[SkipperHugh]

BMW i3? Weak engine and 2.4 gallon tank good luck on a 1,000 mile road trip or hell, even a 300 Mile trip.

RAV4 Prime? SUV, good battery, good ground clearance and .. oh yeah, they basically don't exist and cost $50,000; no thanks!

Tesla, Mach E, Hyundai Kona, Ioniq, whatever else you find.. about 280 miles of effective EV range, 30 minutes to an %80 charge, yeah.. your 12 hour 1,000 mile road trip just got 2+ hours longer.. Which will do if you have to but that really isn't ideal. oh yeah, and these "long range" models still cost like $45,000.

Bolt, leaf, VW ID 4, [insert whatever here], 200 miles effective range>see above ^^^

Fusion hybrid, Malibu hybrid, Prius etc... well you get 50 MPG roughly, that's.. cool. ish.. OR you could get one of the PHEV variants get a whopping 20 miles all electric plus 45 MPG.. which is.. cool.. ish..

Smart Car, older Nissan leafs, Chevy spark, Mitsubishi I, Fiat 500 e, etc.. [Laughs internally]

The Volt is the only car that can handle the upper end of the "average" work commute or all your errands around town while also having the convenience of short stops while on the road.

I'm open to suggestions but yeah.. there's nothing practical out there to drive around town for dirt cheap AND bypass the long charging times for longer trips. At this point, when the Volt dies or perhaps at the end of its warranty, I'll shell out for that 2019 I want or maybe just get a Bolt and rent a car for road trips. Of course renting is super expensive too so maybe not..

I agree. My 2014 Silver Base Volt has 29K on the odo when I bought it in Nov 2017 (41MPGavg). It now has 110K on it and a lifetime avg. mpg of 151. Tires and brakes are all it has needed for my 39 mile (each way) commute. In Jan of 2018 my brother went into the ICU for 3 months (still a hospital record) and I drove down every Friday to sit with him. I drove back Sunday nights. That was 210 miles each way. I could only charge it at my end and I think I averaged about 45mpg round trip. When the battery dies I kept on driving. No other EV at the time could have gotten me there and back except maybe a Tesla (except there were no Tesla chargers either). I think my ideal car would be a Gen2 if I could find one. My only real complaint is the cold weather battery life. Today I had 45 miles potential (it was 69f), but in the winter I'm lucky to go 30 miles on a charge. I finallt did install 220v charging this week. Not worrying about getting home before 7pm to be charged by 5:30am is a nice change!

 

[Lug_Nut]

I can't add anything that others haven't already said, but I want to add my voice to this choir of the converted.
Yeah, it was expensive to build a car-and-a-half that had to be priced as a car to be saleable.
Yeah, I'll be looking at a 2019 Volt, but only if with 7.2 charger.
Yeah, level 2 at home does means more weekend errands (Damn, I forgot to get that while I was out) can be on all electric. I'm also on 12 hr. shifts, but not rotating. Three 12s and a 6 hr half day, then I'm off, so every 'weekend' is long.
Yeah, towing cuts about 1/3 of the range (regardless if Rivian or Volt, or her Audi, or any of my prior VW diesels).
Yeah, the Gen1 seating is quite comfortable despite back surgery, even after hours of wheel time.
Yeah, front wheel bearings aren't as robust as others (haven't need to do the left, yet).
Yeah, if the total trip is beyond battery range then using hold mode for steady state freeway travel, and battery for lower speed or stop/go, will provide more miles per gallon than depleting the battery first then using ICE to get back home.

 

[charlzm]

Some 2022 model alternatives:

Ford Escape PHEV
I personally will never own a Ford again thanks to getting jacked around by them at the corporate and dealer levels over the Focus transmission fiasco about 5 years ago, but, if you don't have an issue with FoMoCo, this SUV gets

EV only - 37 miles, 520 mile total range and starts at $34,785

Hyundia Ioniq plug-in hybrid:
EV only - 29 miles, 11 gallon gas tank, base price: $27,845

Kia Niro plug-in hybrid:
EV-only range: 26 miles, 11.4 gallon gas tank, base price: $30,805

Toyota Prius Prime:
EV only - 25 miles, 11.4 gallon gas tank, base price: $29,245

If I had to replace my Volt today, I'd probably opt for the Prius or Ioniq (the Niro is an SUV)

 

[Christian777]

Some 2022 model alternatives:

Ford Escape PHEV
I personally will never own a Ford again thanks to getting jacked around by them at the corporate and dealer levels over the Focus transmission fiasco about 5 years ago, but, if you don't have an issue with FoMoCo, this SUV gets

EV only - 37 miles, 520 mile total range and starts at $34,785

Hyundia Ioniq plug-in hybrid:
EV only - 29 miles, 11 gallon gas tank, base price: $27,845

Kia Niro plug-in hybrid:
EV-only range: 26 miles, 11.4 gallon gas tank, base price: $30,805

Toyota Prius Prime:
EV only - 25 miles, 11.4 gallon gas tank, base price: $29,245

If I had to replace my Volt today, I'd probably opt for the Prius or Ioniq (the Niro is an SUV)

I was interested in getting a Ford escape hybrid a few years ago thanks I'll look into the PHEV again. I feel you though I had a 2014 fiesta before the volts and that thing had a lot of transmission issues.

