13 Chevy Volt base

[regfootball]

tested 2013 Chevy Volt base, no options. Fairly quick spin

HIGHS:

Major league and mature electric powertrain

Electric motor kick in the pants! Accelerating and passing are nicely done

Solid feel ride and handling, stable and secure

Jazzy design compared to Prius

Superior ride and drive to Prius

Very little of the nerdiness of the Prius

Hatchback utility for those that like it

Cabin is not too closed off, nice view out the front when driving

SUper freakin QUIET inside, and just enough powertrain noise to remind you you are in a motor vehicle.

Low center of gravity, you can really feel its benefits.

More or less to cut to the chase, it's a real car, and a good one when judged by that standard.

LOWS

Acceleration pedal not linear with power delivery. Makes the car feel slow sometimes.

Brake pedal feel and behavior is different and bit hard to gauge

small side mirrors

Tight rear

Rear seats difficult to fold down with headrests etc.

some cheap interior plastic, ok, more than some

dash design is sort of kit car

the touch controls like an 8 year old iPod really are cheesy to a point. I'd prefer a more conventional stack

seats don't really feel well made or long term comfy

hatchback lid is heavy and hard to use.

Heavy car

Still enough residual out of the mainstreamness that will keep the car from becoming,......mainstream. There really are not a lot of folks out there that really want to broadcast to the world that they are an envirobanger or a bumper sticker bitch.

SUMMARY

Easily the best electrified powertrain concept and execution in the business. Sooner, rather than later, GM needs to first revamp the Volt to shed its current shortcomings, but also to wrap it in a more mainstream wrapper......and make it cheaper. Larger perhaps also. The next Volt needs to mature into a sedan option at least, and be packaged and styled like many of the mainstream sedans. To go one step further, GM needs to move this powertrain into its other mainstream cars.

Innovation breeds success. GM needs to pull this out of niche and move it to mainstream. That means get the cost down to allow many Americans to have the choice to buy something with Bi-Energy source. If GM does not keep this as the best electric powertrain on the market, it will be game over. Someone else will match them and up them.

That doesn't mean it's right for everyone, but within ten years there is no excuse for GM to not move a quarter milliion EREV cars a year.

I am not sure I would buy the car or even lease it yet, because of it's residual nerdiness and high cost and lack of typical packaging as an option.

I would say all things considered a typical B+ effort. Even considering the lofty innovation.

Edited June 16, 2013 by regfootball

[daves87rs]

It's an interesting drive, that is for sure.

But one can lease one here for 200 bucks a month....even had me interested!

[regfootball]

how so, i had em run a lease it was in the 400's....more miles though....

[pow]

It should be interesting to see how the next Volt will evolve. The beauty of electric motors is that their max potential power output has no bearing on efficiency. A 149-hp Volt and a 362-hp Model S, when driven the same way, use the same amount of energy (95 MPGe). The same can't be said with a gasoline engine. A 400-hp 650i will use much more fuel than a 140-hp Cruze under the same pokey EPA test cycle--19 MPG versus 31 MPG respectively.

Although unlikely (because of FWD and transmission limitations), it would be nice to see 400-hp from the next-gen Volt. Unlike with an ICE, that would be a fairly simple and low cost affair for GM--no need to add cylinders, turbos, etc.

[Drew Dowdell]

The Volt doesn't really have a transmission...at least not in the traditional sense.

[G. David Felt]

Love the VOLT style and I believe the drive train needs to be moved into their mainstream auto's and SUV's and Trucks.

My big issue with the VOLT is that interior room. Seems it was designed for the ultimate man of 5'8" tall. When I dropped off my Trailblazer for service, I checked out a VOLT as they had one for a loaner and I ended up taking a truck as I could not get comfy nor could I sit up straight as not enough head room. Not built for the larger men and woman of society.

GM - Need this in the Tahoe, Yukon, Escalade as well as your family of CUV auto's NOW!

[pow]

The Volt doesn't really have a transmission...at least not in the traditional sense.

It has a planetary gearset that blends power from two motors and, if needed, the engine. It's similar to the power-split devices found in all Toyota and Ford hybrids that effectively act as a continuously variable transmission--the primary difference being that the main electric motor drives the sun gear rather than the ring gear. As such, power still has to go through a transmission (the planetary gearset), which can only handle so much power.

http://www.motortrend.com/features/editorial/1010_unbolting_the_chevy_volt_to_see_how_it_ticks/

A full battery electric vehicle (BEV) like Model S uses a one-speed direct drive, which does not impose the same limitations.

[Drew Dowdell]

yes... as I said... "not in the traditional sense". As with all things, it will have limits, but I don't think 400 hp is out of the range of such a simple setup

[caddycruiser]

how so, i had em run a lease it was in the 400's....more miles though....

This is more correct. Most reported in the $200's had a lot more down, were at different times, low mileage, etc. For a $40-47k car, the lease is awesome regardless. But it is not the same as a $20k base model something.

Very, very cool car. I enjoyed driving at GM Main Street in 2011. Incredible car. Bit of odd packaging for me inside and up front, but could be very functional with the hatch.

[regfootball]

I really do think its time to separate the electric propulsion from the geek wrapper and get this powertrain into the next gen Cruze, Sonic, Equinox, Trax, and Malibu. We have a Spark EV but that doesn't have a generator.

you just get the feeling that electric either has to take off or die. One or the other.

All I know is the Prius is a turd in comparison.

A real coupe wrapper like the code 130 would be neat for this thing.

Edited June 18, 2013 by regfootball

[G. David Felt]

I would love this in a StingRay Hybrid. 600hp that would rock.