My 2 months of being an electric car owner

[Cole Trickle]

Pulled the trigger on a 2014 volt (thanks Jason Holley for the deal) 2 months ago after a discussion broke out about them on rdp.

Honestly I had never considered anything like this but when I started doing the math it just made sense. I have a daily roundtrip commute of 60+ miles and my modified jeep Rubicon was averaging about 14 mpg.

I was spending between $300-375 a month on gas and beating the shit out of my new jeep.....I put 13,500 miles on it in the first 10 months of ownership and this is something I want to play with for awhile while keeping nice.

The volt is costing me $360 a month all in for the lease payment,insurance and registration.

Gotta say I like the volt. Car is smooth and quiet and provides plenty of power for what it is.The technology and build quality are great for a base model car. In the first 2+ months of ownership I have used less than 10 gallons of gas and that was only because we used it for two longer trips that were out of electric range. Running the gas motor the car is getting nearly 40mpg at freeway speeds.

The downside to the car is the brakes are a little sketchy due to the regenerating power system and the heater dosent work for shit if you are using it in electric mode. I will typically drive it in hold mode using the engine for the first 2-3 miles to heat up the car in the morning.

Overall this has been a killer deal for me. I basically got a new car for free that is averaging nearly 250mpg and cost less to charge nightly than what a mini beer fridge coat to operate.

 

[RitcheyRch]

Those are nice and dont look at gay as a Prius.

 

[RodnJen]

I'm only about 30 mi round trip each day but I'm getting 11 if I'm lucky in my crew cab. What are your thoughts on comfort and safety for the Volt?

 

[Yldboyz]

The volt does look sporty. :thumbup:

 

[HavasuHank]

Mini beer fridge.

 

[Cole Trickle]

I'm only about 30 mi round trip each day but I'm getting 11 if I'm lucky in my crew cab. What are your thoughts on comfort and safety for the Volt?

At that commute you would never need to visit a gas station....

I make it to work with a 19 mile range left on the batteries and re charge at the office. Going home I end with a 13 mile range due to the slow steady climb up the toll road over the mountain.

The car is comfortable with its 4 bucket seat lay out (The batteries run down the middle so no middle rear seat) but the seats are a little firm/cardboardy.

safety rating is very good

 

[Cole Trickle]

Mini beer fridge.

I couldn't afford both...lol

 

[Cole Trickle]

The volt does look sporty. :thumbup:

looks are decieving....lol

Its easily the least sporty car I have ever driven artound corners but thats mostly becuse of the tires,battery weight and 42 psi tire pressure.

Its basically the perfect tool for someone to drive to work while saving gas.

 

[HavasuHank]

I couldn't afford both...lol

I couldn't either lol ... almost had to get a second job to pay for the fucking little fridge.

 

[Custom Truck Shop]

My folks have one, the heater is garbage. This is the one car where I would actually use the heated seat, and boy do they work wonders.
The brakes dont have as much 'squish' like in a normal car, but you need to stop.... you'll stop. They put in almost as much work at the bigger brakes on my Camaro.

Ohh you gotta hit "drive mode" right below the little leaf button, select "sport".... and you get like instant.... instant acceleration. You can beat a 5 series crosswalk to crosswalk. Your charge gets destroyed though, but its really fun.

 

[zhandfull]

Is there a noticeable increase on your home electric bill from charging the car?

 

[Cole Trickle]

I couldn't either lol ... almost had to get a second job to pay for the fucking little fridge.

It cost $$$ to keep beer cold....hahah

 

[HavasuHank]

It cost $$$ to keep beer cold....hahah

Yep ... I sold that bitch yesterday.

 

[Cole Trickle]

Is there a noticeable increase on your home electric bill from charging the car?

They say to expect around $1.50 for a full charge

I charge 50% of the time at work so it frobably cost me .75 cents a day and I typically don't drive it on weekends much (maybe $15-18 a month)

 

[Cole Trickle]

My folks have one, the heater is garbage. This is the one car where I would actually use the heated seat, and boy do they work wonders.
The brakes dont have as much 'squish' like in a normal car, but you need to stop.... you'll stop. They put in almost as much work at the bigger brakes on my Camaro.

Ohh you gotta hit "drive mode" right below the little leaf button, select "sport".... and you get like instant.... instant acceleration. You can beat a 5 series crosswalk to crosswalk. Your charge gets destroyed though, but its really fun.

if you run it for 3 miles on the motor the heater works great on comfort. I then swap it to fan only at the same time I go back to Electric mode and its golden the rest of the drive.

