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Cost of EV Maintenance - as per GM Bolt

Discussion in 'EV (Electric Vehicle) Discussion' started by plug-it-in, Dec 12, 2016.

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  1. plug-it-in

    plug-it-in Active Member

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    I was wondering about the cost of ownership of EVs. Is it true that other than "filling the tank" an EV owner only have to worry about windshield wipers (once a year?), windshield washer fluid (as required), tires (as required) and breaks (which tend to last a very long time tanks to regenerative breaking).

    Listening to Tesla owners it is not quite the case. Apparently tires alone cost a mint (each!) and Tesla requires other services. In our case our iMiEV manual prescribes a list of regular maintenance visit to the dealer, which I mostly ignore other than recall notices. I check the fluid levels in the two coolant reservoir and in the 12V battery, which is of the old type, unsealed kind.

    Now according to the Owner's Manual of the GM Bolt please leave the car pretty much alone up to 150,000 miles. What? Yeah. If you don't believe me check out the link below:

    Chevrolet Bolt Requires Almost No Maintenance For First 150,000 Miles

    I mean beyond windshield wipers, windshield washer fluid, tires (as required) and checking the breaks (again which should last for a very long time) you have a real electric car! Message to General Motors from a Canadian: Congratulations! A job well done and on the top of it the Bolt is Made in the USA. How about that Tesla, Nissan, BMW and Mitsubishi?
     
    #1 plug-it-in, Dec 12, 2016
  2. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    That is totally false! There's no mention of the cabin air filter.

    .
     
    #2 hill, Dec 12, 2016
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  3. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    what services do tesla and imiev require? how about leaf? i3? of course, gm dealers won't be happy. tesla shouldn't care, since they don't have any.
     
    #3 bisco, Dec 12, 2016
  4. plug-it-in

    plug-it-in Active Member

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    OK, I am sorry. You got me there. All the rest of you add about $20/per cabin filter.
     
    #4 plug-it-in, Dec 12, 2016
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  5. plug-it-in

    plug-it-in Active Member

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    I am bit confused but here it goes:
    - iMiEV's service schedule recommends visits to the dealer similar to frequency of oil changes.
    - I did not intend to make a detailed matrix, but recalled articles written. Certainly no other manufacturer claims a 150,000 mi (not km) without some kind of major service. I had one $600 major service on my 2008 Prius at around 100,000 km on the odo.
    - No, GM dealers will not be happy.
    - it is being said that Tesla is apparently working on a 500,000 mi electric drive motor, they had problems in the early cars

    Of course we have on idea how well the early versions of the Bolt will behave quality wise.
    In any case we live i interesting times.
     
    #5 plug-it-in, Dec 12, 2016
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  6. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    indeed. but you do need or should be recommended by gm, tyre rotations, and inspections of safety equipment and etc. prius brakes require inspection and possibly lube.
     
    #6 bisco, Dec 12, 2016
  7. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    yep - and after they took care of all of those early issues - to prove Tesla's belief in their reliability Tesla upped the motor & traction pack warranty from what it was to 8 years & infinite miles. The longest range so far has crossed over 200,000 miles & it still keeps ticking well past the 5yr mark ..... time will tell. But as of right now there is only about 1% capacity lost per year at worst.
    .
     
    #7 hill, Dec 12, 2016
  8. plug-it-in

    plug-it-in Active Member

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    #8 plug-it-in, Dec 26, 2016
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i do too, can't wait to see one. not familiar with the soul. i'm thinking 2-3 year lease, and maybe (unlikely) toyota will have their act together on prime.

    1) no tyre rotation? that's an interesting concept. what makes it different?

    2) coolant system flush and brake fluid? that takes some of the fun out, but i will never own one to 150k or 5 years.

    3) looks like they forgot the cabin filter again.:p

    4) even though brakes last 300k, i have to wonder about ignoring them due to non use.
     
    #9 bisco, Dec 26, 2016
    Last edited: Dec 26, 2016
  10. plug-it-in

    plug-it-in Active Member

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    OK - I have attached a comparison of service needs to maintain warranty covering our iMiEV and the Bolt. Items, marked by *, I added to the Bolt. They are not specifically mentioned in the Bolt manual, just referred to. I think these are the items where the dealers can "ding" you.

    Just for fun a Leaf owner could make it more complete.

    Enjoy!
     

    Attached Files:

    #10 plug-it-in, Dec 29, 2016
  11. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    They are self sealing tires, which is really all I know about them. Perhaps they are unidirectional, so swapping left to right would require taking the tire off and remounting it.
     
    #11 Trollbait, Dec 31, 2016
  12. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    huh. how much do they reduce miles per kWh?
     
    #12 bisco, Dec 31, 2016
  13. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    You're going to have to get a Bolt, and put regular tires on it to see. These are the tires on the car when EPA tested.
     
    #13 Trollbait, Jan 1, 2017
  14. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    if it checks all the boxes, i'm on it.
     
    #14 bisco, Jan 1, 2017
  15. plug-it-in

    plug-it-in Active Member

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    The BOLT manual mentions tire rotation - if I recall "back to front only". It also talks about snow tires for heavy snow areas I guess. Of course by-by self healing tires at least for now.

    With all the new cars on the market lately without even a 'doghnut' spare I wonder why are these self healing tires not more popular. The tire fixer thingy packeges provided instead of spares are neat but not very practical at minus 40F or C - take tour choice - or in pouring rain, etc.
     
    #15 plug-it-in, Jan 1, 2017
  16. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i have to think they eat up the mpg's. it just goes against the grain of the whole movement.
     
    #16 bisco, Jan 1, 2017
  17. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    They are also new to the road car market. I've seen ones for your bicycle, wheel barrow, or ATV for years, but never one for a passenger car.

    Run-flat tires tend to hurt fuel economy because of increased weight. We don't know how much heavier these self sealing tires are. I suspect would have stuck to an inflation kit if these tires had a big impact on economy and range. GM is lagging in hybrid offerings, but they aren't clueless when it comes to efficiency in general.
     
    #17 Trollbait, Jan 2, 2017
  18. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    hopefully we'll get some real data soon. also, how much is a replacement? i don't want bmw tyres.
     
    #18 bisco, Jan 2, 2017
  19. plug-it-in

    plug-it-in Active Member

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    I think snow tires will 'eat mileage ' on any car. Still safety needs to overcome mileage.

    For what it's worth; trading the factory 'low rolling resistance ' tires on my two Prii to the Nokian all year, 'low rolling resitance' tires I did not feel any impact on mileage, just a bit more tire noise. That does not mean that there was absolutely no impact on fuel consumption, only that it was nominal.

    Interesting point! Self healing tires must weigh more.

    Happy new year
     
    #19 plug-it-in, Jan 2, 2017
  20. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    They are a common tire size, so you easily swap in regular tires or run flats when it comes time to replace if you find the self seal price unacceptable.
    Snow tires have soft rubber and the tread may be non-conductive to low rolling resistance.
    Run flats are heavier because they have a thicker sidewall to support the car's weight without air pressure. This is were most of the mpg penalty comes from.
    If these self sealing tires are like the off road ones available, there is a layer of goo sandwiched into the tread rubber. They won't be as heavy as run flats, and likely aren't much heavier than the average tire.
     
    #20 Trollbait, Jan 2, 2017
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