[GTP2525]

Hey guys I am new to the forum. I currently own a 2013 Chevy Equinox AWD with the 4 cylinder engine I drive 200 miles a day for work and I would like to get more than 30 MPG. I am looking into trading it in for a Volt as my local dealer has a brand new Premier for $30000 I think this is a pretty screaming deal as the MSRP is $38000 but I can get it for $36000 with GM employee discount then they offered to lower the price $2000 and give me $4000 in rebates. My main concern is what can I expect for insurance rates, I am only 18 years old so I was looking for rates from younger Volt owners if possible. I am also wondering how comfortable the Premier Volt seats are on long drives as my current Equinox is fine around the city but as I recently found out the seats are very hard and uncomfortable for a commute. Lastly is there anything you don't like about your Volts?

Thanks for your time!

 

[jbakerjonathan]

I know that you are not soliciting opinions from us older folks. However, I'd like to offer my thoughts concerning your situation. Putting 200 miles on your car daily, 5 days a week, 50 weeks a year will add 50,000 miles a year on the car. The value of the car will quickly depreciate from your initial $30,000 to $15,000 at the end of year two. Can you afford to lose $7,500 a year?

Will you be paying cash or will you borrow? If you borrow, your loan will quickly be under water; that is, the value of the car will be much less than what you owe the bank. That is not smart.

At the end of year two, all of your warranties will expire and you will be risking major costs to repair if something were to fail in the Voltec system. Unless you had paid cash, you would still owe the bank the balance of the loan, so scrapping the car wouldn't free you from debt.

My advice is for you to find a used Volt in the range of $15,000 and reduce your monetary risk. The Gen 1 cars are fun to drive, are also great for long distances (I've driven 10,000 on a 33 day road trip in my 2014 without problems with my back or butt - the seat is extremely comfortable for me). I averaged 42.6 mpg on the ICE on the trip. That exceeds you 30 mpg requirement by quite a lot.

The Gen 1 seems to be well-made. There is a fellow, Erick Belmer, who owns a 2012 who goes by the handle "sparkie" on Voltstats.net (search for 2012-07353). He drives over 200 miles daily and now has 390,878 on the odometer. IIRC, other than one or two wheel bearings he hasn't had any major failures. Perhaps someone else can add info here.

Bottom line, your best bet is to buy a previously owned Volt, not a brand new one. Good luck to you.

 

[trm2]

If you want to know what the insurance would cost, call or go online to your current company and find out. They will be happy to tell you.

Depending on your tax liability, you can also get up to $7,500 tax credit purchasing a new Volt.

You said you drive for work, is that your commute or are some of the miles for the company and therefore you get paid mileage? If you get paid mileage (current IRS rate $0.535 per mile) you can plow that money back into the payment and it may not be a bad idea.

 

[GTP2525]

JBakerJonathan thank you very much for your advise! Fortunately for me I would only have to do this drive for 6 months out of the year and I figured it out at an average of about 12000 miles every 3 months. I am also going to be getting a place much closer to work which I hope will allow me to use solely the electric mode. I know the car will depreciate and I am going to be financing it for 6 years but at this point with trade in I will only be financing about $15000. I am really looking for a Gen 2 Volt because of the extra electric mileage and how much nicer the car looks and feels. I know there are great deals on Gen 1s but to be they just aren't nearly as nice of a car.

 

[GTP2525]

TRM2 fortunately I do not drive for a living. Unfortunately I consequently do not qualify for an IRS mileage discounts. 200 miles a day is just my commute which should be going down to less than 50 miles a day in the coming months.

 

[[email protected]]

Older guy here. I found the seats on my 2017 Volt Premier to be very comfortable for 8 to 10 hour drives on my recent cross-country. My 2300 mile trip included interstate driving, mountain roads, cities, local roads, etc. I averaged 43 mpg running the gas engine. My local trips running electric average about 95 - 102 mpge. I don't drive in any unusual manner -- mostly drive in L, which maximizes the regen for local stop-and-go driving in a mostly rural area. At my age, insurance was not much different than if I had bought any other loaded compact or mid-size car.