You are right the brakes work good when you get into them hard but there a little shitty in bumer to bumper when cars cut in on you.

 

[BigQ]

We have had ours for about a week, not a Volt, but a full all electric Fiat 500e. put 1k down on a lease that is $200 a month for 36 months (cheaper than my cell phone bill:rolleyes). This is less than the gas my wife was using in her car. It goes well with the solar on the house.

 

[whiteworks]

This whole thing sounds super neato awesome

 

[Rivertoys]

I'm not a lease fan, but I'm guessing due to complexity you wouldn't want to buy one?

I'm guessing any maintenance would have to be done at a Chevy dealer also?

 

[brgrcru]

it still is gay. but I understand the economics of it.

 

[Cole Trickle]

I'm not a lease fan, but I'm guessing due to complexity you wouldn't want to buy one?

I'm guessing any maintenance would have to be done at a Chevy dealer also?

lease made sense as I traded the corporate gas card for a car allowance.....

I don't make enough $$$ to take advantage of the $7500 tax credit.

A buy would have cost more and I have no desire to keep this car past 3 years.

What maintanence...By all estimates I will never have to change the oil becuse I won't use the gas engine enough in the 3 year period

 

[BigQ]

I'm not a lease fan, but I'm guessing due to complexity you wouldn't want to buy one?

I'm guessing any maintenance would have to be done at a Chevy dealer also?

Not only that, but the technology will be quite different in three to four years.

 

[Cole Trickle]

it still is gay. but I understand the economics of it.

I have plenty of non gay 14mpg vehicles....

 

[Cole Trickle]

Not only that, but the technology will be quite different in three to four years.

I wouldn't want a car like this out of warranty

 

[whiteworks]

My partners driveway, it started with a prius several years ago because of the single rider carpool sticker. once that expired he bought the smart 100% electric and I guess he got a deal on the leaf the other day and needed to spend some money for tax purposes. Somehow he was able to hack the smart car and it will now burn the tires until you let off, stupid fun to drive LOL. He is all about stealing electricity, actually makes a game out of it. I guess there is an app that has random electrical outlets listed all over the place.

Fucker comes over and will ask for an extension cord, I tell him when I come over to your house do I ask you to go to the gas station and top off my suburban, get fucked LOL

 

[Rivertoys]

I have plenty of non gay 14mpg vehicles....

:hmm .... if you have lots of girlfriends but kiss a guy now and then it's OK? :eek

 

[whiteworks]

:hmm .... if you have lots of girlfriends but kiss a guy now and then it's OK? :eek

LMAO

 

[Boat 405]

I love to hear how good the safety ratings are. Lol it's physics folks. Hard to change the laws of physics.

Which would you rather be in? A 7000lb truck or a 2000 lb car. I'll take the truck thanks.
Fuel prices are what they are. Look at what it costs to stay the night in a hospital overnight or a few days in intensive care.

With how ridiculous people drive around here today. I'll never buy a small car, I won't even ride in one.

Years ago I got into an accident with cars listed in the above scenario. My passenger and I walked away. The occupants of the other vehicle all went to the hospital. One never left.

To each there own. If you like it cool! Saving on fuel looks cheap when not if but when you get into a bad wreck.

 

[Rivertoys]

I love to hear how good the safety ratings are. Lol it's physics folks. Hard to change the laws of physics.

[video=youtube;joMK1WZjP7g]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=joMK1WZjP7g[/video]

 

[djunkie]

Shit this is gay!!!

 

[Boat 405]

[video=youtube;joMK1WZjP7g]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=joMK1WZjP7g[/video]

Worst example ever. Try again with two cars made in this century.

 

[rivrrts429]

I'm as hillbilly, horsepower loving, gun nut, conservative redneck as they come... But... After driving a Tesla I see nothing wrong with the electric car movement. Lol

The electric or electric/hybrid vehicle is only going to grow. Wait until they have charging/battery exchanges that give you a full charge in minutes hits the streets. They'll be similar to gas stations. Like it or not this stuff is the future.

 

[TBulger]

Cool thread Brandin.~I've had a leaf for over 2 years now and can't say enough for it. I have 220v charger at work and at home. It's about 20 miles to work, all downhill and up hill on return. I start in the morning with about 58 miles on the clock, drive a little while at work and have about 5-15 on the clock arriving home. As good as my Leaf is, I wish I would have bought the Volt and then have the option of driving it more places. Gotta say though, I've never really had the desire to drive it on the weekend. I have 18k miles on it, driving only to work and back, it sits on the weekend. I really don't think I've ever used the charger at work, and offer to let anyone that want's to use it, so far nobody has. I could go on and on about how much I like it, but no sense, as those who don't like them never will and those who love them already know.

