[bro1999]

I put "road trip" in quotes because it was "only" 165 miles total.

Weather was pretty much picture perfect for an EV, with temps in the mid-upper 70’s, and a mix of sun and clouds. Most of the driving to and from the park was on the highway between 60-70 mph…probably averaged about 65 mph on the highway overall, which was 95% of the drive.

Despite having 4 people (2 kids, 2 adults) in the “aero disaster” Bolt, I was able to achieve 4.2 miles/kWh over 165 miles of round-trip driving (no elevation tricks). Extrapolated over a full charge, that is around 250 miles of actual highway range @ 65 mph. I even had my Yakima landing pads on the roof rails (not the actual roof bars, but the feet), and that had to affect range at least a tiny bit.

This trip’s length was right in the Bolt’s wheelhouse for range. No worries about having to find a charging station, conserve range, etc. I would have driven faster, but I was already going 5-10 mph over the speed limit and didn’t want to push my luck.

Moral of the story? Despite what’s been published, the Bolt on the highway isn’t like driving a car with a parachute deployed.

 

[Slotracer577]

I find the bolt does about the same as the volt as far as miles per kW. My trip home from the dealer I went from Denver to Colorado Springs and then back north. I used about half a charge and was 120 miles or so, which I thought was reasonable considering I was driving 65-80 on the interstate and had to go from Denver (5200ft) over monument hill (7500 ft) back to 6200, then back up to 7400. Usually on my tdi I could get about 10% better with the down hill than coming back up.
The only time I get really bad m/kW is uphill with a head wind. Then I have been as low as 1.7 m/kW. I would expect I might be able to get down to 1 ish this next winter during a storm.

 

[Raymondjram]

Any trip over 40 miles is a "road trip" for me, because if I travel over 50 miles in any single direction from my home, I land in the Atlantic Ocean or the Caribbean Sea! I don't see the Chevy Bolt Ev as an "aero disaster" at all since all cars are "disasters" and add drag, no matter how well they are designed. If you did feel that drag as bad, just slow down. You will get much better ranges at lower speeds. However if you wanted to save time by driving faster, you will lose range and push your luck. It is impossible to have both (range and speed) except in a vacuum!

 

[DonC]

Great to have some real world data. People do over estimate the impact of Cd and under estimate the impact of drive train efficiency. It's too bad the Bolt lacks ACC, which makes highway driving more relaxing.

 

[Bacardi]

Nice, was the HVAC on and if so what temp or did you ever have the windows down for an extended period of time? If so the range is even more impressive...

 

[Qinsp]

That is becoming the common thread in reports about the Bolt from media reviews as well as reports from owners.

The EPA highway data submitted by GM for the Bolt was 217 miles of highway range. It's sounding more pessimistic by the day as more data points come in.

Your trip comes closer to matching the City range of 255 miles, (which incidentally, matches the city range of the 2017 Model S 75D AWD)

 

[fotomoto1]

The EPA highway data submitted by GM for the Bolt was 217 miles of highway range. It's sounding more pessimistic by the day as more data points come in.

That's because the EPA knows enough about this stuff to account for year around weather. Bro's trip was under ideal conditions. Try it again in late January and his average will indeed become an "aero-disaster" kwh usage wise.

 

[TheBlueFlash]

The EPA highway data submitted by GM for the Bolt was 217 miles of highway range. It's sounding more pessimistic by the day as more data points come in.

Car and Driver magazine got 190 miles at a steady 75mph in the Bolt. If they were going a more reasonable 60mph, I would hazard to guess that 217 on the highway is easily achievable. Btw, that 190mi at 75mph was on a warm day with climate set at 72 degrees the entire time.

Source: http://insideevs.com/instrumented-test-of-chevrolet-bolt-190-miles-of-range-at-steady-75-mph/

 

[bro1999]

That's because the EPA knows enough about this stuff to account for year around weather. Bro's trip was under ideal conditions. Try it again in late January and his average will indeed become an "aero-disaster" kwh usage wise.

In the winter, it really wouldn't be the aero knocking down the range, but rather heater usage. And that wouldn't be unique to the Bolt.
Very confident that I would still be able to get 200+ miles on the same trip in 30 degree weather even with heater usage, as the heater draw drops to around 2 kW after initial warmup. 2 kW over an hour would be about 8 miles of range eaten up....let's call it 10 miles if we include the warmup energy drain.

 

[bro1999]

Car and Driver magazine got 190 miles at a steady 75mph in the Bolt. If they were going a more reasonable 60mph, I would hazard to guess that 217 on the highway is easily achievable. Btw, that 190mi at 75mph was on a warm day with climate set at 72 degrees the entire time.

Source: http://insideevs.com/instrumented-test-of-chevrolet-bolt-190-miles-of-range-at-steady-75-mph/

Using this article as a basis (http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2009/09/tested-speed-vs-fuel-economy/index.htm), it seems the fuel economy penalty going 75 instead of 65 is around 15%, give or take a couple of points.

So if I had averaged 75 instead of 65 on my trip, I would have probably been on pace for around 210-215 miles for a full charge.
On the other hand, if I had turtled it at 55 instead of 65 (roughly 12% savings), I could have gone perhaps 280 miles.

 

[Slotracer577]

Car and Driver magazine got 190 miles at a steady 75mph in the Bolt. If they were going a more reasonable 60mph, I would hazard to guess that 217 on the highway is easily achievable. Btw, that 190mi at 75mph was on a warm day with climate set at 72 degrees the entire time.

Source: http://insideevs.com/instrumented-test-of-chevrolet-bolt-190-miles-of-range-at-steady-75-mph/

Why is 75 unreasonable when that is the speed limit? A few states are now 80 as the speed limit. If ev's are going to have wide spread adoption, especially is some of the western states they will have to deal with high speeds and long distances.

 

[Qinsp]

Car and Driver magazine got 190 miles at a steady 75mph in the Bolt. If they were going a more reasonable 60mph, I would hazard to guess that 217 on the highway is easily achievable. Btw, that 190mi at 75mph was on a warm day with climate set at 72 degrees the entire time.

Source: http://insideevs.com/instrumented-test-of-chevrolet-bolt-190-miles-of-range-at-steady-75-mph/

Traveling on South Korean highways with a Tesla Blogger at the wheel with 3 occupants and luggage in 45°F weather, netted 292 miles on video.

The 190 miles at 75 mph is often discussed. What it translates out to appears to be a Model S AWD consuming 68 kWh of battery.

 

[TheBlueFlash]

Why is 75 unreasonable when that is the speed limit? A few states are now 80 as the speed limit. If ev's are going to have wide spread adoption, especially is some of the western states they will have to deal with high speeds and long distances.

Most highways and interstates in and around cities in the southeast are 55 or 60. Once you're far enough outside of a city it may increase to 65 or 70. Didn't realize the west likes it so fast. ;-)