 

[GTP2525]

Thanks Thewaters! I had been wondering about the Gen 2 seats as reviews stated that the back padding was a bit firm.

 

[jbakerjonathan]

JBakerJonathan thank you very much for your advise! Fortunately for me I would only have to do this drive for 6 months out of the year and I figured it out at an average of about 12000 miles every 3 months. I am also going to be getting a place much closer to work which I hope will allow me to use solely the electric mode. I know the car will depreciate and I am going to be financing it for 6 years but at this point with trade in I will only be financing about $15000. I am really looking for a Gen 2 Volt because of the extra electric mileage and how much nicer the car looks and feels. I know there are great deals on Gen 1s but to be they just aren't nearly as nice of a car.

I suggest that you investigate "Gap" insurance for your loan. My Credit Union offered low-cost Gap insurance without interest that was spread out over the term period of the loan. For a minimal amount - sorry, I don't remember the figure - I am fully covered for loss between what my standard insurance would allow and what I would owe on the loan, if the car were totaled.

 

[GTP2525]

JBakerJonathan, my family has 2 loans on our current insurance of which both are high mileage drivers one is 20,000 miles a year and the other is 30,000+. It turns out though that our insurance offers gap insurance for free.

 

[GTP2525]

Thank you for the advice though!

 

[obermd]

Your insurance company should be able to tell you what the rate will be vs. your current rates. I find my 2017 LT's leather seats to be fine, even on cross country drives.

 

[GTP2525]

Thank you!

 

[ackattacker]

Hey guys I am new to the forum. I currently own a 2013 Chevy Equinox AWD with the 4 cylinder engine I drive 200 miles a day for work and I would like to get more than 30 MPG. I am looking into trading it in for a Volt as my local dealer has a brand new Premier for $30000 I think this is a pretty screaming deal as the MSRP is $38000 but I can get it for $36000 with GM employee discount then they offered to lower the price $2000 and give me $4000 in rebates. My main concern is what can I expect for insurance rates, I am only 18 years old so I was looking for rates from younger Volt owners if possible. I am also wondering how comfortable the Premier Volt seats are on long drives as my current Equinox is fine around the city but as I recently found out the seats are very hard and uncomfortable for a commute. Lastly is there anything you don't like about your Volts?

Thanks for your time!

Factor in the $7500 Federal Tax credit and that Premier is a screaming deal, under $24k and that's a premium car. I think it's a better deal than a used Gen 1 by far. I say go for it. Insurance will probably be similar to your 2013 Equinox. The seat is a matter of personal preference. Go take one for a test drive! I find the seat comfortable but many folks wish for more (or adjustable) lumbar support. This is relatively easy to add aftermarket if you so desire with an air bladder in the seat or any number of seat add-ons. Most 18 year olds don't have the issues with lower back support anyway...

I will say that, not sure what kind of job you have, but to take advantage of the tax credit you need to have at least $7500 in tax liability in 2017. Not a big deal for most people looking at these cars but you said you where 18 so if your job is more entry-level you may not make the threshold. In that case it might be worth having a parent buy the car to take the credit.

 

[Brjohnso]

If you're driving 200 miles a day for work, you should be looking at an efficient gas car. An electric car won't perform very well for you in the winter in Michigan, both from the standpoint of reduced battery performance and traction (low rolling resistance tires are not great on snow). How about a Chevy Cruz? It's basically the same car. They even make a diesel that gets insanely good mileage.

 

[SSonnentag]

I have a 2017 Premier. The seats are pretty comfortable, although for me the 2013 Gen 1 seats were a bit more comfortable. I have no problem with 500-700 mile trips in my 2017 though.

 

[jp4]

I have a three year old Volt. The cost of adding it to my policy was around $1K per year. Three years later the value of the car appears to be less than a third of what it was new. The insurance however, has only dropped a small amount. I am in SoCal and put about 17K on my car per year.