Chevrolet Bolt & Bolt EUV

jjeff said:

webb14leafs said:

<snip> I will say there was enough leg room, but the seat was tiny (and I'm a beanpole), and it had very little head room. Maybe if you're all legs it would work.

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Yes you are not wrong in that respect, at least IMO. Like the Volt, the Bolt had very good leg length room, not as good for height from seat top to roof(for sure seat top to door opening). In fact both the Bolt and Volt are one of the few cars I didn't immediately push the seat back as far as it would go, I tried that and had to pull the seat forward probably 2" on the Bolt and an unbelievable 3" on the Volt, obviously both are designed for someone with very long legs(36"+ inseam) but a shorter or normal torso(IOW not someone like me who needs to purchase tall shirts).<snip>

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Haven't tried a Bolt yet, but it sounds like it would work just fine for me, at 6'0" but a 34" inseam, and a slim build. The Volt 2 was fine in front, but in the rear my head was under/touching the hatch glass rather than the roof, and I wouldn't want to be back there in an accident or even a sunny day. As I'd be in front, that wouldn't be an issue for me, but if I wanted to haul tall friends it would be.

GRA said:

jjeff said:

webb14leafs said:

<snip> I will say there was enough leg room, but the seat was tiny (and I'm a beanpole), and it had very little head room. Maybe if you're all legs it would work.

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The Volt 2 was fine in front, but in the rear my head was under/touching the hatch glass rather than the roof, and I wouldn't want to be back there in an accident or even a sunny day. As I'd be in front, that wouldn't be an issue for me, but if I wanted to haul tall friends it would be.

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A resounding +1, I had the same thing with my head, much better in the Bolt but still not what I'd call comfortable, both front and rear of the Bolt would probably be just fine for you though.
Like you I thought the Volt would be a safety issue as my head was tucked up inside the window well and like you I thought my head would be cooking on a sunny day, not to mention a sunburnt top of my head with my very much thinning hair

GRA said:

jjeff said:

webb14leafs said:

<snip> I will say there was enough leg room, but the seat was tiny (and I'm a beanpole), and it had very little head room. Maybe if you're all legs it would work.

Click to expand...

Yes you are not wrong in that respect, at least IMO. Like the Volt, the Bolt had very good leg length room, not as good for height from seat top to roof(for sure seat top to door opening). In fact both the Bolt and Volt are one of the few cars I didn't immediately push the seat back as far as it would go, I tried that and had to pull the seat forward probably 2" on the Bolt and an unbelievable 3" on the Volt, obviously both are designed for someone with very long legs(36"+ inseam) but a shorter or normal torso(IOW not someone like me who needs to purchase tall shirts).<snip>

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Haven't tried a Bolt yet, but it sounds like it would work just fine for me, at 6'0" but a 34" inseam, and a slim build. The Volt 2 was fine in front, but in the rear my head was under/touching the hatch glass rather than the roof, and I wouldn't want to be back there in an accident or even a sunny day. As I'd be in front, that wouldn't be an issue for me, but if I wanted to haul tall friends it would be.

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I'm 6'3" with a 34" inseam. If you took 3 inches off my torso I would've probably been much more comfortable in the front seat. I could see how it would be okay for you.

It looks pretty tight back there:

I think it looks pretty standard for a mid-size car as far as leg room goes. Better than the Bolt for sure. Can speak to head room. Would have to sit in it. The Chrysler 200 takes the gold for least amount of rear leg room. Had one as a rental and my 10 year old was barely comfortable in the back seat.

The challenge for me would be a rear-facing car seat. No way it would fit in the Bolt, and probably not in the Model 3 without pushing the front passenger seat all the way up.

hyperionmark said:

NeilBlanchard said:

hyperionmark said:

I agree with you. I'm 6'2 and found it extremely uncomfortable.

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Well, I'm 6'-4" and I find it more comfortable than any other EV except the i3. Same goes for my son, who is 6'-6" and my brother who is a bit over 6'-6". And the Bolt is better for my spouse, who is 5'-9".

The backseat of the Leaf is its Achilles Heel - we will be replacing our Leaf with a Bolt EV, specifically because it is much more comfortable for my family, and the range, of course.

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I would be utterly shocked if someone who already plunked down $30k for one is going to say it is uncomfortable. It's called choice-supportive bias or post-purchase rationalization.

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Um, we will be buying a Bolt in a few months.

webb14leafs said:

I think it looks pretty standard for a mid-size car as far as leg room goes. Better than the Bolt for sure. Can speak to head room. Would have to sit in it. The Chrysler 200 takes the gold for least amount of rear leg room. Had one as a rental and my 10 year old was barely comfortable in the back seat.

The challenge for me would be a rear-facing car seat. No way it would fit in the Bolt, and probably not in the Model 3 without pushing the front passenger seat all the way up.

