50,000 miles in my Volt

2014 brings a repositioning for Volt... since there's nothing left to prove anymore.

Plenty of real-world data is available at this point, showing what owners wanted to convey about efficiency & reliability while also confirming plug-in supporter concerns about purchase priorities. Now that we're seeing leases expire and talk of the second generation dominate discussions, there's no debate the early stage is over.

Volt is fading into the mix with a variety of other plug-in offerings... where it should have been from the very beginning.

 

Thanks for the update. You are certainly not alone in that situation. I met with about 20 other plug-in owners last week. It was fascinating to see such vehicle variety all in the same lot. None of the rhetoric of the past carried forward. There was no more debate anymore about production cost needing to be the top priority.

It was really unfortunate that GM chose the short-term approach, gambling on market embrace strong enough to retain loyalty after leases expired. Even though they contributed to some of the mess we are having to deal with now, at least there are satisfaction reports like your own to help with this new chapter.

This week started with 3 of us parking at the work chargers, my Prius PHV, a Leaf, and a Volt. It was a nice sight. Each plug-in serving a different purpose, yet all on the same team. That's what we had hoped for years ago. It's too bad the hype got so out of hand. I sure am glad that's finally over.

Enjoy your Energi.

 

The C-Max Energi is an interesting car!
I did quite a bit of research on it before buying the Volt.
If it covered my daily commute (28mi to work) with EV miles I likely would have chosen it over the Volt. But when I started reading reports of owners in cold weather areas (IL, MI) getting 12 EV miles due to this terrible winter I decided to go with the Volt and it's much larger battery. Curse the cold weather!!

FWIW- I think the interior of the C-Max Energi is more modern and open than the Volt's interior. I love the panoramic sunroof option- that was a "must have" for me when pricing the Energi.

Congrats on the new Energi!
Which trim and color did you go with?

 

CONGRATS and condolences at the same time. Sorry to see the Volt go but the CMax is a very worthy replacement. A year ago, I, too, went from the Volt to the CMax and since last fall also have the Energi version. My driving of 40-70 miles a day has not changed since I traded in the Volt but I'm still able to achieve a 90+ % EV ratio in the NRG with fastidious level II charging. Purchased in November, I'm still on the dealers gas!

Please join the CMax and CMax Energi forums if you haven't all ready. Lots of info there and we can always use another experienced EV driver.

 

One of my coworkers just ordered the Cmax plugin version. He's only 5 miles from work - but he chose it over the PiP because it sits a tad higher.
.

 

Outstanding!
There's a big transition from conventional vehicles to EV's, Plug-in's, whatever you consider the Volt, etc..
But the best overall results (and owner satisfaction) seem to come from those of us who cut our teeth on the Prius or PIP.
Toyota taught us well it seems!

 

Sounds nice!

Well, that's one constant across the board it seems- we know more about the electric vehicles than the sales people do- and you have to be motivated to purchase one!

 

We still have our 2010 Prius which is now my go to work car. My wife and I purchased a 2014 Chevy Volt in
Oct. 2013. So far we are approaching 7,000 miles. My wife has the Volt and she can drive all week, 32 mile a day round trip, and never use a drop of gas. At one point she drove nearly 600 miles around town and in the local area and never used a drop of gas.

Right now she has a 40 mile range on electric and in gas engine mode or hybrid mode once the battery is depleted
is about 40 mpg. Our last trip this weekend we averaged 44.6 mpg on gas engine only. The mpg gauge appears to be a lot more accurate than the Prius, infact I believe it may be under reporting.

 

I feel pretty much the same way now- having experienced the benefits of EV propulsion- I hope to never go back to all gasoline power again.

FWIW- I also got rid of my gas powered hedge trimmer and gas powered weed-whacker in favor of the B&D 40V Lithium Ion powered hedge trimmer and weed-whacker- which both work great. I'm also getting rid of my gasoline powered lawn mower this spring and will be getting the Black & Decker CM1936 19" 36 volt rechargeable lawn mower. I guess I'm just tired of the mess and stink of gas/oil, etc and the trouble it presents in yard equipment.

That's unbelievable isn't it?
I have 440mi on my Volt now and the ICE has never started up!

 

Yes, you are correct on the Volts' depreciation value at lease end. 2 coworkers have found the same result on trying to buy their leased Volts at the end of the lease. Government Motors should have stepped up to the plate an offer an attractive to their existing Volt customers. Sort of like a customer loyalty or a customer retention offer.

But, GM being GM - thats' is not happening and that is a big business miscue.

DBCassidy

 

2 Year Old Chevy Volt – 146,000 Miles and Counting​

 

So? Thats' nothing in todays' vehicles.

300,000 miles (like the Prius owners posting up) is something to crow about.

DBCassidy

 

Because you will also pay the penalties on the lease. The bank gets market value and the lease penalty.

147k miles on the Volt is pretty impressive with no discernible battery degradation.


iPhone ?

 

I agree with you, there is no reason why you should not be able to buy the Volt. It would promote customer loyalty and keep a happy customer.

DBCassidy

 

Now that is ridiculous. Makes no sense to me.

 

Big mileage, indeed...

MINUSES
Not so good MPG CS - nothing new here
Combined 60.7 MPG - not far from a PiP would do on the same trips...

PLUSES
Still good range on EV
Proud owner