Chevrolet Bolt & Bolt EUV

[eloder]

1) If most EV drivers have a ~150-200 mile range almost none will charge anywhere except at home while in their home town unless it is free. It is a very rare occasion that most folks drive >150 miles within their region per day. I predict the death of most level 2 public charging as a result. Without the constant fear of running out most folks just won't bother to plug in at the grocery store, local mall, etc. There will always be a vocal minority that will disagree I am sure.

I can't imagine public charging stations will die out. There are EVs like Smart that cater toward a more urban crowd. Urbanites tend not to have home charging options. I imagine a car like the smart ED will also stick toward a <100 mile battery as the tech evolves, but will focus on driving the vehicle price lower and lower. Their electric lease runs for $1400 due at signing $139 a month right now, so I wouldn't be surprised if their electric leases get down to the same $99 price point as their entry level gas counterparts.

A super low priced EV would also mesh very well with the car2go program, and electric car2gos have little need for high range.

 

[Deleted member 14724]

I can't imagine public charging stations will die out. There are EVs like Smart that cater toward a more urban crowd. Urbanites tend not to have home charging options. I imagine a car like the smart ED will also stick toward a <100 mile battery as the tech evolves, but will focus on driving the vehicle price lower and lower. Their electric lease runs for $1400 due at signing $139 a month right now, so I wouldn't be surprised if their electric leases get down to the same $99 price point as their entry level gas counterparts.

A super low priced EV would also mesh very well with the car2go program, and electric car2gos have little need for high range.

Good points. That sort of rental service might provide demand in some urban areas for public charging. But I still agree with the point that public charging stations will become less common. In particular, in the 'burbs, you'd be talking about very, very low usage. People have homes, and the distances are greater, requiring the longer range cars. The presence of home charging is much more likely, and there is still work charging, in some cases. Public L2 charging is definitely for those in either urban areas or deliberately dense suburban mixed-use developments.

 

[TonyWilliams]

I'm fairly sure some German OEMs will be producing 200 mile EVs in the same timeframe as well.

Both the current German EV's sold in the USA could do that in the future. Both have LOADS of extra room for extra batteries, and just one generation newer energy density will do the trick.

The Mercedes B-Class ED has a HUGE wasted space where the hydrogen tank is supposed to go. The BMW has a big spot where they currently put a 650cc motorcycle engine.

 

[TonyWilliams]

My take is that a concept car is a physical likeness of an idea. The Bolt certainly looks good, but how did it get to from one spot to another on stage? Did they use a new motor and battery or something that would work only for the stage presentation - It really doesn't matter if it is a concept car.

Personally, I feel like mentally blurring the lines between this car and a real car but I guess that is the point of GM's auto show presentation. :roll:

probably pushed it.

The drove it on.

 

[kubel]

My take is that a concept car is a physical likeness of an idea. The Bolt certainly looks good, but how did it get to from one spot to another on stage? Did they use a new motor and battery or something that would work only for the stage presentation - It really doesn't matter if it is a concept car.

Personally, I feel like mentally blurring the lines between this car and a real car but I guess that is the point of GM's auto show presentation. :roll:

probably pushed it.

The drove it on.

With golf cart motor and batteries, most likely. Like the pre-production Volt.

 

[Deleted member 14724]

With golf cart motor and batteries, most likely. Like the pre-production Volt.

I read an article which said it would use a variant of the Spark EV's powertrain. It would probably have been simplest for them to just drop that in and power the car onto the stage.

 

[NeilBlanchard]

Here's a radio interview with the lead designer of the Chevy Bolt:

http://hereandnow.wbur.org/2015/01/14/chevy-bolt-electric

It will have Level 1, 2 and 3 charging. The interviewer, Jeremy Hobson, makes a couple of typical mistakes in his questions, I think, but it is good to hear this car is breaking through to general news reports.

 

[evnow]

What we'll find out in a couple of years is that "200 miles" becomes the new "100 miles". Everyone and their small subsidiary will start making 200 mile EVs.

But the big questions remain. What is the commitment ? Is it a compliance car ?

Ford Focus EV is a typical example. I remember all the hoopla about this car when it was revealed (in CES !) - but Ford quietly dropped the ball and showed zero comiitment - even though it is available outside compliance states.

Where does Bolt* fit here ?

ps : Any bets the next GM plugin will be called Watt ?

 

[pkulak]

No way this is a compliance car. You don't do 200 miles on a ground-up design that you announce at CES just to pick up some CARB credits.

 

[Deleted member 14724]

I'm not sure if he meant to imply this, but he seemed to be saying that DC charging would also be an option at home. That's hard to imagine.

 

[evnow]

No way this is a compliance car. You don't do 200 miles on a ground-up design that you announce at CES just to pick up some CARB credits.

Well, with GM you never know. Afterall, they did a ground up EV that was leased and later crushed (in case you have forgotten)

Just look at Kia Soul. Lots of ads - all to sell 100+ cars a month.

