GM Volt test drive tour starts Oct 9th

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evnow

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 22, 2010
Messages
11,480
Location
Seattle, WA
GM is organizing a test drive tour. Looks like I'll drive it before Leaf since the tour starts here in Seattle ....

http://www.chevroletvoltage.com/index.php/Volt/join-the-chevrolet-volt-on-the-road-for-volt-unplugged.html

• Oct. 9 and 10 – Seattle
• Oct. 13 and 14 – San Francisco
• Oct. 16 - 18 – Los Angeles
• Oct. 20 – San Diego
• Oct. 22 and 23 – San Antonio
• Oct. 24 and 25 – Houston
• Oct. 28 and 29 – Miami
• Oct. 29 and 30 – Washington D.C.
• Oct. 30 – Orlando
• Nov. 1 - Raleigh
• Nov. 5 - 7 – New York City
• Nov. 18 - 20 – Chicago

Register here for the test drive.

https://www.teamchevytestdrive.com/register.aspx
 
Darn, they pulled out of the Alt Car Expo this weekend. I was hoping to take it for a spin.

Last week they announced for the show:
* The first time the Chevy Volt will be available for test drives on public streets.

I will see how many of these cars I can drive while I am there...

http://www.altcarexpo.com/ride_drive.html
 
Wow, we're first for a change!! Though I've got my order already placed for the Leaf, I think I'll head down to this event, wherever it's actually going to be, and give the "competition" a run around the block. What discouraged me from the Volt was the sheer complexity of it, but I'll be intrigued to see how it all fits together in the flesh...

Perhaps we could have a covert Leaf-fan meet-up while we're there!
 
TLeaf said:
Perhaps we could have a covert Leaf-fan meet-up while we're there!

Yes !

I'm planning to be there on Saturday - afternoon. We can plan on meeting at a nearby coffee shop after the drives. I'll start a new thread.
 
I drove the Volt on Friday at Alt-Car. I signed up around 11:40 am and drove the Volt around 4:15 pm.

They only have one car to drive, and one static display to sit in.

Get there early, at opening time and sign up immediately if you want to drive it. They'll take your cell phone number and call you when your turn is coming up. Plan to spend several hours at minimum at Alt-Car, or go to the beach or get a long lunch, because your Volt drive opportunity will be hours in coming.

I was very impressed with the car.
 
interesting that Seattle is first. wonder if that reflects GM's opinion of the area's commitment to environmentally friendly personal transportation options?

having visited southern cali recently; the area that has the rep (maybe silcon valley) as greatest hotbed of green transportation, the one thing i noticed is the percentage of hybrids on the road there is much much less than what i see in Western WA.

i used to be pretty anal about tracking how many Priuses i see on my daily jaunts around town, but they have simply become to common. off hand, i am guessing that Priuses make up a good 10-20% of cars i see on the road daily.
 
SoCal has a lot of ethnic groups (about 150 different-language communities), and some drive without license or insurance (even though both are "required").

Also, we have many no, low, or fixed-income folks that cannot afford a $20k car.

And, with "no" snow or ice, there is no use of salt on the roads, and cars last a lot longer here.

So, there is a considerable use of "older" cars here that might help "dilute" the Hybrid count.
 
garygid said:
SoCal has a lot of ethnic groups (about 150 different-language communities), and some drive without license or insurance (even though both are "required").

Not sure why you would bring up ethnicity - afterall they aren't driving "without license or insuranc" because of their ethnicity, right ? It is more to do with economic conditions ...
 
All I can say is Nissan set the bar very high this weekend. They built a test track and a small city of steel and glass at the AltCar Expo... GM showed up with a 12x12 tent. I would bet GM did not want to show up to the AltCar event after hearing what Nissan would be rolling in with. Seriously! Colorful Leafs constantly zipping around everywhere, lines of people waiting to drive. It did not look like alot of "range anxiety" going on to me. I don't really buy into the whole Volt/Leaf thing anyways. Not really a comparison (like a Prius and a Leaf really). It seems more like GM is the one trying to validate their approach and technology. The Volt folks just looked annoyed at this event. As they should because the GM came off very second rate to Nissan here. If they do want to try and compare with Nissan, GM better get with the program quickly because Nissan is NOT screwing around! It will be very interesting to see what GM does for it's ride events.
 
updated info on Volt site. apparently, they have recorded everyone who signed up with their emails and will be contacting us for further details....hmm, well 4 days to go...
 
Well, they have indeed updated the Seattle test drive venues.

So, looks like I'll be going on Sunday to Lynnwood rather than Saturday to Tacoma.

Seattle - Oct. 9 and 10

Oct. 9 -10 a.m - 6 p.m.
Griot's Garage Ride and Drive and Tour Kick-Off
333 S. 38th Street
Tacoma, WA 98409

Oct. 10 - 11 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Volt Ride and Drive at
Best Buy
19225 Alderwood Mall Pkwy
Lynnwood, WA 98036
 
wow!! talking about it here must have spurred GM on a bit. wonder how many "Volters" are lurking here. not 2 hours after i posted my expectation of an email, it has arrived

Thank you for registering to drive the Chevrolet Volt during the Volt Unplugged tour. Please join us for your drive on Saturday, October 9, 2010 starting at 12:00 PM at Griot’s Garage. You’ll get the opportunity to take the Volt for a short drive and chat with engineers and members of the Volt team.

Bring a copy of this e-mail with you to the drive. Please note you must be 21 years of age or older to drive the Volt, and must present a valid driver’s license. Please plan to arrive 15 minutes early to complete the necessary paperwork before your drive.

When:
October 9, 2010
12:00 PM

PLEASE PLAN TO ARRIVE AT 11:45 AM

Where:
Griot's Garage
333 S. 38th Street
Tacoma, WA 98409
 
Is there the choice to move? Lynnwood would certainly be more convenient for me than Tacoma, though I guess the Tacoma event has the added cache of being the "kick off".. Perhaps they're simply filling up the available slots as people express interest and haven't reached the point where they're filling in the second date yet. My slot is for 10am.
 
TLeaf said:
Is there the choice to move?

I just replied to the mail ... we will see if they accept my request.

ps : Just got the reply. I've been moved !

When:
October 10, 2010

12:00 PM

PLEASE PLAN TO ARRIVE AT 11:45 AM

Where:
Best Buy
19225 Alderwood Mall Pkwy
Lynnwood, WA 98036

Thanks for registering to drive the Chevrolet Volt. We’ll see you there!
 
Finished my drive. crowd is minimal. I started up being 11th in line waited about 45 minutes or so. Got interviewed on camera and got free food too. I have a couple pictures I took will post them later
 
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