 

[Rivertoys]

I just hope as more people buy these, demand for gas will drop, therefore price will drop.... That's why I encourage everyone to buy electric / hybrid..... Everyone else I mean.

 

[Boat 405]

[video]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7-YMt-XAcsQ[/video]

Same test mule. Bigger wins.

 

[craiger88]

So how does a lease and mileage work on an electric or hybrid car? Does it work the same as a traditional car? Standard lease 10K-12K mile allowance per year and if you go over, you pay. So if you drive a ton of miles, a lease still doesn't make sense regardless of hybrid or not.

Is this a correct assumption? I spend a ton on gas every month and looking at alternatives.

 

[pronstar]

Safety ratings for the Volt are excellent:
http://www.iihs.org/iihs/ratings/vehicle/v/chevrolet/volt
http://www.safercar.gov/Vehicle+Sho...-Newer+Vehicles/Vehicle-Detail?vehicleId=8294

Maintenance is minimal.
The biggest issue I have with my Volt is the battery cost...I'll sell it before the warranty is up, and before the carpool stickers expire.
Failures in the field are negligible, but its a liability issue I just don't want.

At the point when the carpool stickers expire, there will be a new technology that will give me carpool access, so I'll roll with that.

But after all the incentives/tax credits, I'm only into this car for $22k - sticker was $36k.
2- and 3-year-old used Volts are currently selling in the $25k range, so financially it makes a lot of sense.

If you drive significantly more than the electric range, you have to look at the numbers.
The MPG when using gas is around 40 or a bit less, which is less than some other cars.

Sorta interesting:
I read an article that I'll try to find, they interviewed a Volt engineer. He stated that on the freeway, if you're traveling at 73 mph, you should increase your speed slightly.
There's a slight efficiency bump when you hit 74 - 75 mph, compared to 73 mph.

 

[CampbellCarl]

I just hope as more people buy these, demand for gas will drop, therefore price will drop.... That's why I encourage everyone to buy electric / hybrid..... Everyone else I mean.

I was hoping that you were gonna offer up your Lavey to become the test mule for an all electric river cruiser....

 

[HolyMoly]

[video=youtube;joMK1WZjP7g]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=joMK1WZjP7g[/video]

The Chevy Bel Air didn't have a motor or trans in it. So that is really a flawed test since the motor and trans would add a lot more weight to the Bel Air and reduced the crumpled area and incursion into the passenger area.

But todays' cars are much much safer, and actually it is all based on physics...and it is much more than mass vs. mass. There are countless examples of people walking away from cars that look like people should be dead in them.

 

[pronstar]

I just hope as more people buy these, demand for gas will drop, therefore price will drop.... That's why I encourage everyone to buy electric / hybrid..... Everyone else I mean.

In CA, when gas demand drops, gas-tax revenue also drops.
So the satate raises the gas tax to make up for the "lost revenue".
They've already done this, and the laws are written so that it will continue to happen.

In other words, the state will keep gas prices high regardless.

It's called "fuel tax swap" and details are here:
http://www.mtc.ca.gov/legislation/state_budget_3-10.htm

 

[DaveC]

Do you know much of the battery gets charged each night if it needs a full charge? I couldn't figure this out.

I'm not sure the math makes sense if you compare a high mileage non-electric car, like a TDI, etc..

If the volt has a 10KWH battery (guess) and the range is about 30 miles does that mean you have to charge the entire battery each night if your commute is more than 30 miles?

Since I pay on average $0.33 per KWH for my electricity that means my daily 30 mile commute would cost me $3.30 in an electric car needing a 10 kWH charge?

That is still better than my 12.5 MPG in my car but the upside to my 12.5 MPG is that I don't look GHEY.

But if I had a Brown-mobile TDI and got 45 MPG in a TDI then the TDI would be comparable and there would be no downside of having a limited range.

I guess it makes sense as a second car with a limited commute but not so much considering the cost of electricity is high in California.

I think this is why most electric car owners are very insistent with "stealing" electricity everywhere they go...

 

[HOOTER SLED-]

Yup.......he's a homo.

 

[Rivertoys]

I was hoping that you were gonna offer up your Lavey to become the test mule for an all electric river cruiser....

