Chevrolet Bolt EV News
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This week's Geneva auto show has seen lots of news about new electric cars, but almost all of them come from luxury brands. The 2019 Jaguar I-Pace has made its debut, Aston Martin announced its Lagonda brand would be dedicated to all-electric vehicles, and so forth. That's all very nice, but what about affordable electric cars for mass-market buyers? DON'T MISS: Where will we see the most electric-car innovation? Twitter poll results This week's Twitter poll descends from those exalted levels of the auto industry to the cars that everyday buyers can obtain for near-mass-market prices. We're...
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Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car: what's inside the battery? Teardown video shows all
The battery packs of most modern electric cars are far different than those in your mobile phone or other portable devices. In most cases, they include hundreds or thousands of cells, arranged into modules, and usually surrounded by channels containing liquid coolant to keep the battery in its...
John Voelcker -
Is this the country's first Chevrolet Bolt EV police car? (updated with video)
Using electric cars as police vehicles has some distinct advantages. Among them are near-silent operation, maximum acceleration from 0 rpm, and a novelty factor that can lead to friendly, beneficial interactions between officers and citizens. Now, the small Maryland city of Hyattsville, a suburb of...
John Voelcker -
Opel to swap Ampera-e (aka Bolt EV) for all-electric Corsa model in 2020
It's been six months since General Motors completed the sale of its Opel division in Europe to PSA Group, the French parent of the Citroën, DS, and Peugeot brands. With the sale came licenses to run out the model life of GM-designed vehicles sold as Opels (and Vauxhalls in the U.K.) while PSA...
John Voelcker -
Will GM or Tesla buyers lose electric-car tax credits first? (updated)
A major contributor to electric-car sales is the program under which buyers of new electric cars qualify for a federal income-tax credit of up to $7,500. But these tax credits are not unlimited. Once a manufacturer reaches sales of 200,000 plug-in electric cars (after December 31, 2009), the...
Stephen Edelstein -
Chevy Bolt EV electric car range and performance in winter: one owner's log
The arrival of the first affordable long-range electric car on the market has naturally led some owners to push the car in a way that they might not do with a plug-in car offering just 80 miles of battery range. The 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV, EPA-rated at 238 miles combined, removes most daily range...
John Voelcker -
One of the many tactics used by carmakers to boost efficiency in their vehicles is fitting low-rolling-resistance tires. Specially designed to reduce the energy wasted as heat from the friction between the tire and the road, these tires can boost efficiency by a few percentage points in an electric car. The increase often isn't as noticeable in gasoline cars, which are far less energy-efficient because they waste two-thirds to three-quarters of the energy in gasoline anyway—so the improvement is lower. DON'T MISS: 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car: owners' impressions after a year...
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2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car: owners' impressions after a year
Californians got the chance to buy Chevrolet Bolt EV electric cars before everyone else, and the compact hatchback has sold well in the state, aided by its 238-mile rated range. Last February, readers John and Mimi Porter of San Diego shared their first impressions of the new silver Bolt EV they...
John Voelcker -
Cruise AV, GM's autonomous electric Bolt EV, to go into production in 2019
How comfortable would you be in a taxi or car-service vehicle that had no steering wheel, accelerator or brake pedals? That's the question prompted by a photo that has already produced some subconscious anxiety among at least auto writers. How the public will react remains to be seen, but they'll...
John Voelcker -
What was our most important story of 2017? Twitter poll results
Year-end roundups are an unavoidable necessity of the media business. They let editors and writers opine, and they fill space when there may be little real news. They also serve the more valuable function of forcing a longer-term perspective on the hundreds of news items a month that flow through...
John Voelcker -
What was the most important green-car story of 2017? Take our Twitter poll
Lists, news roundups, and general reflections are the usual order of business as a calendar year comes to a close. We've published more than 1,600 green-car news stories so far during 2017, and it's proven to be quite a year. In the car market at large, the most notable trend was a continued move...
John Voelcker -
Four of Wards' Top 10 Engines are actually electric or electrified powertrains
The industry trade journal WardsAuto has been giving out "Best Engine" awards for 24 years now, and this year's list includes some interesting choices. For starters, there are no engines from German manufacturers on the list: The sole luxury recipients this year are Infiniti and Jaguar. But more...
