Yesterday word came from up North that the 2017 Bolt EV production line at the Orion assembly plant in Michigan has officially started.
A rumor only at this point, the news was delivered by that medium of choice, Twitter, and the poster was the WaterlooRegionVoltec group of Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
GM surely does not wish to be accused of over promising and under-delivering, and it has said all it has said.
As for the Bolt assembly line’s supposedly being up and running now, further notable is that California customers with confirmed orders have reported a Target Production Week (TPW) officially issued for the Bolt EV they have ordered.
We’ve heard of one as soon as Nov. 13, so if the Bolt assembly line is in fact not operating, it ought to be soon enough.
Seriously though, the actual demand depends on so much....price of gas, public's acceptance of the very IDEA of electric drive, etc. But at the Bolt's price point and capabilities, it is the most likely (purely) electric car to actually start the "trend". Every other purely electric car on the market is either priced unrealistically high, or they are inadequate vehicles. This one can do the job of your typical mainstream vehicle, at a typical mainstream price.
Keep quality, fit and finish up as production increase. I hope GM pays particular attention to safety (batteries) with the new Bolt. Then again they will hopefully leverage their extensive experience with electric vehicles.
Watch the deposits on the Model 3 gradually evaporate in direct proportion to the number of Bolts delivered. Not that they're in competition with each other, mind you.
Every 3-4 months, I just have to get this off my chest. The concept Bolt was great to look at in person. For anyone that didn't see it in the flesh, it was sporty. It sat low, the side sculpting made it look wide, the stance of the wheels within the wheel wells mimicking a rally car, the flared fenders. The upsweep on the lower side body cladding. Perhaps a little funky and weird, yes, but I think it would have resonated with ages 18-45.
The production version is exactly what I think the Vibe would look like if Pontiac was still around. Kinda tall, kinda goofy with a guppy mouth. And that gold bowtie sticks out horribly here. It should be smaller and either blue to signify "EV" (which would match the coloring within the side badging) or body color.
A couple of thoughts. First, I wonder when Chevy or Tesla will start touting total cost of ownership. I could be wrong, but I suspect that when you include all costs, something like a Bolt or Model3 might end up being a lot cheaper to own than appears looking at the sticker price. "Fuel" looks like it will be cheaper for most, even at low fuel prices. Longevity for most of the vehicle should be quite good with the wild card being the battery. If battery life proves to be good (or replacement and repair falls dramatically in price) resale might be solid too. Low running costs and good resale would end up making these a lot cheaper to own than the $37K price would indicate.
Second is that Chevy seems to have nailed a lot of elements with the Bolt. But, the Model 3 will come with the hardware for a significant level of self-driving, which may entice many. More importantly is Telsas network of Superchargers. That makes the occasional longer trip at least possible in the Model3. Chevy doesn't seem to have that element sorted out yet. I wonder what their plans are on both these fronts. I doubt they aren't working on something ...
Tesla DOES do a little bit of that "TCO" calculation on their website, where they talk about how much money you might save on gas. At least, last time I looked at their site, they had a calculator showing that off.
Thing is, it's tough to compare to gas cars and come out ahead. The numbers still don't work out purely from a financial standpoint.
My commute in a Bolt is somewhere around $1/day. That's $250 a year.
Compare that to a Trax, which is the closest thing, slightly larger. I'd probably be putting 6 gallons a week in it, gas is under $2/gallon here, 52 weeks, that's around $624 a year.
So my commute savings would be $400 perhaps. Let's double that now, to include my "other driving" for errands and entertainment. $800 a year.
Price diff between the two is ten grand using round numbers. $10k/$800 = 12.5 years to break even.
You can't sell a Volt or Bolt PURELY on financials. Not yet. You have to find another emotional trigger. For me buying the Volt, it was domestic energy/energy independence. For some it might be the quiet ride. Others, being "green".
It is a pretty good little car and a fair to middling report, The guy and his style, body language included, is the epitome of everything that so many of us hate about CR. Edit: I like(tongue in cheek)how the sap tries to compare aspects to a Tesla. Hell the two are in completely different classes even if both are electric. IMO> The Tesla is an electric exotic sort of and the Bolt basically an every mans electric but much better than say a Leaf.
I've been in a Trax/Encore quite a few times and this seems to have a lot more space.
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