 

[obermd]

Thanks, the ionic seems to do better than most with up to 29 all electric miles but even that sadly doesn't compare to the Volt or what I need.

There is one hopeful though. The Clarity looks comparable with up to 48 miles of electric range. It sadly isn't a hatchback but apparently you can get it with adaptive cruise control? And apparently the gas engine can still kick on if you accelerate heavy but... That'll be one to actually keep an eye on when the time comes. See a lot of people hating on the style but I think its kind of cool reminds me of the EV-1 and for some reason I just like that.

Unfortunately Honda has discontinued the Clarity (all trims). I have a 2017 Volt LT and my wife has a 2018 Clarity Touring. For daily driving I much prefer my Volt but the Clarity is a better road car, even getting better fuel economy on long trips at high speeds.

 

[obermd]

I would like to see a Honda Insight, but Honda isn't selling them in the NorthEast.

The Insight has been discontinued now as well.

 

[JuneBug]

The Insight has been discontinued now as well.

I just realized Honda has NO BEV's or PHEV's for sale in the US anymore! The only thing they mention is the Prologue coming in 2024:

2024 Honda Prologue – Fully Electric SUV | Honda

The fully electric 2024 Honda Prologue SUV is the start of a new era of electrified Honda vehicles.

automobiles.honda.com

 

[arbus]

The Insight has been discontinued now as well.

I think Honda's going to re-release a hybridized Civic, instead.
2023 Honda Civic Sedan e:HEV Adds Trunk To Hybrid Formula (motor1.com)

 

[Steverino]

"While Honda is developing its own dedicated EV platform known as the e:Architecture, for models launching from the second half of the decade, the automaker will initially rely on GM's Ultium electric-vehicle platform and battery technology for the Prologue, as well as an Acura crossover also due for the 2024 model year."

 

[obermd]

I just realized Honda has NO BEV's or PHEV's for sale in the US anymore! The only thing they mention is the Prologue coming in 2024:

2024 Honda Prologue – Fully Electric SUV | Honda

The fully electric 2024 Honda Prologue SUV is the start of a new era of electrified Honda vehicles.

automobiles.honda.com

Honda is way behind in the transition to EVs. Part of their problem is as a Japanese company they have to toe the party line of hydrogen fuel cell. Toyota has this same issue.

 

[Steverino]

Honda is way behind in the transition to EVs. Part of their problem is as a Japanese company they have to toe the party line of hydrogen fuel cell. Toyota has this same issue.

Yes, Honda is also working with GM on fuel cells. Mary Barra said GM will use fuel cels for heavy duty trucks.

 

[obermd]

Yes, Honda is also working with GM on fuel cells. Mary Barra said GM will use fuel cels for heavy duty trucks.

Fuel cells will go nowhere for land transportation until we can create, transport, and store hydrogen economically and safely.

 

[Steverino]

Fuel cells will go nowhere for land transportation until we can create, transport, and store hydrogen economically and safely.

That's why I think of them as Fool Cells. Maybe that will change in the future.

 

[hellsop]

Fuel cells will go nowhere for land transportation until we can create, transport, and store hydrogen economically and safely.

basically all of those problems go away as soon as we get essentially free electricity. Because all you need is water and electricity and hydrogen can be had, and you can pull water right out of the air. It just also needs power.

Hydrogen isn't fuel; it's a massively inefficient electrical storage mechanism.

 

[obermd]

basically all of those problems go away as soon as we get essentially free electricity. Because all you need is water and electricity and hydrogen can be had, and you can pull water right out of the air. It just also needs power.

Hydrogen isn't fuel; it's a massively inefficient electrical storage mechanism.

Hydrogen is a fuel. It burns to form water and it fuses to form Helium. It's also highly reactive and very difficult to contain and manage.

 

[FRMS 1]

Hello, just jumped out of my rookie year🙂
I've driven 5000mi. and have used the grand total of 19 gal of gas🙂
Teased my Danali driving neighbor

 

[asolovets]

Outlander PHEV 2nd gen is pretty close. The only downside is the battery degradation that seems to be much faster than of the Volt's battery. Otherwise it's pretty much the same, plus you get all bells and whistles that one can usually find in a typical japanese car.

 

[microVOLT]

I bought mine in Februrary 2021 and I've already put over 34,000 miles on it.

 

[FI Spyder]

Outlander PHEV 2nd gen is pretty close. The only downside is the battery degradation that seems to be much faster than of the Volt's battery. Otherwise it's pretty much the same, plus you get all bells and whistles that one can usually find in a typical japanese car.

Yeah, the Outlander only had A/C air to cool the battery when I looked at it. That made it a non starter.

 

[FRMS 1]

I bought mine in Februrary 2021 and I've already put over 34,000 miles on it.

Hello, what percentage is gas, that's a lot of miles per day?