I was wondering what it would have done at highway speeds. Is this something normal, or was I right to pass on this one? Thanks everyone in advance!

 

[saghost]

The car doesn't have traditional fixed gears and the computers will set engine rpm in response to load/demand. Having said that, what you describe also doesn't sound entirely normal.

 

[Henry_FL]

The car will run the motor at a faster rpm if the battery is depleted to recharge the buffer. I'd bet in your test drive you were flooring it a few time, so the car was replenishing what you drained from the battery. You see, when you accelerate hard, the engine can't keep up, so it uses some power from the battery to meet the load, even if the battery is displayed as empty, there is a 15% buffer used for high demand.

In normal driving, it doesn't happen often, but there is nothing wrong with the car you test drove.

 

[Norton]

First thing, never believe anything a cars salesman says. (wth is a 'commuter car'?)
What kind of place tries to sell an EV but doesn't bother to plug it in. (Low ball the turkeys!)
The Volt is a fantastic all around car. I took mine on many long road trips.

The Volt, when running on gas can be a series hybrid or a parallel hybrid. You heard it topping up the battery buffer, as mentioned.
Don't think of the engine as 'a generator'. Sometimes when at highway speeds it is just like a Prius.

You won't be sorry with a Volt.
Soon you will be boasting to anyone that will listen about 'Not stopping at a gas station in a couple months!' (depending...)
I owned 2 older TDI's, cheap on fuel, but good riddance ! And the smell,,,,
You'll like never popping the hood except to top up windshield fluid! You'll love 'Preconditioning the Cabin' without the engine.

 

[Slotracer577]

Definitely not the same experience as a tdi. I have a gen 2 which replaced my tdi golf. If you are on ic power the engine can seem to be racing, unpleasant after driving a tdi where you turn 2100 rpm at 75. Reminds me of a slush box automatic being pushed hard.
I have not taken a long road trip yet, but I expect it won't be as pleasant as the tdi and no worse than any small econobox. Where the volt shines in when running on ev power.

 

[don shaw]

Volts are the best cars i have ever owned. have had 2 , now a this. NO maintenance in 3 years on either except 1 oil change (free) and tire rotation. used less than 30 gallons of gas in 25,000 miles. would have used less if i didn't fill up the tank after the motor (automatically) burned off the 1st tank of stale gasoline.

 

[srmarti]

Definitely not the same experience as a tdi. I have a gen 2 which replaced my tdi golf. If you are on ic power the engine can seem to be racing, unpleasant after driving a tdi where you turn 2100 rpm at 75. Reminds me of a slush box automatic being pushed hard.
I have not taken a long road trip yet, but I expect it won't be as pleasant as the tdi and no worse than any small econobox. Where the volt shines in when running on ev power.

I drove my Gen 1 Volt on a 1800 mile road trip with two passengers and the rest of the space filled with luggage and didn't really notice when the engine was on or off. You likely also notice the engine more at low speed because the car is so quiet when the engine is off.

 

[blimo]

Engine Noise

Hello, I just sold my TDI back to VW the other day, and I have been seriously looking at Gen 1 Chevy Volts as a replacement. I test drove a couple yesterday, and I had a question for anyone that can answer...the 2nd Volt I test drove had not been charged up at all when I got there, but I still tested it out anyways to see how it runs on the gas generator. I noticed at around 35-40mph, the engine was revving really high, like it was stuck in 1st gear and couldn't get out. The dealer told me it's a "well, it's commuter car and that it does that to keep up with the demand". I was a little concerned, because I was wondering what it would have done at highway speeds. Is this something normal, or was I right to pass on this one? Thanks everyone in advance!

Replaced my 2009 TDI with a 2017 Volt. Bought it out of town and drove it back 150 miles on gas engine. At light to moderate load, the engine is remarkably quiet. When climbing a hill the load significantly increases, and the engine noise does, too. Most notable while using cruise control since the computer tries to maintain a fixed speed no matter what the power demand is required. Without the cruise control on, you can minimize noise and energy demands by backing off the accelerator pedal as you approach the top of a hill (you will lose some speed) and then accelerating down the hill to regain some lost speed climbing the hill. The TDI was better at this, though. Drive it like an old vacuum controlled cruise control, and you'll save some fuel and have a quieter trip.

 

[Ruleof72]

I bought my 2014 Volt in November to replace my 2011 Sportwagen TDI that I sold back to VW on 12/27. While I enjoyed the TDI the Volt is a much better car for the type of driving I currently do, which is almost entirely in-town within about 15 miles of my house. If you can use the Volt within it's EV parameters most of the time I think it would be a great option.

When I bought my Volt it had a nearly full tank but I had no idea how old the fuel was so I spent most of the 1st two weeks driving in "hold" mode to burn through the gas. I then put in 3 gallons of new gas on 12/2 and haven't used a single drop of it since then. I've done all of my driving in EV mode. While running on gas I did notice the engine a few times but it wasn't obvious, even while driving at highway speeds.

 

[Norton]

....it had a nearly full tank but I had no idea how old the fuel was so I spent most of the 1st two weeks driving in "hold" mode to burn through the gas. I then put in 3 gallons of new gas on 12/2 and haven't used a single drop of it since then. ...

You put too much thought into this.
The Volt KNOWS how old that fuel is in the tank.

 

[Ruleof72]

You put too much thought into this.
The Volt KNOWS how old that fuel is in the tank.

Yeah, looking back, I probably did. But I feel better about the fact that I put in fresh, top-tier premium fuel back into the tank. Based on the way that I'm driving the Volt that fuel is going to be in the tank for a while.

 

[mrbungledisco]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I was pretty miffed that I drove 1.5 hours and they didn't plug it in, knowing that I was coming up there. Their loss though. I found a 2012, loaded, with 85k for $9,000, so I grabbed that one instead. $3k cheaper than the other one, with more options. Plus, the dealer delivered it to me from 2.5 hours away, free of charge. So far, I am loving it. I have a level 2 charger on the way now.