[zippy500]

Hello folks, you persuaded me to buy a Volt. I posted the other day that I have 50 miles daily commute (plus weekends driving) between my home and a city 25 miles away. In the end I end up driving 45K miles/year. I test drove one Volt 2018 few days ago and I was impressed by the interior quality (for a car in that category). Handling and visibility very good too.

So after researching, it really seems the Volt will be the right commuter for me. I will keep my BMW diesel AWD for special occasions and long ski resort trips.

Here is a question:
I am planning to buy a Volt this year so that according to my accountant I can be eligible for the full $7,500 tax credit. I imagine if I buy it by December 2018 I can still get the tax credit, so I am going to wait. I see the new Volt 2019 will have a faster onboard charger. I think in my case that will be important since sometimes I arrive home and few hours later I decide to drive it again. It would be great to have it recharged at home using 240V in about 2.5h.

Question:
I imagine I could get a good discount on 2018 Volt. Not sure if that is a good idea since the 2019 will have the battery charging time improvement.
Anyone out there could tell me what is the typical lowest price you could see in a Volt 2019? Let's assume MSRP price will remain the same between 2018 and 2019.

 

[bjrosen]

Hello folks, you persuaded me to buy a Volt. I posted the other day that I have 50 miles daily commute (plus weekends driving) between my home and a city 25 miles away. In the end I end up driving 45K miles/year. I test drove one Volt 2018 few days ago and I was impressed by the interior quality (for a car in that category). Handling and visibility very good too.

So after researching, it really seems the Volt will be the right commuter for me. I will keep my BMW diesel AWD for special occasions and long ski resort trips.

Here is a question:
I am planning to buy a Volt this year so that according to my accountant I can be eligible for the full $7,500 tax credit. I imagine if I buy it by December 2018 I can still get the tax credit, so I am going to wait. I see the new Volt 2019 will have a faster onboard charger. I think in my case that will be important since sometimes I arrive home and few hours later I decide to drive it again. It would be great to have it recharged at home using 240V in about 2.5h.

Question:
I imagine I could get a good discount on 2018 Volt. Not sure if that is a good idea since the 2019 will have the battery charging time improvement.
Anyone out there could tell me what is the typical lowest price you could see in a Volt 2019? Let's assume MSRP price will remain the same between 2018 and 2019.

The 2019 also has power seats, I think that's a more important improvement than the faster charging. Unless they are offering a huge discount on the 2018 I'd get the 2019.

 

[jcanoe]

The 2019 also has power seats, I think that's a more important improvement than the faster charging. Unless they are offering a huge discount on the 2018 I'd get the 2019.

Really? The only real improvement in comfort is the adjustable lumbar support. GM could have made a bigger improvement by providing a power driver's seat with memory settings for the seat and side mirrors but chose not to do so,

 

[marcusm]

I think the faster charging will not make a big difference to you given your commute, unless you are in the dead of the winter somewhere. My point is if you can get a good deal on a leftover 18 I would do that over getting a 19. If not a big discount then by all means get the 19. Had power seats in other cars but don’t have one in my 16 Volt and I don’t really miss it, but that’s me.


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[bjrosen]

Really? The only real improvement in comfort is the adjustable lumbar support. GM could have made a bigger improvement by providing a power driver's seat with memory settings for the seat and side mirrors but chose not to do so,

It's hard to get and out of the Volt because it's so small, I've never owned a car where that was difficult before. A power seat will make a big difference.

 

[hellsop]

It's hard to get and out of the Volt because it's so small, I've never owned a car where that was difficult before. A power seat will make a big difference.

Heh. Yeah, it's not quite "Lotus Elise" levels of challenge, but .... well, I sure wish there were a coupe version instead. I'm tall enough that my hips are well behind the leading edge of the B-pillar, which means having to put both feet out of the car, scoot forward in the seat a few inches, then lever my ass off the seat with elbows on the pillar and roof, or pillar and corner of the dash.

 

[bjrosen]

Heh. Yeah, it's not quite "Lotus Elise" levels of challenge, but .... well, I sure wish there were a coupe version instead. I'm tall enough that my hips are well behind the leading edge of the B-pillar, which means having to put both feet out of the car, scoot forward in the seat a few inches, then lever my ass off the seat with elbows on the pillar and roof, or pillar and corner of the dash.

My problem isn't vertical height it's horizontal height, a power seat would make a huge difference for me. For someone whos short and skinny I can see where it wouldn't matter.

 

[Tomt]

Considering that it has no memory, and how slowly it moves, I don't see it as being much help... For us, memory mirrors would have been a much more welcome addition than this tiny bone that GM threw. For a mid-cycle refresh, what we got is pretty disappointing!

It's hard to get and out of the Volt because it's so small, I've never owned a car where that was difficult before. A power seat will make a big difference.

