Chevrolet Bolt & Bolt EUV

[DesertSprings]

How difficult/expensive is it to swap out or modify the seats?

 

[JasonA]

Isn't it built on the Cruise platform? I mean anything is possible, weld or mod the frame rails to your liking.

 

[LeftieBiker]

Isn't it built on the Cruise platform? I mean anything is possible, weld or mod the frame rails to your liking.

The seats are made of plastic.

 

[JasonA]

Isn't it built on the Cruise platform? I mean anything is possible, weld or mod the frame rails to your liking.

The seats are made of plastic.

As are the Leaf's seats (made from plastic bottles).. but Nissan knows how to do it right!

What I mean is how are the seats in the Cruise? Full leather option? If no go get some nice MBZ-AMG seats for $100 and put them in there!!

Now you're in first class!

https://cpprohomeoh.car-part.com/im...00 Mercedes S Class Seat, Front-Stock# 09816#

https://cpprohomeoh.car-part.com/im...1 Mercedes S Class Seat, Front-Stock# AKC0386

https://cpprohomeoh.car-part.com/im... Mercedes S Class Seat, Front-Stock# B150704#

https://cpprohomeoh.car-part.com/im...rcedes S Class S500 Seat, Front-Stock# 161115

I can look on car-part and find any early to mid 2000's C or S class MB for $100/ea a seat! and they will prob send you the rails too to mod and mount in

Any lexus or luxury car..

Just how ambitious you are

 

[LeftieBiker]

The seat FRAMES are made of plastic.

 

[JasonA]

OMG! really? :shock:

Nooo.. how could that be safe?? I couldn't see any type of high injection/thermoplastic being used for something like that!

Well, this is why their sales are now tanking fast once the cars are getting into the hands of actual owners.

 

[mwalsh]

The seat FRAMES are made of plastic.

The seat frames are light steel with a plastic shell over them. In the absence of any visible metal, I could imagine how one might get that idea, but it's not the case.

 

[GRA]

Per IEVS, only 978 Bolts sold in March (962 in Feb.), vs. 1,478 LEAFs!

Given that GM allocated about a 30K production volume for the Bolt in 2017 and given its 2017 YTD sales volume,
GM may need to re-allocate some of that factory production by mid-year.

Perhaps, although that may be a bit early given that there's usually less demand early in the year, plus the car will be available nationwide before the end of it. OTOH, most BEV sales happen in the CARB states, and IIRR those will all have availability in H1, so you may be right. I think a lot depends on whether or not it looks like the Fed. credit will be repealed - if that seems a real possibility, I expect we'll see a surge of sales/leases before the effective date, after which BEV sales will drop off a cliff.

 

[user 10599]

Replacing the seats with ones from another car is an interesting idea. Of course, finding ones that fit in the car decently could be a challenge. Also, I'm guessing these cars probably have sensors that deactivate the airbags if it doesn't report enough weight in the passenger seat. Putting in 17 year old seats probably not compatible with that so would have to jury rig to always have airbag on.

And then there is the whole issue of why buy a new car if you have to do a bunch of stuff to it to be usable.

 

[LeftieBiker]

The seat frames are light steel with a plastic shell over them. In the absence of any visible metal, I could imagine how one might get that idea, but it's not the case.

I was going by what I'd read, including, IIRC, some reviews by "journalists." I should have known!

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

Per IEVS, only 978 Bolts sold in March (962 in Feb.), vs. 1,478 LEAFs!

Not surprised. I wondered if given the choice what people would prefer. Already knew the answer

http://daveinolywa.blogspot.com/2017/03/bolt-verses-leaf-is-twice-range-worth.html

The problem with paying a lot more money for a lot more range is that you are paying for that " once a month" or "3 times a year" range. Now if you have the money, go for it and realistically, many people simply don't have the public charging support to justify a lesser range but to think that applies in California? Especially with the huge influx of money to build and bolster the charging network (TY VW!!)

So does this mean the 30 kwh LEAF with its bump in range and much faster charging profile the "it" car? Nope but right now its cheap enough to simply "fill in the gaps" cause the T3 or LEAF II or even the Ioniq is stacking up to be a better choice than the Bolt...

IOW; range at any cost is not working

 

[TonyWilliams]

No, that's right. The Bolt ramps down the charge rate at around 50% from what I've heard. I did say " up to 80kW". That's the peak rate. There is a ramp up (at low voltage, limited to 200A), and then a somewhat quick ramp down from 200A at about 50%. Still, it is fast enough to go well beyond 84% of its nominal range (200 miles).

Nobody has seen a Bolt EV at anything above 125 amps so far. That "quick ramp down" at 50% is from 125 amps.

While the Bolt EV may be capable of 200 amps, so far it has not been demonstrated. Even if it does do 126-200 amps, it will ramp down well before 50%.

 

[GetOffYourGas]

No, that's right. The Bolt ramps down the charge rate at around 50% from what I've heard. I did say " up to 80kW". That's the peak rate. There is a ramp up (at low voltage, limited to 200A), and then a somewhat quick ramp down from 200A at about 50%. Still, it is fast enough to go well beyond 84% of its nominal range (200 miles).

Nobody has seen a Bolt EV at anything above 125 amps so far. That "quick ramp down" at 50% is from 125 amps.

While the Bolt EV may be capable of 200 amps, so far it has not been demonstrated. Even if it does do 126-200 amps, it will ramp down well before 50%.

