My first month with a Chevy Volt

[Spider-Dan]

Last month, after two failed transmissions in <75k miles and a 4th fuel pump failure, I decided to replace my 2000 Dodge Avenger that I've had for the last twelve and a half years.  It was a sad decision; although the Avenger wasn't my first car, it was the first car I ever really wanted before getting.  But there were just too many breakdowns, and given that the Avenger got 23 MPG on a good day, gas prices made this decision a lot easier.

I had been strongly considering a Volt for the last year or so.  Even before the Volt was released, I had commented that I really believed that that car was revolutionary; a key stepping stone and necessary transitional phase from a gas-based transportation economy to an electricity-based transportation economy.  Late last month, I decided to pull the trigger and pick one up.

For those that don't know, the Volt is a plug-in hybrid: you plug it in (it comes with a portable 120v charger that plugs into any standard power outlet) and charge the internal battery to receive ~38 miles of all-electric range (this takes about 11 hours with an empty battery).  After you run out of battery power, the car seamlessly transitions to a gas-powered engine, which generates electricity for the electric motor that powers the wheels.  The Volt is rated at 37 combined MPG while running on gas (premium is required).  The gas tank is 9.5 gallons, which gives you a combined range of ~390 miles (with full charge and full tank).

Now, in my case, I live about 13 miles from work, so I can actually make from home -> work -> home on one charge.  However, I also have the ability to charge at work for free (my job actually has one of the largest privately owned solar arrays in CA), which helps to offset my costs even more.  While I potentially could charge exclusively at work (and go work -> home -> work on one charge), for the first month, I tried to limit my at work charging to get a better idea of the impact on my electric bill.  I only charged at work on days when I would drive at lunchtime, and then only for 4 hours or so after lunch.

After one complete month of driving (1/26-2/26), I can report that I drove ~1150 miles and used exactly 0.9 gallons of gasoline.  As for my electricity bill: it decreased by $12 from the previous month.  So essentially, I went from spending $120/month on gas (in my Avenger) to roughly -$8/month.  That's... an improvement.

Part of the reason my electric bill decreased is because my utility company (Pacific Gas & Electric) allows electric vehicle owners to switch to a plan that is very heavily time-of-use based.  The default electric plan has no time-of-use component; it doesn't matter when you use electricity, only how much.  Because of this change to my billing (which is only available to EV owners), I went from 639 kWh to 765 kWh but still paid less.  However, if I lived in a house where much of my electricity was used during the day (e.g. I had a stay-at-home spouse), this might not have been the case.

To give a little clearer idea of the charging costs, here's the way it works for me:  I get a baseline amount of electricity each month (from Nov-Apr, it's 372 kWh) at the cheapest rate.  Between 372 and 748 kWh, the price gradually increases, and then anything over 748 kWh is billed at the max rate.  If I charge the Volt during the offpeak (night) hours, depending on my other electricity usage that month, it's between $0.58 and $2.60 for a full charge (my average was about $1.21).

In conclusion, I can only say that from a fuel cost standpoint, this car has worked even better than I could have hoped.  It's a fun car to drive, has lots of cool tech features, and I get the added bonus of not sending extra money to theocrats in sand dunes.

[Buddhagirl]

That's awesome. I like the Chevy Volt. It's cute and I like the $$$ savings. I just wish it was a VW.

[Landshark]

Isn't this what people would consider a Hybrid car, or does it go way beyond Hybrid?  Also, how often are tune ups and oil changes needed?

[Brian Fein]

I decided to replace my 2000 Dodge Avenger that I've had for the last twelve and a half years.

NNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!  Oh the humanity!!

[Phishfan]

Cool review. I'm glad to see things are working out nicely.

[SCFinfan]

Did you buy outright or finance?

If you financed, what are the monthly payments?

[AZ Fins Fan 55]

My wife and I have been looking at the Volt as well. I am glad to hear you are happy with it.

[Spider-Dan]

Isn't this what people would consider a Hybrid car, or does it go way beyond Hybrid?

It's what's generally called a "plug-in hybrid": a car that you can charge and drive on electricity alone.  In contrast, standard hybrids like the original Prius are fueled solely by gasoline... they just have (small) batteries to make the energy usage more efficient (e.g. regenerative brakes charge the batteries when you slow down, instead of wasting that energy in brake pad friction).

However, even within plug-in hybrids, there is a bit of a gap.  Most of the plug-in hybrids currently available (e.g. Plug-In Prius, Fusion Energi, C-Max Energi) have much smaller batteries than the Volt, which means that they cannot travel at highway speeds on electric power alone; if you go above 30 MPH, their gas engines start up to help provide more power.  GM refers to the Volt as an "extended-range electric vehicle" because, as long as you have battery power remaining, you can travel at full speed without any gas assist.  Currently, the only other plug-in hybrid that can do this is the Fisker Karma (which costs over twice as much as the Volt and gets 20 MPG on gas).

Also, how often are tune ups and oil changes needed?

- oil/filter change: every 24 months
- spark plugs: every 100,000 miles
- coolant: every five years or 150,000 miles, whichever comes first
- engine drive belt: every ten years or 150,000 miles, whichever comes first

Did you buy outright or finance?

If you financed, what are the monthly payments?

Actually, I ended up leasing, for a couple of reasons.  First, for tax purposes (particularly regarding the $7500 rebate), it worked out better; depending on various factors, I may not have been eligible for the full $7500, but when you lease, the financing company receives the rebate and applies it to the lease.  Second, I wanted to see exactly how well this car worked out for me, and what kind of impact it had as a daily driver.  Third, the second-generation Volts should be coming out in 2014 or 2015, and I want to see if there's any major upgrades from gen1 to gen2.

That all being said, I got a fully loaded Volt with an MSRP of $44,500.  I put $3500 down and on a 39 month lease with 12k miles/year, my monthly payment is $292.

[Brian Fein]

What about performance?  How's the top speed?  Acceleration?  I always imagine it like driving a golf cart.  How is it not?

[Spider-Dan]

It's quicker than my Avenger (I had the V6), but with a lower top speed (Volt top speed is 100, Avenger hits governor at 126).

The ride is extremely nice.  It uses a planetary gear set, so there aren't "gears" like a normal car; it's like one long gear.  On battery power, the motor is nearly silent, and the cabin does a very good job of insulating road noise.  Even on gas power, the engine doesn't work like the engine in a normal car (or even like a Prius); the engine just starts up and revs to a fixed RPM.  It doesn't "match" your speed like you might expect.  And the engine is pretty quiet, too.  On the highway, you can't really tell whether the engine is on or off without looking at the readout.