[gjtoth]

Although we don't get the frigid sub-zero temps of Cleveland or Charlevoix, it still requires the heater. My old HHR really cranked up but I've been reading some and it appears the Volt is not so hot (pun intended). I purchased mine at the end of March so I don't have first-hand experience with whether or not it keeps you warm or gets enough to keep you from freezing.

Any input appreciated.

 

[Steverino]

I don't know what you are talking about. "It appears the Volt is not so hot" says who? Perhaps you are referring to people who mis-set their climate control?

I live in Chicago and we get plenty of cold winters. The resistance heater works fine, and so does the heat produced by the gas engine.

The heated seats are also great.

 

[gjtoth]

I don't know what you are talking about. "It appears the Volt is not so hot" says who? Perhaps you are referring to people who mis-set their climate control?

I live in Chicago and we get plenty of cold winters. The resistance heater works fine, and so does the heat produced by the gas engine.

The heated seats are also great.

Some folks on Reddit. Good to know it works fine. Thanks!

 

[flyingsherpa]

I would say the air coming out of the vents can get very very warm (totally acceptable) when on battery, at the expense of a decent chunk of range. IMHO, the air only gets very hot (where you're like "it hurts my hand to keep it in front of the vent") once the ICE kicks in. The seat heaters help a lot if you want to preserve more range. Personally, I'll use heat on Eco mode + seat heaters most of the time. If it's very cold, I'll kick it up to Comfort (max heat) mode... usually doing that for 5 minutes allows you quickly get up to heat, then switch to Eco to use less juice. I'm a cold person, so normally I blast heat in previous cars. I will say my Volt is not as warm after a 20 minute drive compared to my ICE cars, but that is because I am preserving range. If I know I can plug in (so I don't care about range) and blast hat, it's still probably not as warm at the end of short drives, but it's decent. When I go on longer drives and have to use ICE, it has as much heat as a normal ICE car.

 

[BAZINGA]

The Volt (Gen I or II) will generate ALL the heat you want/need, just know that comes at the expense of battery range. And learn to LOVE ERDTT.

 

[cjaama]

Although we don't get the frigid sub-zero temps of Cleveland or Charlevoix, it still requires the heater. My old HHR really cranked up but I've been reading some and it appears the Volt is not so hot (pun intended). I purchased mine at the end of March so I don't have first-hand experience with whether or not it keeps you warm or gets enough to keep you from freezing.

Any input appreciated.

Probably best not to post a Gen 1 specific thread in the Gen 2 specific sub-forum.

 

[gjtoth]

Probably best not to post a Gen 1 specific thread in the Gen 2 specific sub-forum.

Gee. Sorry. I could swear I posted in the Gen 1 forum. Just pretend it's not here.

 

[viking79]

With a 2014, if you find the electric heater insufficient you can put it in Hold mode and force engine to run for added heat, or cold temps can trigger your engine to start anyway. I find the electric heater problematic only around 0F or less when car has been sitting outside all day. It is fine in morning from attached (but not heated) garage.

Your 2014 will have 2 modes for engine running due to [cold] temperatures (ERDTT) and that will be 15F or 35F, but they are worded weirdly, like very cold and cold, or there is a hack to disable it.

 

[gjtoth]

I would say the air coming out of the vents can get very very warm (totally acceptable) when on battery, at the expense of a decent chunk of range. IMHO, the air only gets very hot (where you're like "it hurts my hand to keep it in front of the vent") once the ICE kicks in. The seat heaters help a lot if you want to preserve more range. Personally, I'll use heat on Eco mode + seat heaters most of the time. If it's very cold, I'll kick it up to Comfort (max heat) mode... usually doing that for 5 minutes allows you quickly get up to heat, then switch to Eco to use less juice. I'm a cold person, so normally I blast heat in previous cars. I will say my Volt is not as warm after a 20 minute drive compared to my ICE cars, but that is because I am preserving range. If I know I can plug in (so I don't care about range) and blast hat, it's still probably not as warm at the end of short drives, but it's decent. When I go on longer drives and have to use ICE, it has as much heat as a normal ICE car.

The Volt (Gen I or II) will generate ALL the heat you want/need, just know that comes at the expense of battery range. And learn to LOVE ERDTT.

With a 2014, if you find the electric heater insufficient you can put it in Hold mode and force engine to run for added heat, or cold temps can trigger your engine to start anyway. I find the electric heater problematic only around 0F or less when car has been sitting outside all day. It is fine in morning from attached (but not heated) garage.

Your 2014 will have 2 modes for engine running due to [cold] temperatures (ERDTT) and that will be 15F or 35F, but they are worded weirdly, like very cold and cold, or there is a hack to disable it.

Many thanks! I do, indeed, have an attached, unheated garage. I should be OK. Again, thanks!

 

[timoshev]

Preheat or, as long as gas is cheap use ICE if needed to supplement electric heat. Since I have been on this forum there have been a small number of heater complaints every winter-correctable by a good dealer- but enough to cause occasional negative comments.

 

[Barry]

There are two reasons the car might be considered not so hot:

1) Some of the Gen 1 cars had a problem with the heater that meant no heat in EV mode. Anyone who had that problem should have / could have had that fixed under warranty. That may have given rise to some of the complaints you heard.

