[SharkVolt]

Part 1 of my Bolt review:

Ok, here are my first impressions after driving my new Bolt EV for five days all over Fresno.

1. Ride: It has a softer, more refined feel over little road imperfections than the gen1 Volt. I can't compare it to the gen2 Volt, having never driven one. It also does a good job of absorbing larger bumps, especially considering it has a shorter wheelbase than the Volt. I have ridden in a Jeep, and felt like I was riding a bucking bronco, and while there is a hint of that on large bumps, the Bolt handles normal roads very well.

2 Handling: The oem LRR tires are understandingly less capable than today's available performance tires, but the body roll is very minimal, and short wheelbase and slightly narrower track seem to give the Bolt very good manners and it has pretty neutral handling,
with not too much of the push American cars are known for. It may do quite well as an autocross car, and I will be exploring this subject more this year, and will try to leave updates on this forum as I learn more.

3. Acceleration: Again, the oem LRR tires limit this, due to more torque available than those tires can handle in most conditions. This is not a bad thing, though, because any good set of performance tires will alleviate the problem. And, the traction control and stability control keep the situation manageable. The biggest difference between the Bolt and Volts is that the acceleration doesn't fade above 30 mph like the Volts do, which makes freeway on ramps, etc. a blast.

4. Regeneration: This is better than the Volt in all modes, 'nough
said.

End of part 1, more to come.......

 

[Steverino]

Another thread is discussing whether the Bolt can start up all by itself and go into reverse. Maybe you can help answer some basic questions about the shifter actions.

1. If you reverse into a level parking spot, put it in Park without setting the parking brake and without pressing the P button, does the car roll backwards by itself after several minutes?

2. If you reverse into a level parking spot, put it in Park without setting the parking brake and without pressing the P button, does the car engage Park (as indicated on dash and/or the shifter light) all by itself if you open the driver's door?

 

[robmich]

I do not think you can put in park without pushing the Park Button, turning off the car (blue button) or opening the door while in N.

 

[theo1000]

Hi,

Thanx for the write up. I have a handful of questions informed by the Chevy Volt.
I would much appreciate your opinions.

1. Rear visibility. (Poor in the Volt)
2. Charge door. Is it just a pop open. We need to have an auto retract option? My #1 peeve with the Volt.
3. Does it default to 8 amp charging. I have L1 charging. And will continue to have L1 charging with the Bolt.
4. Does it have the same rubber dam under the bumper in front which causes annoying low clearance in the Volt?
5. What is highway speed at which the efficiency cuts out. In the Volt it is somewhere around 58 mph.
6. How effective is the defogger. The Volt is slow and not very good.
7. How does it handle when coasting in N around corners/curves/downhill. I love the Volt in N.

Apologize for the bombardment but can’t find these anywhere…

 

[Steverino]

I do not think you can put in park without pushing the Park Button, turning off the car (blue button) or opening the door while in N.

The owner's manual specifically has a step calling for pressing the park button after the shifter is returned to the park position. Hence the questions on what happens if you don't follow that step.

 

[robmich]

There is a center position where the shifter is spring loaded to. The P does not light up unless you either press the P button, open a door while in neutral or turn off the car. Tried them all as listed. The only place you can place the car when not in gear is Neutral.

Rob

 

[SharkVolt]

1. Rear visibility. (Poor in the Volt)
2. Charge door. Is it just a pop open. We need to have an auto retract option? My #1 peeve with the Volt.
3. Does it default to 8 amp charging. I have L1 charging. And will continue to have L1 charging with the Bolt.
4. Does it have the same rubber dam under the bumper in front which causes annoying low clearance in the Volt?
5. What is highway speed at which the efficiency cuts out. In the Volt it is somewhere around 58 mph.
6. How effective is the defogger. The Volt is slow and not very good.
7. How does it handle when coasting in N around corners/curves/downhill. I love the Volt in N.

Answers:

1. Rear visibility: Poor,same as gen2 Volt, unless you get the Premiere with the added camera rear view mirror, this is Great!
2. It is pop open.
3. Yes, it defaults to 8 amp charging, but you can set a home location to default to 12 amps.
4. There is a shorter dam directly in front of the front tires, which means it will almost never scrape on any dips or even curbs.
5. I would guess it's efficiency is diminished at over about 60 mph, but I didn't specifically check it yet.
6. It might be a little better than the Volts, but we haven't had much moisture in the air around Fresno for years, so It is hard to judge that yet.
7. I have never coasted in any car ever, so can't relate to that. However, the handling is at least as good or better than the Volt, IMHO.

 

[SharkVolt]

My first impressions of my Bolt - Part II

5. Interior room:
A. Knee, leg, and head room, are all HUGE. You could seat two 6 foot 6 inch guys one behind the other, and NEITHER will feel the least bit cramped.
B. But, hip and shoulder room in the front seats are tighter than the Volt, because the Bolt is two inches narrower in track, body, and interior than the Volt. If your body is a wide load, you will probably have trouble even getting the door shut.