IOW, there are various "levels" of compliance and commitment. You have Tesla/Nissan at one end and Fiat/Toyota at the other. Where does GM (with Spark/Bolt) fall here ?

 

[tbleakne]

...but his biggest gripe is this... "there are soooo many Model S owners now and most of the SC stations are constantly being filled or long wait lines but there's no SC stations in the San Fernando valley and other key areas"

He said he's getting frustrated like other owners that there will not be enough SC stations to fill the amount of cars being sold....

That seems very odd. I frequently drive from Glendale to Santa Barbara and back in one day. I don't even bother to stop at the Oxnard SC.>> Plus there's HPWC's at a lot of high-end hotels now. Gotta look for them though.

p.s. The one time I stopped at Oxnard SC, there was only one other Tesla there; 8 empty stalls.

My experience also differs completely. Perhaps the opinion of this Tesla driver is biased by visits to the urban SC stations in Hawthorne or San Juan Capistrano, which are among the top 5 busiest SCs in the world. I have charged at over 16 SC stations in California, AZ and NM with only one or two 5 min waits. All but 5 of these are rural, where I was usually the only car, and there was never more than one other car. At these rural locations there is loads of room for more EVs on the road.

Tesla is expanding the busiest urban locations and adding more locations as fast as they can negotiate agreements for dedicated parking and HV infrastructure, but when you are designing a network for 200 mile range cars you don't have to place the SC locations nearly as close together as CHAdeMO. At some point Tesla will add a station somewhere near the San Fernando Valley, but as Sparky says, it is not needed now for trips through the Valley. Rancho Cucamonga to Oxnard is an easy 100 miles, and both of those stations have loads of room.

If the proper agreements could be put in place, it should be possible and practical to provide adapters to allow the Bolt and other cars with at least 120 mile range and a DC port to charge at Superchargers, paying a fee for each use via a smart phone app.

 

[Nubo]

I'm not sure if he meant to imply this, but he seemed to be saying that DC charging would also be an option at home. That's hard to imagine.

My batteries are charged by DC every day. That's what the on-board charger does.

Now, if DC could be made the charging standard then the OBC could be taken out of vehicles, saving a bit of weight and space.

 

[AndyGT02]

If Nissan was planning to release Leaf 2.0 with less than a 200 mile pack, they're probably reconsidering that now. What's good is both Chevy and Nissan use the same battery supplier, so unless there is some exclusivity involved, Nissan has access to whatever Chevy is packing in the Bolt.

edit: in case anyone missed the news: http://www.chevrolet.com/culture/article/bolt-ev-concept-car.html?seo=goo_|_GM+Chevy+Awareness_|_GMNA%7CUS%7CCHV%7CGOOG%7CS%7CBP%7CA%7CEX%7CAWR%7CBEV%7CSCO%7C%28null%29%7C%28null%29%7CGG-AWR-BOLT-SN-BP-EXACT_|_Bolt+Branded+Exact_|_chevy%20bolt" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[DanCar]

I'm hoping Nissan will release their 150 mile range car in 2016, where as the bolt might come in late 2017 or later. I'm mostly ignoring the bolt and eager to see what else is on the earlier horizon.

 

[Randy]

There's already 12 pages of commentary on this thread...

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=18907" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

MOD NOTE: Merged threads.

 

[LTLFTcomposite]

Whuuuuuuuaaaaaat????

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/tata-motors-targets-younger-drivers-150632904.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Looks like a little contention on the trademark there.

 

[Deleted member 14724]

Whuuuuuuuaaaaaat????

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/tata-motors-targets-younger-drivers-150632904.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Looks like a little contention on the trademark there.

I don't think there would be a conflict. If that's registered in India, and Chevy's is registered in the USA, then the only issue would be Chevy would have to call it something else in India, and Tata would have to call theirs something else here.

 

[redLEAF]

Whuuuuuuuaaaaaat????

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/tata-motors-targets-younger-drivers-150632904.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Looks like a little contention on the trademark there.

I don't think there would be a conflict. If that's registered in India, and Chevy's is registered in the USA, then the only issue would be Chevy would have to call it something else in India, and Tata would have to call theirs something else here.

I was all ready to post the same story as I still find the whole 'Bolt' (see earlier post on the 2008 movie) name too readily available that someone hadn't already thought of it and now we find another car that will use it --- I'm surprised Reuters didn't even mention the Chevy Bolt concept just introduced at the Detroit show but looks like in the comments below the story that some have already noticed and are asking. The whole thing on IP (intellectual property) and registered trademarks actually will come into play here once someone brings a 'car' to market with that name but neither has gotten that far yet anyway ...:

http://www.patentpending.com/tmark.html

 

[mwalsh]

OMG! Reuters is quoting "sources" as saying the Bolt is a go for production in MI starting in late 2016!

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/05/us-autos-gm-bolt-idUSKBN0L92VL20150205" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;