2) Using heat in EV mode has a noticeable impact on range, so a lot of owners use the heat very sparingly in an attempt to get max range. But since there is a range extender, this is never necessary.

Assuming a car that is working properly, the Volt can generate as much heat as needed at any time. You never have to be cold if you don't want to be.

 

[PrivatePilot]

Before we bought I read all the same complaints about heat in the Gen1 as you have. In retrospect, now owning a volt, I rack them up to one of the following options:

- People don't understand the climate controls and were expecting blasting heat in eco mode.

- People didn't turn the heat up high enough to get the resistance element cranked up. For example, if the heat is set for 23c and the cabin is at 15c already the car will not blast red hot air, but opt for lukewarm instead to gradually heat things up in the most effecient method possible.

In short, you will have all the heat you desire in EV mode, and might actually be pleasantly surprised - if you crank the heat up high and set the controls on "Comfort" vs "Eco", the heat comes hot and fast. We live on a short crescent and I can set the controls, back out of our driveway, and have HOT air blasting out the vents before the end of our street. Any ICE car we've ever owned would still be blowing ice cold air at that point, and for 4-5 minutes beyond that before it even started to blow lukewarm, much less hot.

But yes, it does come at the expense of range - the electric grid element does really suck the battery hard.

 

[Coppersnowboarder]

Defrost is adequate. Cabin heat is almost non-existent. I wear a down jacket and base layers in winter. Since I only have an eight-mile commute, neither heating system works to make the cabin warm from the teens to below-zero. I keep a Marmot Never Summer down sleeping bag in my Volt at all times. I also keep a Marmot Helium down sleeping bag in my Volt at all times. No settings on the Volt can ensure cabin heat in winter. The heater is adequate to defrost the windshield after a few minutes.

 

[PrivatePilot]

Defrost is adequate. Cabin heat is almost non-existent. I wear a down jacket and base layers in winter. Since I only have an eight-mile commute, neither heating system works to make the cabin warm from the teens to below-zero. I keep a Marmot Never Summer down sleeping bag in my Volt at all times. I also keep a Marmot Helium down sleeping bag in my Volt at all times. No settings on the Volt can ensure cabin heat in winter. The heater is adequate to defrost the windshield after a few minutes.

There's something wrong with your car, or your choice of settings then. Our Volt will blow heat that is every bit as hot as any ICE car I've ever owned when I set things correctly, and it'll do it in a fraction of the time.

 

[Steverino]

There's something wrong with your car, or your choice of settings then. Our Volt will blow heat that is every bit as hot as any ICE car I've ever owned when I set things correctly, and it'll do it in a fraction of the time.

Agreed on all points.

 

[PrivatePilot]

Took the Volt out to pick up my daughter from work last night and experiment again, since mother nature seems confused this year and it was actually uncomfortably cool outside. I got in the car, selected comfort and then cranked the heat temperature setting all the way to the top (at which it displays "MAX"), turned the fan to high, and sure enough before I even got to the end of our street I was feeling a significant amount of heat, and then within 30 seconds later the air was hot.

The HVAC power usage display showed something like 83% to start but then stepped up to 91% a short while later, so it may slowly ramp up the grid element. For what it's worth, switching the controls to recirculate was counterproductive as it causes the air conditioning compressor to come on to reduce condensation inside the car - the power usage jumped to 100% shortly thereafter, in addition to actually cooling down the vent Temperatures because the AC was fighting the heat. Turning the recirc controls back to auto solved this, but again, it means people have to understand things to get the ideal heat output.

The key to red hot heat is getting the settings right. If you can't accomplish it, then something is wrong somewhere.

 

[somms]

No settings on the Volt can ensure cabin heat in winter.

Are you sure your K10 electric heater is working properly in your Gen1!?

Since having this K10 CHCM replaced under warranty on my Gen1 several years ago I haven't experienced a situation where the electric heater wasn't able to heat my Volt to a comfortable temp without relying on ICE heat(ERDTT perma-disabled).

Not sure how much colder it gets where you are in Colorado but I can only think of a single area here in this state where the Volt may not be able to cut it on electric heat alone: Peter Sinks is a natural sinkhole in northern Utah that is one of the coldest places in the contiguous United States

 

[hellsop]

Defrost is adequate. Cabin heat is almost non-existent. I wear a down jacket and base layers in winter. Since I only have an eight-mile commute, neither heating system works to make the cabin warm from the teens to below-zero. I keep a Marmot Never Summer down sleeping bag in my Volt at all times. I also keep a Marmot Helium down sleeping bag in my Volt at all times. No settings on the Volt can ensure cabin heat in winter. The heater is adequate to defrost the windshield after a few minutes.

Yup, and that's exactly the point. It'll get the cabin to the temperature set, in a 20 minutes or so on Comfort/Max (Hey, that's two preconditioning cycles! What a coincidence!) and in like 45 on Eco. And ICE has like 20 kw of waste heat to play with. The Volt has a 6kw heater, at most. Give the time it needs, and it'll roast you out, but it doesn't happen fast.