Um... yeah... NO! It's got two batteries already, that's close enough. :rolleyes

 

[mjc]

I have thought about some type of hybrid when I retire in Havasu. Would never have to buy gas until I wanted to come back to Ca. it is either that or a TDI wagon for the mileage. Or if you really want a hybrid how about this

 

[pronstar]

Do you know much of the battery gets charged each night if it needs a full charge? I couldn't figure this out.

I'm not sure the math makes sense if you compare a high mileage non-electric car, like a TDI, etc..

If the volt has a 10KWH battery and the range is about 30 miles does that mean you ahve to charge the entire battery each night if your commute is more than 30 miles?

Since I pay on average $0.33 per KWH that means my daily 30 mile commute would cost me $3.30 in an electric car?

That is still better than my 12.5 MPG in my car but the upside to my 12.5 MPG is that I don't look GHEY.

But if I had a Brown-mobile TDI and got 45 MPG in a TDI then the TDI would be comparable and there would be no downside of having a limited range.

I guess it makes sense as a second car with a limited commute but not so much considering the cost of electricity is high in California.

I think this is why most electric car owners are very insistent with "stealing" electricity everywhere they go...

For a fully depleted battery:
At 12 amps/120 volts from a wall outlet, it takes about 12 hours to charge.
At 20 amps/240 volts from a wall outlet, it takes around 4 hours.
I'm on an Home/EV rate structure with SCE, so electricity between midnight and 6AM is super cheap, just $0.09 per kW, so I set my car up to charge between those hours.
And I recharge for free at work :thumbup:

Here's the rate plan I'm on - Home & Electric Vehicle Plan (TOU-D-TEV).
Summer rates listed, winter are a bit less:

On-Peak
10 AM to 6 PM weekdays
Tier 1: 28 cents / kWh
Tier 2: 47 cents / kWh

Off-Peak
6 a.m. to 10 a.m.
6 p.m. to midnight
Tier 1: 12 cents / kWh
Tier 2: 31 cents / kWh

Super Off-Peak
Midnight to 6 AM every day
Tier 1: 9 cents / kWh
Tier 2: 9 cents / kWh

Tiers are based on how much electricity you use.
The more you use, the more it costs.


The Volt's battery is 16.5kW, and the state of charge that it actually uses is around 10kW+/-

In traffic, I average between 40 and 46 miles per charge.
My commute one-way is about 33 miles

 

[Cole Trickle]

I love to hear how good the safety ratings are. Lol it's physics folks. Hard to change the laws of physics.

Which would you rather be in? A 7000lb truck or a 2000 lb car. I'll take the truck thanks.
Fuel prices are what they are. Look at what it costs to stay the night in a hospital overnight or a few days in intensive care.

With how ridiculous people drive around here today. I'll never buy a small car, I won't even ride in one.

Years ago I got into an accident with cars listed in the above scenario. My passenger and I walked away. The occupants of the other vehicle all went to the hospital. One never left.

To each there own. If you like it cool! Saving on fuel looks cheap when not if but when you get into a bad wreck.

The volt is not a light small car....

It has excellent crash ratings and I would much rather drive this than a Prius,corolla or a 10 year old TDI.

For me it works....

This is not my toy or weekend vehicle but its nice having a car I can drive to my moms house in los Angeles and it do sent cost me $30+ in gas.

 

[HavasuHank]

One thing that is gayer than an owning an electric vehicle ... is owning two. :skull

 

[DaveC]

I found the numbers I was looking for regarding the volt battery.

It has as 16 kwh battery but goes 35 miles in all electric mode. It does not use 100% of battery capacity.

The EPA rating for electric only is 36 kwh per 100 miles

So a 35 mile range requires 12.5 kwh recharge. At $0.33 a kwh thats $4 a day

Thats cheaper than my car but my mileage sux but a high mileage TDI would be comparable

Now if I can only figure out how to steal electricity from work

 

[TPC]

GM offered us the friends and family discount the the Caddy version of the Volt. Even with the discount the Volt is the better,,,, much, much better buy.
I like the thought of solar re-charging of the Volt like I did with my Toyota electric RAV.

 

[Buoy]

I'm curious if over time/aging the battery will start to deplete quicker.

Every rechargeable device I own (cell phones, tool, etc) start out holding a great charge when new, but over time they seem to deplete quicker than when they were new.

 

[Boat 405]

45 mpg and built like a German tank.

They plan to introduces Hybrid model that will get over 50.

http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.co...des-Benz_Diesel_E250_Rated_at_45_MPG_Highway/