Mark Stevenson -
Today, battery-electric cars are built in volume at only three locations across the entire United States. Tesla builds its three different electric models in Fremont, California; the new 2018 Nissan Leaf has just gone into production in Smyrna, Tennessee; and the Chevrolet Bolt EV is built at the Orion Assembly Plant in Michigan. Ford also builds very small numbers of its Focus Electric compliance car alongside gasoline Focus models in Wayne, Michigan. DON'T MISS: 2018 Nissan Leaf electric car now rolling off lines in Tennessee This month, Ford CEO Jim Hackett said the company's upcoming...
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Electric car buyers' struggle: practicality vs luxury, Chevy vs Tesla
Competition for the title of most popular electric car has sparked a long and highly charged race between Tesla and Chevrolet. Though these brands offer vastly different versions of electric vehicles, they seem to be the two dominating electric vehicle sales in 2017. Reports show that top monthly...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
What's a self-driving Chevy Bolt EV electric car like to ride in? Jerky, says one report
While such autonomous players as Uber, Tesla, and Waymo have already opened their car doors to the public, GM's autonomous subsidiary Cruise Automation has held its cards close to its vest. This past week, the Detroit-based automaker and Silicon Valley-based subsidiary allowed select members of the...
Mark Stevenson -
Commercial tests of self-driving Chevy Bolt EV to launch in many cities in 2019
General Motors officials made a bold announcement on a Thursday conference call with investors: the automaker plans to launch commercial autonomous fleet operations beginning in 2019. The Detroit-based automaker's vision for commercial, autonomous ride sharing will begin with self-driving Bolt EV...
Mark Stevenson -
2018 Chevrolet Bolt EV preview
The 2018 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car is now arriving at Chevy dealers with no major changes—though drivers may find the heated steering wheel now turns itself on and off. Otherwise, the deletion of the map pocket on the back of the passenger seat from the 2LT trim level is the sole other...
Sean Szymkowski -
2018 Chevrolet Bolt EV: minimal changes, same range and price
With sales of the Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car rising every month, shoppers are inevitably curious about any changes to the Bolt for the 2018 model year, its second. Now the information is out, and buyers will find the 2018 Chevrolet Bolt EV is virtually the same car as the 2017 model—with...
John Voelcker -
Almost seven years after modern electric cars entered the mass market, there are now more than two dozen battery-electric and plug-in hybrid models on sale in the U.S. But that impressive number shouldn't disguise a fundamental truth about those vehicles: only about half of them are widely available nationwide. Those include the BMW i3 electric car and i8 plug-in hybrid coupe, the Chevrolet Bolt EV and Volt plug-in hybrid, Nissan Leaf, and Tesla Model S and Model X. DON'T MISS: U.S. plug-in electric car sales for Sep: Bolt EV hits new monthly high That's better than the number in mid-2014...
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Costco members now get GM Supplier Pricing on Chevy Bolt EV, Volt
Costco members in the market for a new vehicle now have a new round of incentives to consider as they head into the final car-buying months of 2017. Specifically, shoppers interested in a General Motors vehicle will discover Supplier Pricing on nearly every car—including the Chevrolet Bolt EV...
Sean Szymkowski -
Which electric car will sell best in 2018? Take our Twitter poll
OK, now the 2018 Nissan Leaf has made its debut, and we know the prices, specifications, and standard and optional features of the updated electric car with a projected 150 miles of range. Deliveries of the 2018 Leaf will start early next year, but meanwhile the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV has been on...
John Voelcker -
Chevy Bolt EV, Sonic, Bolt, Sonic: GM mingles gas, electric cars on same assembly line
General Motors didn't have to construct an all-new assembly plant to build its affordable, mass-market Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car. In fact, it produces the electric car at the existing Orion assembly plant in Michigan, which opened in 1983. That's not the most interesting aspect of Bolt EV...
Sean Szymkowski -
2017 electric cars with more than 100 miles of range (updated)
These are the 2017 electric cars with more than 100 miles of range.
Stephen Edelstein -
2017 Chevy Bolt EV battery may fail due to faulty cell; new pack needed for a few GM electric cars (updated)
General Motors has informed "a few hundred" owners of 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric cars that their cars could suffer from a problem with the lithium-ion battery pack that could cause it to fail without warning. The cars were among the very earliest Bolt EVs produced for public sale, so are...
John Voelcker