I was skeptical on the performance of plug-in electric cars. Putting my initial bias aside, I still wanted to test an EV car since the concept is appealing to me: no emission and discretion (I do hate the use of loud exhaust pipes on any vehicle). Courtesy of GM, I was able to spend a full week with the Chevrolet Volt (Electric vehicle plug-in Hybrid) and conclude that performance-wise, the Volt has nothing to envy from its gas-drinking-smog-creating competitors.
GM states that the Volt can run for 60 km on a single battery charge (which is more than enough for my daily needs) whereas the charge indicator usually showed a 50 km mileage range available after a full charge. This seemed strange to me initially, however, I quickly understood that the regeneration power system (via deceleration and breaking) was extending my mileage. I was able to only use 6km of battery charge for an 8km real distance: Not Bad.
The battery can be completely recharged through either a 120-volt (10 hours) or 240-volt outlet (4 hours) and, in my opinion, owning a garage is a definite plus instead of running an extension cord from your kitchen counter every night.
The Volt also combines an internal engine generator (use of gasoline hence the Hybrid) that will kick in when the battery is depleted or when the battery draw is too high (cold outdoor temperature to start the car), giving the car a 440 to 450 km autonomy.
The peacefulness and the ‘feel good’ driving experience drove it home for me (no pun intended). There is certainly an emotional attachment to the car relating to the feeling of no longer contributing to the carbon footprint of the auto-industry. I can now relate all of those Californians that were emotionally affected when GM decided to remove the first mass-produced electric car (EV1) in the mid 90’s from customer’s hands.
To help nurturing this feeling, the Volt dashboard provides a nice visual representation on its dashboard when the vehicle draws from the battery and when the battery regeneration occurs. I ended up paying more attention to my driving style and challenged myself to maximize the battery regeneration opportunities. Yep, I am Geek!
The internal artificial intelligence of the car permits an optimum management of the climate control to minimize battery use. As such, the Volt will automatically turn on the seat heaters and turn down the fan when trying to warm the cabin up.
The dashboard is nice and clean and tactile (one needs to get used to it). For a family with young children, it means that it is easier to clean the little fingerprints left behind.
The Volt is a Hatchback vehicle and provides plenty of room to carry all of the sport equipment of the little (and big) passengers.
In conclusion, when I have initially picked up the car, my first impression was moderate but the vehicle grew on me to the point when, at the end, I concluded I would seriously consider purchasing one when the time comes for a new vehicle. I just hope that Plug-in hybrids MSRP will eventually drop enough in price so it will be economically viable to be a good contender for a family vehicle.
Disclosure: The GM Chevrolet Volt was authentically reviewed by Parent Club. This review is penned by my prince…and I’m sure you could read that…because “regeneration power system” is not in my personal lexicon.
Electronic cars intrigue me. I would love to own one one day but I know I would always wonder if I would be able to reach my destination before running out of “juice” and where I would plug in my vehicle once I reach my destination.
The Volt easily plugs into any outlet so you can “juice up” whever you find an outlet.
Thank you for this post! We are soo tempted to purchase an alternative vehicle like a hybrid or plug-in electric car! We are hoping that the MSRP decrease, too. We considered the Nissan LEAF, a purely plug-in electric car, but worry about how the battery would perform in the winter. The Volt only seats 4 passengers…wish it had room for 5. And as my 6-year-old pointed out, if the power goes out (as it did in our neighbourhood for 24 hours during the recent storm around Hurricane Sandy), our electric car would not be able to charge (just like I could not charge my phone or my laptop)! But that “regeneration power system” is very intriguing!