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2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV: Car Seat Check
https://www.cars.com/articles/2017-chevrolet-bolt-ev-car-seat-check-1420695413381/

So one of the problems Leaf's have had is that if the unit has sat on the lot a long time the battery may be degraded due to dealer's not keeping the battery charged. I'm wondering with Chevy having inventory age issues if this is also going to be a problem on the Bolts? Obviously, with a bigger battery and much higher range it won't be as big a deal, but I don't suspect Chevy dealers are any better than Nissan dealers at rotating their stock through the chargers.

KeiJidosha said:

webb14leafs said:

I think it looks pretty standard for a mid-size car as far as leg room goes. Better than the Bolt for sure. Can speak to head room. Would have to sit in it. The Chrysler 200 takes the gold for least amount of rear leg room. Had one as a rental and my 10 year old was barely comfortable in the back seat.

The challenge for me would be a rear-facing car seat. No way it would fit in the Bolt, and probably not in the Model 3 without pushing the front passenger seat all the way up.

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2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV: Car Seat Check
https://www.cars.com/articles/2017-chevrolet-bolt-ev-car-seat-check-1420695413381/

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I should've mentioned my wife insists on using Diono car seats, which are notorious for taking up so much space. I have to put the front passenger seat pretty far up in my leaf to accomodate it. A Graco car seat, however, can be used with the front seat put all the way back.

DesertSprings said:

So one of the problems Leaf's have had is that if the unit has sat on the lot a long time the battery may be degraded due to dealer's not keeping the battery charged.

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Not true. The opposite is true: dealers often keep Leafs in stock charged to 100%, and THIS is what degrades the batteries.

Oh really, I guess I misunderstood. I thought the batteries dropped to below 20% and stayed there causing the issues.

The packs lose charge only very slowly. If a typical Leaf is charged to 100% on delivery and driven around the block a few times, in a month it will still be charged to 90% or more.

DesertSprings said:

Oh really, I guess I misunderstood. I thought the batteries dropped to below 20% and stayed there causing the issues.

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There's a myth that leaving lithium batteries at low state of charge is bad for them, but you'd have to discharge them past the automatic shutoff point to do any permanent damage. In the LEAF's case, discharge to turtle mode and then let it sit. As Leftie says, it's charging them up to 100% and letting the car sit there for a long time that's bad and more common.

But with the Bolt, it's hard to say how much their batteries would be affected. I suspect that dealers don't bother to charge them until they are fairly discharged because they have so much range. I would hope that GM instructs them to also put the car into "hilltop" charge mode so that it only charges to 87% of the max which is probably low enough to avoid the worst of any effects of sitting around at high SOC.

I would hope that GM instructs them to also put the car into "hilltop" charge mode so that it only charges to 87% of the max which is probably low enough to avoid the worst of any effects of sitting around at high SOC.

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That should be SOP at the factory, but given the seats...

DesertSprings said:

Oh really, I guess I misunderstood. I thought the batteries dropped to below 20% and stayed there causing the issues.

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ideal storage SOC is actually in the 35-40% range.

But at the same time, I have heard more than one Bolt owner sent off with barely enough to make it to a charger down the road. When Chevy said they weren't building a charging network, they weren't lying!

OrientExpress said:

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Display (screen) seems a little on the small size, but probably 4K with integrated Netflix & Roku
when in the autopilot mode, right?

Designed (display) with occupant safety foremost?

Windshield glare NHTSA complaints:

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2017/07/the-chevy-bolt-has-a-glaring-problem/

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2017/07/sunny-ways-chevrolet-bolt-owner-struggles-fix-dashs-blinding-glare/

Bottom line: don't get a premier trim with a light colored dash.

DNAinaGoodWay said:

Windshield glare NHTSA complaints:

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2017/07/the-chevy-bolt-has-a-glaring-problem/

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2017/07/sunny-ways-chevrolet-bolt-owner-struggles-fix-dashs-blinding-glare/

Bottom line: don't get a premier trim with a light colored dash.

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Having driven a Ford Freestyle quite a bit, one that had a tan dash, I'll never purchase a vehicle with a light colored dash! It was simply awful under certain conditions, you could hardly see out the front windshield. I offered to paint the dash with a can of flat black paint but the owner declined as the car was basically new. In the end they ended up purchasing a roll or flat black rubber shelf liner(kind of rubber mesh like) which they unrolled to cover the whole dash. It really helped with the glair but would occasionally move around so you'd have to reposition it.
I really can't understand how the government has so many safety standards on cars, even stating the dash must be padded, but mfgs. can come out with a light colored dash that with the sun shining, makes it basically impossible to see out the front windshield :?
If it were me, and I knew I wanted to keep the car for 10 years, I'd have just used the can of flat black paint, taped off the windshield and everywhere else, and completely sprayed the top of the dash

At least paint wouldn't interfere with sensors and airbags. But it'll be a problem for leasees.

A spray can of Plasti-dip to the rescue!