2013 Chevrolet Volt: Gas Mileage, Electric Range Test
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It had been almost two years since we'd driven a Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric car, and the new 2013 model has been slightly modified to boost its electric range.
We took a new 2013 Chevy Volt on our usual weekend test route, which covered 360 miles that included about two-thirds freeway driving and one-third local errands.
That's not an ideal duty cycle for a Volt, which can run electrically for weeks on end if you keep your trips between recharges to 30 miles or less.
But it's probably reflective of why many owners buy a Volt; it's the electric car that you can jump into and drive a few hundred miles.
After the 16-kilowatt-hour battery pack is depleted, the Volt's range-extending 1.4-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine switches on to generate electricity that keeps the car running indefinitely.
The EPA says the 2013 Volt's electric range is 38 miles, and it rates the gas mileage at 37 mpg in gasoline mode--which adds 342 more miles per tank.
The bottom line is that temperature and driving style mattered vastly more than the slightly bigger battery, which raised this year's Volt range to 38 miles from the 35-mile rating of the 2011 and 2012 models.
Heading out of New York City, we were able to travel 33.1 miles electrically before the engine switched on, almost imperceptibly.
We recharged overnight at home on 110-Volt power, all but refilled the pack at a theoretically-closed but perfectly functional Chargepoint Level 2 charging station nearby, and then twice more at home.
The maximum electric range projected in the Volt's dash display with a completely full battery rose from 36 to 41 miles after a long downhill stretch (the projection is based on recent driving).
And after covering 25 miles, we had used 19 miles of that "range," leaving us with 22 miles remaining (which is when we plugged into the Level 2 charging station during lunch).
In weather from about 50 degrees F at night to a mild 65 degrees in the day, a full battery gave us from 33 to 39 miles--especially when we were able to recharge at the top of the hill.
The overall gas mileage for our 360 miles, combined between electric and gasoline modes, was 67.2 mpg.
For the record, that's better than a conventional Toyota Prius hybrid will deliver; it's rated at 50 mpg.
While some readers feel we shouldn't derive overall gas mileage from blending the two modes, we think it's fair.
It is, frankly, the amount of gasoline (5.3 gallons) we used to cover 360 miles. That gas would have cost us roughly $20, whereas our multiple recharging sessions cost less than $3.
We can't yet compare our real-world 2013 Volt efficiency to the plug-in Prius just launched this year by Toyota; that's this weekend's test, though our routes won't compare identically.
But based on having driven both cars several times, we can confidently say the Volt was nicer inside and more fun to drive than the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid.
And many, many Volt owners who confine their use to shorter trips report lifetime gas mileage of "250+ mpg," which is the most that will show on the Volt's in-dash display.
Our 2013 Volt test car had four options, which brought the base price of $39,995 up to a bottom-line sticker price of $43,275.
They were the Premium Trim Package, at $1,395, which not only covers the seats and steering wheel in leather but adds heated front seats and a rear-seat armrest; a navigation and MyLink radio, at $895; a Bose premium speaker system at $495; and the striking Crystal Red Tincoat paint, at $495.
Chevy has also sporadically offered generous dealer incentives to help Volt sales, so if you're interested in a Volt, do your research to see what lease or purchase deals are out there.
The car qualifies for a $7,500 Federal income-tax credit, a California electric-car purchase rebate of $1,500, and a variety of other state, regional, local, and corporate incentives.
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Have an opinion?
I drive pretty "aggressively" (hard accerlation and 75+mph) and I haven't been able to get less than 36.7 miles (the worst I got so far). But I don't use heat and my tires are set to 40 PSi instead of 38 PSI.
I also drive exclusively in "L" mode. (Recommended by Chevy for max efficiency).
I think EPA or Fuelly (or other data aggregators) are much better sources of information.
However, I found that hills and speed are the two biggest impact. Especially speed.
I did a "Prius imitation" for the past two days by setting my Volt's cruise control to 60mph and drove the same commute route for the last 2 days. I end up getting 49-50 miles in range. Typically, I only get 39-40 miles in range with my 75+mph commute (hitting above 85+mph at least couple times per trip)...
I love the fact that you can drive in "Sports" mode and still use "L" for max regen. That is one thing you can't do in the Leaf (which is really unreasonable).
In engineering, we have these things called "units" that keep us from making mistakes. In the case of the Volt and the Prius numbers, these mpg units are NOT the same and they should not be called the same. Let's make the Volt units be mpgBS and the Prius are mpg.
What will GCR start doing in the the future, report LEAF MPG as INFINITY? Because that is the same scale that the Volt is on. Volt MPG can range from zero to infinity the way GCR is doing it.
Did they even bother to report the electricity used? Nope, can't be bothered with that. Just sad.
How about $ per mile?
After 10,000 miles I averaged $35 for every 1000 miles (gas at $3.50 + electric cost).
A 50 mpg Prius at $3.50 per gallon would spend $70 to go 1000 miles, or twice the cost of what I spent in my Volt.
