BMW Driver drove my Volt. "WOW! This is my next car!!"

I totally agree. How about some test drive incentives from GM. Quiet and smoothness are just 2 of the values you get in the Volt that luxury car buyers don't get or paid a lot for. Driving by the gas station w/o stopping is my favorite.

Ford has fundraisers where there are several models set up for test drives at your local school, and the school gets $20 for every test drive. If Chevrolet followed suit, and the darn local dealers knew what they were doing at the event (like fully charging the things) there would be some shocked drivers out there who would never normally attempt to drive the car.

Speaking of test drives. I've been thinking about organizing a drive electric week event near Nashua, NH. If anyone would be interested in helping out please pm me.

There are plenty of people who think the Volt should be compared to an econobox. They may be ignorant but GM marketing, or lack thereof, is likewise to blame.

We made the mistake of comparing a Volt to a Cruze when we were shopping. We actually drove the Volt that was given to us for the "in home test drive" for the weekend to CarMax to drive a used Cruze. But after driving the Cruze, we were borderline depressed. We knew the Cruze was a good car but liked the Volt so much more. The used Cruze would have been $17,000 fully loaded.

At least we realized that comparing the two on price alone was like comparing a Fiesta to a Mustang. Glad we bought the Volt. we were even more glad after we had a Cruze loaner for three days and later a Malibu for three days after driving the Volt for two years. They were both nice cars if you didn't know any better but after driving the Volt, there is no going back.

DonC said:

There are plenty of people who think the Volt should be compared to an econobox. They may be ignorant but GM marketing, or lack thereof, is likewise to blame.

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Well, to be fair, the interior size is comparable to econobox hatchbacks with starting prices in the teens, so it is not a surprise that most people compare the Volt size for size within mainstream brands.

awm said:

Well, to be fair, the interior size is comparable to econobox hatchbacks with starting prices in the teens, so it is not a surprise that most people compare the Volt size for size within mainstream brands.

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The size is also comparable to something like a BMW 3 Series with prices starting in the low 40's. The 3 Series is also one of the top trade-ins for a Volt.

Re: Volt as a 'loaner'

Nope.

I had a loaner Volt a couple months back. It had a lifetime mpg of just over 50. Idiots who get the Volt as a loaner do not bother to charge it up and appreciate the true value of driving electric. It was a sad, mind numbing experience to see that number and realize that the average joe is never gonna get it, even when served up on a silver platter. After seeing that number on the loaner Volt, I could not expect any dealer to voluntarily decide that keeping a Volt as a loaner was a good investment.

Didja demonstrate lock/unlock via OnStar or RemoteLink?

When my dealer provided me a Volt for a 24 hour test drive, the battery was almost empty. So that evening I found the EVSE in the trunk and plugged it in. The next morning I had a full charge indicating a range of 34 miles. My wife and I went out and ran ALL our errands to include a few detours to show some friends and when we returned home we plugged it in and managed to add 12 miles to the battery before we returned it to the dealer.

Needless to say we bought a new Volt on the spot, but I chastised the dealer for not having it fully charged when they had a brand new SPX Level II installed in one of the delivery bays.

Dealers are GM's problem, not the car. The car will sell it self if given a chance. But they still don't get it.

BAZINGA said:

Dealers are GM's problem, not the car. The car will sell it self if given a chance. But they still don't get it.

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And that's why Tesla's model is working. They know their own product.

Steverino said:

The size is also comparable to something like a BMW 3 Series with prices starting in the low 40's. The 3 Series is also one of the top trade-ins for a Volt.

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I agree that there are people who see the value proposition of the Volt and are willing to "trade down" from a premium brand. I was one of them. Most premium brand owners will have a hard time to move to a mainstream brand, though, irrespective of the quality. This is not limited to Chevy or the Volt in particular. Look at the Hyundai Genesis which is as good of a car as an Audi A6, BMW 5 series or a Mercedes E class but very few prospective buyers are willing to take the plunge.

When it comes to the people who are looking for a vehicle in the $20,000s, they often want the biggest car their money can buy and the Volt obviously falls short in that department.

People gripe about GM marketing. But if GM is really losing money on every Volt like they say, why would they want customers to buy it? Maybe you can't have rock-bottom prices and aggressive marketing. I believe in capitalism. GM deserves to make a profit on the Volt. It's the way America works. GM tried turning the Volt into a luxury car (ELR) and it didn't work. The new Volt is probably the last chance for the model to make money for GM. It would be sad if they gave up on it after a few years.

He knows all about the Lock/Unlock feature as he sat there at the park from 1045 am till 4 pm waiting for the second locksmith to arrive.

He later left me a thank you voicemail telling me that he also got stung by a bee while waiting all alone in the dugout looking like a pedophile wearing only a white t shirt, grey umpire pants, and socks with no shoes.

Our test drive Volt was only half charged when we picked it up. The dealer had just switched owners and all the sales staff was new, yet even 2.5 years later, I still have to teach them stuff when I stop by to say Hi. Sad.

I thinking of parking out front of a BMW dealer with a sign for free test drives. (Martin Chevy will give me $100 for every referral that results in a sale)

flmark said:

Re: Volt as a 'loaner'

Nope.

I had a loaner Volt a couple months back. It had a lifetime mpg of just over 50. Idiots who get the Volt as a loaner do not bother to charge it up and appreciate the true value of driving electric. It was a sad, mind numbing experience to see that number and realize that the average joe is never gonna get it, even when served up on a silver platter. After seeing that number on the loaner Volt, I could not expect any dealer to voluntarily decide that keeping a Volt as a loaner was a good investment.

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This is so true. I'm leasing a Volt that the dealer used as a loaner. It had 2K miles on it with a lifetime MPG of 33. I'm just now getting it up to the high 40s after 1K miles. They sold it to me without a charge, so I'm sure the people using it as a loaner weren't provided a charge either. It's just silly.

Steverino said:

The size is also comparable to something like a BMW 3 Series ...

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Maybe the overall exterior dimensions are comparable? We have two 3-Series in the family and they are considerably more roomy inside than the Volt, they sit four actual adults comfortably with rear seat legroom to spare ... and they have very large trunks too.

I think a better Volt/3-Series list of similarities is.. they both have four wheels on the road

Dan Manusos said:

waiting all alone in the dugout looking like a pedophile wearing only a white t shirt, grey umpire pants, and socks with no shoes.

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Rookie Mistake.

To look like a proper pedophile you need a cute puppy.

The kids cannot resist a puppy.