Bolt Production Could Be Huge

i suspect they'll be pricey for awhile, top package and all that. i doubt gm will make enough to push the market value down.

 

"Now, Karl Brauer, analyst for Kelley Blue Book, has suggested that Bolt EV sales could run from 30,000 to 80,000 a year in the car's first year."

Analysts are full of crap and never hit their targets. I will be very surprised if Chevy can capture ANY of the Model 3 reservation market.

New Bolt ad we'll never see: Smiling person holding up a fake Tesla check for $1000: "I placed a reservation for a Model 3 and now I'm driving a Bolt". Cut to Person #2, then #3...

Here's another idea: The "Cancel your Tesla reservation $1000 rebate".

Beating out Tesla for the top spot in EV sales should be easier than trying to beat Ford in pickup sales.

 

there'll probably be a lot of 100 mile bev owner potential customers, who didn't get burned by gm, who will be interested.

 

They should do a promotion to bring in your canceled Model 3 check and they will double it.

 

brilliant!

 

It's going to be a little while before Chevy has any competition in this price class. 238 mile EPA range...there must be a good number of people who will take the plunge before the competitors hit the stage. We will soon see.

GM may be the first to hit federal tax credit phase-out window.

Nissan is going to be in a world of hurt in the EV market if they can't match or beat the Bolt EV range in the next generation Leaf, and they don't have much time to lose.

 

tax credits are everything in this game.

 

Until mass production drives costs down to the same level.

 

it will probably take more battery advancements. progress is ongoing, i'd like to see them re up the tax credits, maybe with a reduction over time. something like $500. less per year for 15 years.

 

no doubt, but i'll be surprised if they can drop the price by $7,500. by the time the credit runs out.

 

I am not a fan of Chevy, even though I drive one occasionally now. Hell, to be honest, I long to drive it. I drive a BMW every day but the EV torque of the volt is very fun and I also know that driving 2 miles to the grocery store is way smarter in the Volt than in the X1.

Anyway, I think they have done something pretty amazing with the Volt and Bolt and if people do not take notice, it won't matter as long as they play the long game. They are going to Prius the EV world and have so much experience when the time comes that everyone is forced to have one that they will all be playing catch up.

I read Honda is partnering with GM for technology, that is going to be huge too.

 

When hypermiler get hold of the new Bolt I guessing they will be squeezing over 300-400 miles in a charge! Just read a LA times article test drivers got 240 miles and the readout said it still had another 50 miles left on the charge! 290 miles on a charge for a first timer!

 

Honda and GM have partnered on fuel cells. While FCEVs have electric drive trains, whether that part is shared comes down to the fine print in the agreement.

Honda will have a PHEV and BEV version of the next Clarity for those that want something larger than the Bolt.

 

Will the Bold be Spark sized or sonic sized? Spark is kinda way too small.. Sonic is decent.. But hopefully
Slightly larger and utilitarian and not just a people transporter....

Wondering..

 

The underlying bones of the Bolt is the Trax platform, which is the SUV version of the Sonic/Aveo.
2016 Trax: Small SUV - Compact SUV | Chevrolet
From what has been released the Bolt hasn't changed much from the Trax in size. The back passenger area is little more roomier because of the thinner seat backs GM developed. The extra space of the Sonic hatchback pushed it into the EPA mid-size from the sedan's small compact. It has more EPA space in the cabin and cargo area than the Prius c, but like the c, the cargo space is more in height than in length with the rear seats up. Which could mean less utility compared to something like the Insight or Prius with a longer cargo floor. It comes down to what a person will mostly pack in there.

 

Surprisingly, GM is apparently selling the Bolt EV in Canada at a price that is effectively just under $6,000 less than in the US. This may indicate the ability to similarly drop the price in the US as the federal tax credits phase out. Batteries will also be getting cheaper. GM is paying $145 per kWh at the cell level but projects that they will be paying $100 or less by 2022.

 

That's great news for our neighbors to the north. They also get DC charging ready standard and some great province/territory incentives too, particularly in Ontario. Wonder what marketing forces are in play here to explain the current real price difference.

The Chevy Bolt EV will be significantly cheaper in Canada, and include DC fast-charging | Electrek

...the Bolt will start at $42,795 CAD or $32,400 USD. That’s significantly cheaper than the $37,495 USD MSRP in the US.

Furthermore, GM only offers DC fast-charging as a $750 option in the US, but it will be standard in Canada. It means that after the exchange rate, the Bolt EV is about $5,850 USD cheaper before incentives in Canada, which is really surprising.

Now if we go back to incentives, while it has not yet been added to the lists of eligible vehicles, it looks like the Bolt EV will receive direct incentives of $12,839 in Ontario, $8,000 in Quebec and $5,000 in British Columbia.

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can we buy one up there and spend the difference on a nice vacation?

 

This is a fascinating observation and looks like a plausible theory that may explain some or even most of the price difference.

Also, to be considered are the forces of specific government regulations. Here is an article, albeit 4 years old, but apparently with new Canadian fuel efficiency standards to come into effect just perfectly in time with the release of the Bolt there:

Canada to copy Obama’s fuel efficiency rules - The Globe and Mail

The Canadian government is preparing new greenhouse-gas standards for post-2016 car models that will force auto makers to dramatically improve the fuel efficiency of their fleets.

Ottawa intends to harmonize its rules with draft regulations that were announced Tuesday by the Obama administration, rules that would require an 80-per-cent improvement in mileage by 2025 from the current standards...

But Mr. Nantais said the industry wants Canada to pursue continent-wide regulations, rather than attempt to go its own way and fragment the market...

Under the Obama administration plan, the so-called Corporate Average Fuel Economy standard – which covers an auto maker’s entire fleet of light-duty vehicles – would rise to 54.5 miles per gallon in 2025, from the industry’s current commitment of 35.5 mpg by model year 2016.

In Canadian terms, that would be equivalent to improving fuel efficiency to 4.4 litres per 100 kilometres from 6.6 litres/100 km.

Mr. Nantais noted that there will be a review of the planned regulations before they go into effect in 2017, and the industry then will have a better idea how it intends to meet the standards, and whether they are realistic...

Each manufacturer will pursue its own strategy – some marketing smaller cars more heavily, some pursuing advances in the internal combustion engine, and others relying on hybrids and electric vehicles such as General Motors Corp.’s Volt...
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So wondering if GM plans to sell the Bolt at a loss in Canada to meet fuel efficiency standards yet still sell plenty of profitable large SUVs/trucks. It's unclear if the need would be greater in Canada for GM than the U.S.. But if that is true, that could largely explain the price discount for the Bolt in Canada relative to the United States.

Someone else here, perhaps @Tideland Prius or @Jeff N, can also tell us if Canada has anything like California where certain alternative fuel vehicles get multiplier clean credits like California that allow them to continue to maintain their large fleet percentage of fuel inefficient SUVs/trucks but still "meet" efficiency standard goals.