A 25 MPG passenger car would cost $140 to go 1000 miles, or 4 times the Volt cost.
A 15 mpg Pickup would cost $233.33 to go 1000 miles, or 6.7 times the Volt cost.
BUT..... It is not bad journalism reporting MPG....
MPG is an important number when calculating foreign oil dependency. Electricity comes 100% from domestic sources, while gasoline comes from over 60% foreign sources. So MPG tells you exactly how much foreign oil you are consuming.
Some people drive Prius b/c it saves money. Some people drive Prius b/c it "saves gas". So, for the second group, the number has some value to them.
JV did note the electricity charge cost of $3 in addition to his gasoline cost of $30.
Miles per gallon in its "simplest" form is the number of "miles" used per "gallon". By your "complain", it is also valid for Diesel fan to complain that Hybrids used "less" gas because of the electric assist (which is "free")...
Even in this particular case, the Volt is cheaper than Prius. In JV's article, it said the Volt covered 360 miles that cost him less than $23. That is $0.064 per mile. A 50MPG Prius would be about $0.08 per miles if gas is $4/gallon, $0.075/miles if gas is $3.75/gallon. With recent CA gas price of $4.40/gallon, A 50 MPG Prius would cost $0.088/mile.
Secondly, Voelcker is brilliant.
But this mpg reporting is a chronic problem here on GCR (and elsewhere).
So why doesn't the review say GCR got 67 mpg compared to the EPA 37 mpg, better than expected. Because they know it is wrong. The 37 mpg is only valid after the battery is put in charge sustaining mode.
OK so why didn't they say the Volt got 67 mpg compared to compared to 98 mpge, worse than expected. Because they know it is wrong. This is only valid in charge depleting mode. They know that so they didn’t make the comparison.
So the journalist measured 67 mpgBS compared to the EPA 35 mpg (charge sustaining) or the EPA 98 mpge (charge depleting).
Now that the three numbers are on different scales (mpgBS, mpg, mpge), we know not to compare them.
Of course, the journalist could easily calculate the mpge, if he/she measured both the electricity used and the miles driven electrically. Thus the journalist could report their measured mpge versus the EPA mpge, which would be of interest. This would also be consistent with the way ICE review report measured mpg versus EPA mpg.
On the Prius, mpg is a measure of efficiency. It relates how much fuel is used per miles driven.
On the Volt, the 67 mpgBS is a measure of frequency of charging and miles driven. This does not relate to the efficiency of the vehicle, it relates to how it is driven.
A far better metric for this is percent electric miles driven. This has the advantage of not confusing mpg (which the EPA defines in a certain way) of a ICE or hybrid car, with new usage of mpg (mpgBS) that is more closely connected to length of trip/frequency of charging.
Instead, I'd like to see combined efficiency numbers stated at different demand levels, like this:
90% electricity: Combined 220mpge
70% electricity: Combined 120mpge
50% electricity: Combined 80 mpge
30% electricity: Combined 50mpge
Since the Volt's most appealing to those who will get a higher percentage of electricity miles, it's reasonable to conclude that the average Volt purchaser will get a higher electric miles percentage than the average driver. Thus, why quote efficiency based only on average driver demands, the least useful level
So, their MPG should be between "80MPG" and "120MG"...
Again, MPG is NOT MPGe. The "e" is there for a reason, silly you.
Even at my 98 MPGe, it is about 1.96 times more efficient than your Prius. Not to mention in EV mode, it is way cheaper to operate.
Maybe you should get a real engineering degree before you can appreciate the modern marvel. Then again, finish your GED first help too...
If your goal (as it seems to be) in using "MPG" to compare the Volt to Prius is to discuss their relative *cost* of use over a given distance, then that's what you should do: report total $/mile or equivalent from all energy sources. Simply reporting MPG isn't right.
I've genuinely come to appreciate GCR as being a cut above other auto blogs (many of which are still fumbling "kW" and "kWh"). Deciding that reporting "MPG" from blended energy use is "fair" dumbs down this site. I really hope you'll reconsider this approach!
Cheers
Other car sites don't understand these details, so there is no point arguing with them.
But even in terms of $/mile, Volt is cheaper in Voelcker's article.
Give him credit though, he did make this "disclaimer", " While some readers feel we shouldn't derive overall gas mileage from blending the two modes, we think it's fair."
36 miles a day commute - actually saving more because I use the Volt for more than commuting.
But it is the FASTEST EV/Plugin car under $45k.
Under those conditions a few weeks ago, I got 42 miles of mostly high-speed 70-75-mph freeway driving, with A/C on. Driving virtually the same route this morning, at the same high speeds, with the temp around 50 degrees, I got 29 miles, with heater on.
MrEnergyCzar
MPGe might be ok to simply compare efficiency, but it doesnt help anyone understand the actual cost or ranges of a Volt. The electric range and the cost of the electricity used matters. The est. mpg when in gas mode matters. But trying to mix the gas and electric numbers in a blender and calling it... "mpg" isnt actually correct or helpful.
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