 

[mjones21]

I am personally of the belief that total charging time should not be a large factor in plug-in hybrids/EREVs like the Volt. It gets people hung up thinking about waiting that long to refuel on a road trip, and its just not really relevant to a car like the Volt.

You have a gas backup, and the total charge time even on the old "slow" 2018 charger at 240 is really manageable. If you plan to install the 240 charging station, I suppose there is some added convenience to getting 24 miles of range per hour of charging, but how often will this really matter? I would note that if you're thinking of just running a few errands close to home after you get home, you will still get ~12 miles of range per hour of charge on the old "slow" 3.3kW charger, and you do not ever need to completely re-charge the car before you use it again. If you live in a rural area, then maybe the faster charger helps, but if you're like me, my round trips out for errands are under 5 miles, which you can replenish in half an hour on the old charger.

I have seen one scenario on this forum where I felt a 7.2kW charger would be of significant convenience to justify added cost, which was for a member with a long commute, no charging available at home, and a 3 hour charging budget at work. Other than a scenario like that, the 2018 charger should be fine for almost everyone. Personally, I have used only Level 1 charging to date and regularly wake up to a full charge.

Long story short, if you can get a comparably equipped 2018 (or 2017) for $2,000 or more less than a 2019 (and I think you'll be able to get a bigger discount than that), I'd say no question, go for the older car.

 

[jcanoe]

For comparison, I recently spoke with a Model 3 owner and I learned that the Model 3's driver's seat and steering wheel automatically lower and move out of the way to facilitate entering and exiting the vehicle. That level of driver ergonomics is what the 2019 Volt's power seat should provide.

 

[fishhawk]

For comparison, I recently spoke with a Model 3 owner and I learned that the Model 3's driver's seat and steering wheel automatically lower and move out of the way to facilitate entering and exiting the vehicle. That level of driver ergonomics is what the 2019 Volt's power seat should provide.

We had a 2004 Suburban that did that. Seat and pedal positions were specific to the key fob. Of course, we had to have the seat rebuilt because the motor ground itself to powder, but luckily it was under warranty.

 

[Eagleco]

It's hard to get and out of the Volt because it's so small, I've never owned a car where that was difficult before. A power seat will make a big difference.

The thing with a power seat, is that it's relatively slow moving the seat fore and aft, compared to doing it manually. My wife has to move it back every time she gets out and finds the lever is quick and easy.

I would agree with jcanoe that if it was a memory seat it would be nice, especially with memory mirrors. As it is it's a pretty marginal improvement to me.

The 7.2 kwh charging and lower temp ERDTT are the two things that would sway me to maybe get a 2019.

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[JD4JC]

I am planning to buy a Volt this year so that according to my accountant I can be eligible for the full $7,500 tax credit. I imagine if I buy it by December 2018 I can still get the tax credit, so I am going to wait..

It must be placed in service in 2018, and you'll need a "Manufacturer's Statement of Origin" in most states to prove that you are the first user!

 

[Eagleco]

It must be placed in service in 2018, and you'll need a "Manufacturer's Statement of Origin" in most states to prove that you are the first user!

I guess here in Minnesota the statement of origin is not needed. We just gave a copy of our invoice to our accountant and he got us the credit.



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[tramvaj]

Makes sense, and yes, it depends on a use case. My Volt (2014) is used for commuting only, 20 miles each direction. Typically I am back home around 8pm, charge on 110v and it's done early in the morning. Given the pattern of use, faster charging would do very little for me. Again, this is just me, I can see many situations where someone else would have different needs.

 

[FI Spyder]

Makes sense, and yes, it depends on a use case. My Volt (2014) is used for commuting only, 20 miles each direction. Typically I am back home around 8pm, charge on 110v and it's done early in the morning. Given the pattern of use, faster charging would do very little for me. Again, this is just me, I can see many situations where someone else would have different needs.

I wonder how many people don't have their cars in their garage for 4.5 hours a day. 7.5KW charger won't do you any good if you don't have L2. It won't do you too much good on the road either. If you do a lot of running around after work it would come in handy possibly if you have start running around right after supper till time to hit the sack.

 

[bjrosen]

I wonder how many people don't have their cars in their garage for 4.5 hours a day. 7.5KW charger won't do you any good if you don't have L2. It won't do you too much good on the road either. If you do a lot of running around after work it would come in handy possibly if you have start running around right after supper till time to hit the sack.

The value is marginal. For charging at home of at work the 7.2KW charger would make absolutely no difference. For me the only place where it's helpful is for the symphony. I drive into Boston about 10 times a year for operas or symphonies. It' a 50 mile trip in and the garage has free level 2 chargers. Opera's are long enough to get a full charge at 3.6KW, symphonies aren't, dinner and a symphony is only enough time to do a 2/3rds charge. I certainly wouldn't do a trade in for faster charging but if I was buying a new Volt I'd get the option if the price were reasonable. To put things in perspective if they offered a 100 mile battery I'd be happy to give them and extra $5000, for faster charging I wouldn't pay more than $500.