I've been driving my 2011 for 2 weeks now, and am loving it. I was able to find it with 54,000 miles, 32,000 of which were electric for 10,950. It's the premium model, and so far love everything about it. It fits my needs perfectly. The only thing I wish mine had would be the hold mode for longer highway trips. But I plan on downloading the Myvolthold app and trying that out this weekend.
Back a second time with hopes to finally get a Volt
I was last here about 3 years ago and I ended up only having a 5 mile commute to work and I decided to purchase another Wrangler instead. Well in a month my commute will increase to about 35 miles each way due to a transfer. Back then I was considering 2011?s, but I?m sure there are better options now and maybe some things have changed. I?ve tried to familiarize myself with the site again but I still have questions about what years and should be looking at and if searching for a premium model is with the hassle. There seems to be 8-10 bases for every 1 premium I find. As this will be my 3rd car I?m only looking to spend $15k maximum. I?ve found some 2014 base models with low miles. Can you give me a short rundown of anything that In the 3 years that I?ve been away and please make any recommendations. Thank you kindly. Glad to be back
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I got a used Volt too, just wondering why the hold mode matters? Unless you think that using gas on freeways is better than in city. Some freeways might have trees, but that is not going to do anything for carbon footprint given the amount of traffic that runs by the freeway.
At highway speeds, it's more efficient to drive on the gas engine than on pure electric. The electric range lasts far longer in the city than on highways, so many owners opt to use gas on highways and save electric power for stop and go city traffic.I got a used Volt too, just wondering why the hold mode matters? Unless you think that using gas on freeways is better than in city. Some freeways might have trees, but that is not going to do anything for carbon footprint given the amount of traffic that runs by the freeway.
+1. This is why nearly every car made has a higher mpg rating for highway mileage vs. city mileage. The only exception I'm aware of are generally hybrids, though the Volt seems to buck the curve with better highway performance. The prius typically rates better for city than highway driving. I got lucky and found a '13 so I have the hold function. I will admit though I don't use it nearly as much as I had thought I would. I do like hold if I'm getting on the freeway for extended times, and I do like the ability to recapture and reset my hold level when making long descents so I can use that extra EV range where it makes more sense later, otherwise it's a rarely used feature that just equates to "nice to have" when I want it.At highway speeds, it's more efficient to drive on the gas engine than on pure electric. The electric range lasts far longer in the city than on highways, so many owners opt to use gas on highways and save electric power for stop and go city traffic.
I don't get it, I thought the generator for the most part is decoupled from the drive train (on gen1 at least, haven't read a lot on Gen2, but I would assume there wasn't a lot of re-engineering the basics), so it should not matter when the gas generator comes online. Shouldn't the gas generator have a constant load, and be in its most efficient mode at all times. If GM engineers did not do it this way, they missed a very good trick.
The way the Gen 2 Volt uses the gas engine is different than Gen 1. For Gen 2, anytime the gas engine is running it is assisting powering the wheels. The exception is Engine Running Due to Temperature (ERDTT) when the gas engine runs, cycles on and off to produce cabin heat. Then the gas engine is not powering the wheels, minimally driving one of the two electric motor/generators.I don't get it, I thought the generator for the most part is decoupled from the drive train (on gen1 at least, haven't read a lot on Gen2, but I would assume there wasn't a lot of re-engineering the basics), so it should not matter when the gas generator comes online. Shouldn't the gas generator have a constant load, and be in its most efficient mode at all times. If GM engineers did not do it this way, they missed a very good trick.
Here is an article that describes Gen 1, Gen 2 electric and gas operating modes: http://gm-volt.com/2015/02/20/gen-2-volt-transmission-operating-modes-explained/
My understanding on the different drivetrains is that the Gen 1 is completely different from the Gen 2. Some similarities exist, but the Gen 2 definitely utilizes the engine under far more range than the Gen 1 was capable of. As for the varied load, I think that's part of why the Gen 2 is much more efficient than the Gen 1 since it is capable of producing both locomotion along with power through the MGA under a wider range of conditions as opposed to the Gen 1 which only produces electricity except a narrow window when the engine does provide locomotive power.
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