Car most traded in for a Chevy Volt is a Toyota Prius?

I think you may have dodged a bullet there. My neighbor just bought a C-Max a month ago and he is yet to crack 40 mpg. Although his mpg is creeping up and the latest tank read 39.8 mpg with odometer at about 1300 miles. He is coming from a Gen II Prius with 52 mpg lifetime average so he is a little disappointed so far. I am starting to suspect that it may not meet the EPA numbers without serious hypermiling. Also, the tires are HUGE compared to the Prius Gen II so the real world mileage might suffer. No wonder it handles well.

 

Thanks for the affirmation. I should mention that there was actually another vehicle between the 2010 Prius and the 2013 Volt - I had a 2013 Escape 'S' (strippo rental special) briefly (six weeks). I can't say I hated it completely, but there were some annoying programming 'glitches' that bothered me, and I suspect these carry over to the C-Max, as well. Combined with getting fuel mileage that was half of the Prius meant I was filling up twice as much, and it drove me crazy. Yeah, I took a hit on depreciation when I traded what was a virtually brand-new vehicle so soon for the Volt, but I'm much happier now.

The bottom line is that I think the operator design architecture (Sync by Microsoft) of all the new Fords, be it Focus, Escape, or C-Max, are all very similiar, if not outright identical. It might not bother some, but I don't like the way the operator selections are laid out very much. Although my Escape didn't have it, I've read a lot of bad reviews about the extra-cost 'My Ford Touch' system being excessively slow and is to be avoided, similiar to how BMW's iDrive was universally despised when it was initially released.

The Volt's operator controls seems much more intuitive and thought out.

 

i regret this trade

 

The Volt is supremely ugly though, at least to my eyes. I just can't get around the styling no matter how many times I see it. I always thought that Gen II Prius was not a good looking car but at least the styling served a purpose. That back-end on the Volt is one of the worst I have seen of any car. C-Max and Gen III Prius look a lot better, at least from the outside. GM really missed the boat there.

 

I don't really see the Volt's styling any worse than the G3 Prius, but can understand those who aren't that taken with it. Of particular note is the goofy, low-mounted, single back-up light. What's up with that? The worst thing about it is it does a fine job of interferring with any kind of hitch installation. I wouldn't do any trailering with the Volt, but it would be nice to be able to install a hitch for a bike rack.

Of the current and past hybrids/EVs, I still think the G2 Prius is the most cohesive/practical design, both inside and out, followed by the C-Max. OTOH, the C-Max wasn't designed as a hybrid/EV from the ground up, so, unlike the Prius, the C-Max's rear floor is not flush with the rear bumper and is actually raised to accomodate the battery. The C-Max Energi EV is even more intrusive into the interior, but aside from the Prius V, the C-Max still has the most interior space of any current hybrid/EV.

As to the C-Max fuel mileage, I'd be more than a little pissed if the thing wasn't breaking the 40 mpg barrier. My 2010 Prius had no trouble regularly achieving 44 mpg under normal driving. The C-Max's EPA rating of 47 mpg (combined) is a huge selling point and if it's not actually reaching that in real world driving, well, once that becomes common knowledge, it's going to go a long way to dampening sales.

 

Yeah, I guess beauty is truly in the eyes of the beholder.

Come to think of it, I don't think I appreciate the beauty of any car that GM produces today. In fact, that is true with Toyota and Ford as well (Scion FR-S & new Ford Fusion are exceptions). GM and Toyota can really do with better exterior designers.

 

Re: I don't really see the Volt's styling any worse than the G3 Prius
Looks significantly different from the front or the back.

Re: Of particular note is the goofy, low-mounted, single back-up light.
Useful for backup camera located above license plate.

Re: does a fine job of interferring with any kind of hitch installation.
There are coupe of companies that make a hitch for the Volt.

 

Don't patronize me, your condescending remarks are uncalled for!!!

DBCassidy

 

Maybe John Hatchett will self-moderate. He really should since the main areas of the Chat are quite civil and should remain so.

FHOPol OTOH requires elephant's skin.

 

Perhaps John Hatchett will self-moderate. He really should since the main areas of the Chat are quite civil and should remain so.

Diving into FHOPol OTOH requires an elephant's skin.

 

After seeing more details about C-MAX Energi, it became clear that Prius PHV is the best upgrade for me.

I don't need more EV range but I prefer a bigger and flat cargo floor.

I want to use electricity for short, frequent and local trips. For the long trips, I want the cleanest and the most efficient gas engine.

The current $3,500 cash bonus promotion was too hard to ignore/resist so I pulled the trigger.

 

USB, happy to hear you found the car that fits your desires best. Sorry your driving patterns require such frequent longer trips.
I wish our area had power generation as low in CO2 as yours, then I could almost get by without solar panels

 

Congratulations on getting a good deal on the phev that you like. Enjoy your new car.

 

Looking forward to your experience of using EV miles more and more.

 

Everything is close together over here so Prius PHV is ideal for me. Great thing about the city.

Garage plug needs to be looked at by an electrician betore I can plug in. Been driving on gas only. Got about an hour to plug it in at an in-law house. That's about it.

Gas engine is definately more efficient and refined than Gen II. Shutdowns are undetectable, wow. Loving it.

 

There seems to be a childish tension/competition here among the people supporting different brands/manufacturers. It doesn't matter that a car comes from Toyota or GM or Ford or Honda. What matters is how well it fits your needs and wants. I do not understand why one brand needs to be denigrated for the other to be superior.

This domestic vs foreign manufactured debate is over the top too. A car/brand does not automatically become better for the economy because it is manufactured domestically or outside. There are so many ancillary services attached to the complete lifecycle of a car that manufacturing is a small part of the overall picture. You buy the car you like and let other people buy what they like. Given the ~20 year lifecycle of a vehicle that includes marketing/selling/shipping/services/repair/parts/inspections/gas/cleaning/recycling/... , arguably the best car for the economy is the one that needs attention every 100 miles.

So, in conclusion, the lowest reliability car is the best for your economy. So, please buy German.

 

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This would have been my ev of choice

 

I believe many here understand, acknowledge it and agree with you.

The discussion was about going beyond that and understand the "misfit" usages. In those cases, Volt has much greater potential to increase emission than a well designed EV or plugin hybrid. EPA uses statistics to get a meaningful figure under various conditions. They came out with 260 g/mi CO2 for Volt. 210 g/mi for Prius PHV. A regular Prius is 222 g/mi.

Discussion also increase the awareness and understanding of the trade-offs for having a bigger battery, as well as the benefits for having smaller battery pack. Only then (with the understanding), one can make a wise informed decision.

 

Are you still using the old grid assumptions? Those assumptions from before the Volt went into production and not taking into account that the grid supply is changing every month?

I find one of the most compelling reasons to take a Volt vs the Prius or PiP is that I have the choice of fuel source, something I don't get with a Prius. I still can't find a source for carbon free gasoline.

 

I am using EPA figures. I believe EPA is currently using eGrid 2010. eGrid 2012 data is out now and it shows about 5% reduction in grid electricity emission.

There is carbon in your Volt gas tank so you are not excluding gasoline in your choice of fuel source and probably enjoy the benefit of it's superior energy density and refueling speed.

I don't discriminate against gasoline or bias toward electricity. I want the benefits of both fuels and a vehicle that is designed to optimize both.