6. Trunk storage: This is a different shape than the Volt. With the seats up, the storage area is slightly less front to back, and sideways also, but it is taller, and has separate vertical compartments, so you can store a lot of stuff, if you package it right. And, you can remove the top cover, and/or the first shelf, which gives you a little more leeway. With the seats folded down, It is very similar to the Volt, maybe slightly shorter front to back and narrower, but much taller.

7. Braking: ABout equal to the Volt. (In other words, very good) The front brake rotors look a little smaller than my gen1 Volt, and the automotive magazine tests show slightly increased stopping distance. But the ABS will still give you excellent results for this heavy a car on LRR tires.

8. Ease of entry/exit: This is WAY better than the Volt, you can tell this vehicle was designed to be used as a taxi. It is really amazing how much leg room they managed with a shorter wheelbase than the Volt.

9. Maneuverability: This is extremely good, due to the shorter wheelbase and narrower track, along with a shorter nose and tail, with less overhang.

More to come as I get time and/or think of other important points, or if you have specific questions.

 

[theo1000]

Thx. Much appreciated.

 

[Ladogaboy]

4. Regeneration: This is better than the Volt in all modes, 'nough
said.

This is the only part where we disagree. The Bolt EV's regeneration is severely limited when the battery is >85-90% SOC to that point that, in my opinion, it could get dangerous if you are accustomed to L/regenerative braking at lower SOC. The Volt's regenerative braking was inferior overall, but it was more consistent.

Hi,

Thanx for the write up. I have a handful of questions informed by the Chevy Volt.
I would much appreciate your opinions.

1. Rear visibility. (Poor in the Volt)
2. Charge door. Is it just a pop open. We need to have an auto retract option? My #1 peeve with the Volt.
3. Does it default to 8 amp charging. I have L1 charging. And will continue to have L1 charging with the Bolt.
4. Does it have the same rubber dam under the bumper in front which causes annoying low clearance in the Volt?
5. What is highway speed at which the efficiency cuts out. In the Volt it is somewhere around 58 mph.
6. How effective is the defogger. The Volt is slow and not very good.
7. How does it handle when coasting in N around corners/curves/downhill. I love the Volt in N.

Apologize for the bombardment but can’t find these anywhere…

Others have answered your other questions, but I can speak to #5 and #6.

#5: I don't know what you mean about "cuts out," but the point at which energy required to overcome aerodynamic drag exceeds the sum of all other energy occurs in both the Bolt EV and the Volt way before 58 mph (it's probably closer to 40 mph). However, if you are referring to how much "faster" the Volt's battery depletes at higher speeds, they are not comparable. My recent trip, for about 160 miles, my average speed was 70 mph and the average outside temperature was 40 F. Using climate control sparingly, I ended up getting about 3.1 miles/kWh, which is about 23% worse than EPA estimates.

#6: The defogger on the Bolt EV is amazing. It is as good as the defogger on any ICE vehicle I've owned. You pay the price with about 6 kW of draw from the battery, but it will defog a completely fogged up windshield in less than 30 seconds.

 

[HGC]

Thanks for your "impressions of my new Bolt EV" Items to check out on my Bolt EV yet to arrive. Keep your impressions coming.

 

[theo1000]

WRT #5

I should have been clearer but all Volt drivers should know what I'm talking about.

That is the moment when that meatball on your screen starts going walkabout....

 

[NYRob]

How's driver visibility in regards to blind spots... specifically the A-pillars and B-pillars (pillars between the driver and passenger door)?

I'd rate my gen1 Volt as poor in both the above areas.

 

[SharkVolt]

The front corner visibility is much better than the Volts. They have a full triangle small window in front of the door, so the pillars are much thinner. You can see the triangle in most pictures.

Also, there is a grab handle in the ceiling on the front passenger side, for old people, I guess.

 

[NYRob]

The front corner visibility is much better than the Volts. They have a full triangle small window in front of the door, so the pillars are much thinner. You can see the triangle in most pictures.

Also, there is a grab handle in the ceiling on the front passenger side, for old people, I guess.

Thanks!
It would have been supremely disappointing if the visibility was equal to or worse than the Gen1 Volt.

...my 91yo mother loves the grab handle on the pass. side for her once/week ride to church.
Even though I got rid of the Prius in 2014.... she still reaches for the handle when getting in the Volt.

 

[Ladogaboy]

WRT #5

I should have been clearer but all Volt drivers should know what I'm talking about.

That is the moment when that meatball on your screen starts going walkabout....

Are you talking about the efficiency ball? That is really just an estimator in the Volt, and in the Bolt EV, the display changes color (from green to yellow) at a similar speed. I don't remember exactly what that speed is at the moment, but I know that it is full green through the 40 mph range.

 

[theo1000]

Yes. thats the very one.

I think it is more than just an estimator however. It gives real time info on brake vs regen and battery drain rate.

If the BOLT flashes into inefficient color at 40 mph that would be a notable change.

 

[Ladogaboy]

Yes. thats the very one.

I think it is more than just an estimator however. It gives real time info on brake vs regen and battery drain rate.

If the BOLT flashes into inefficient color at 40 mph that would be a notable change.

It doesn't. It's at least 50 mph, but I don't recall the exact cross over point. I just know it is yellow at >65 mph.