Well, you assume that it will ramp down "well before 50%" from 200A, but if nobody has seen it, then we just don't know. I doubt that literally nobody has seen a Bolt charge at over 125A. I have to assume that GM has tested that since they put the 80kW number out there in the first place.

All of this is a tangent, nit-picking numbers. Again, my point is that the Bolt, as-is, is a plenty capable car for trips over 200 miles. The limitation has much more to do with the infrastructure (or lack thereof) than of the car's specs itself.

 

[evnow]

The lease rates on Bolt here in Seattle are truly insane.

One of the dealers posted in the local Bolt FB group posted that it is $650 to $720 (w/ 2,300 down).

To give some kind of comparison, I can literally get a Tesla S on swaplease for that price. It is 3x the lease payment on Leaf or Volt or Soul EV.

Only thing we can say is - in the local market - dealers are trying to make a quick buck. People who didn't do the homework or who don't care for better prices I guess are buying. Both GM and dealers have to come down from their high horses and sell Bolt as what it is - a cheap long range EV - if they want to sell in decent volume.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

All of this is a tangent, nit-picking numbers. Again, my point is that the Bolt, as-is, is a plenty capable car for trips over 200 miles. The limitation has much more to do with the infrastructure (or lack thereof) than of the car's specs itself.

it may seem like nitpicking but I have experienced first hand what charging speed over range can do for you. Granted if you never go more than 200 miles then its a non-issue but if you do knowing that you spent an extra 45 minutes or more charging, you might not think it so insignificant.

 

[GetOffYourGas]

One of the dealers posted in the local Bolt FB group posted that it is $650 to $720 (w/ 2,300 down).

For a car that is highly touted as "affordable", at those prices (for a lease no less!), it is decidedly not.

@Dave, we will have to agree to disagree. I find the numbers perfectly acceptable for a medium-range trip of 300-400 miles (i.e. less than 2x the full-charge range, maybe two additional 30-minute charging stops). And therefore I think the car is very usable for trips greater than 200 miles.

 

[DesertSprings]

I think one thing that tends to get overlooked in these range discussions isn't your immediate need, but what you will need down the road as the battery degrades. Not a factor for those looking to lease and swap to a new car every 3 years, but it is a factor for those that actually like to purchase their cars and keep them around for a long time (My CRV is a 2000 model).

 

[GRA]

I think one thing that tends to get overlooked in these range discussions isn't your immediate need, but what you will need down the road as the battery degrades. Not a factor for those looking to lease and swap to a new car every 3 years, but it is a factor for those that actually like to purchase their cars and keep them around for a long time (My CRV is a 2000 model).

Exactly. The Bolt is the first BEV that can provide reasonable transportation value for money if you buy it. Not because it can go 200+ miles now, but because most people will still be able to use it do their commute/routine local driving ten or twelve years from now, and because it will still have value as a used car for that purpose at 6 to 8 years of age. Low 100 mile range BEVs almost certainly can't do that, except in areas with benign climates for owners who have minimal range needs. For those cars, leasing remains the smart choice.

 

[LeftieBiker]

It's not always a binary choice between leasing and buying, remember. Bolt leases are currently structured to make it that way*, but Leaf leases are very buyer-friendly these days, and should be for the Leaf "2" as well. I intend to custom-order a Leaf to lease, and then, as long as it isn't a lemon or badly implemented, I'll buy it.



* If GM is forced to offer residual discounts on the Bolt, then that car may turn out to be worth buying off-lease as well.

 

[GRA]

No, that's right. The Bolt ramps down the charge rate at around 50% from what I've heard. I did say " up to 80kW". That's the peak rate. There is a ramp up (at low voltage, limited to 200A), and then a somewhat quick ramp down from 200A at about 50%. Still, it is fast enough to go well beyond 84% of its nominal range (200 miles).

Nobody has seen a Bolt EV at anything above 125 amps so far. That "quick ramp down" at 50% is from 125 amps.

While the Bolt EV may be capable of 200 amps, so far it has not been demonstrated. Even if it does do 126-200 amps, it will ramp down well before 50%.

Well, you assume that it will ramp down "well before 50%" from 200A, but if nobody has seen it, then we just don't know. I doubt that literally nobody has seen a Bolt charge at over 125A. I have to assume that GM has tested that since they put the 80kW number out there in the first place.

All of this is a tangent, nit-picking numbers. Again, my point is that the Bolt, as-is, is a plenty capable car for trips over 200 miles. The limitation has much more to do with the infrastructure (or lack thereof) than of the car's specs itself.

Can't remember if the original blog post has been mentioned before, but GCR article which includes some data on charge rates:

More details on fast-charging rate in 2017 Chevy Bolt EV electric car

http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1109714_more-details-on-fast-charging-rate-in-2017-chevy-bolt-ev-electric-car

. . . It's worth reading the entire post, but his observations include:

• The maximum charging rate he saw was 46 kw on a 125-amp charger;
  
  The Bolt EV battery is quite sensitive to internal temperature, and needs to be at 65 to 70 degrees F to charge at the highest rate;
  
  Fast-charging starts to taper off at 50 percent capacity, and tapers again at 70 percent; and
  
  Chevy's advertised "90 miles in 30 minutes" will only likely occur if the battery starts between 0 and 50 percent capacity.

Direct link to origjnal blog post: https://bro05.blogspot.ca/2017/03/fast-charging-experiences-with-bolt.html