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Old 04-13-15, 09:08 AM   #361
Robaroni
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NeilBlanchard View Post
The Leaf has much more room than the Volt, especially in the backseat. We drive both a Leaf and an e-Golf. Solar panels are yet to come ...
I know the Volt is not a large car but I'm only 5'10" and thin but I'll see when we drive it, maybe this week (mid April 2015 for those reading this in the future).
How is the VW, I've heard nightmares about VW parts and service. There's a 40k auto tranny oil change on the TDI that costs $1000! That's one of the things I'm trying to get away from with the Subaru.
I don't mind the Subaru but it's a constant 4WD and that means that along with lower overall mileage you only get about 20k on the tires. If you blow a tire you need to replace all four because you change the rolling diameter. I don't do it but it stresses the tranny and Subaru just told me, after 30k miles on the last tranny oil change, that I need the oil changed again.
I also have to look at the front clearance of the Volt, it might be a problem in the snow here, not that I'm planning on doing a lot of snow driving, we're retired so most days it's in the garage. I think a car with traction control and front wheel drive will get us through the winter.

Rob

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Old 04-13-15, 10:06 AM   #362
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I found this interesting
The mystery of the Chevy Volts that go more electric miles than Nissan Leafs
The mystery of the Chevy Volts that go more electric miles than Nissan Leafs

I know we think nothing about how far we are going to drive. We deplete the battery 2 or three times a day. Sometimes it will get just a few partial charges a day like today. Last week we whet 90 EV miles in that day.

We have 35,461 EV miles and I can tell you that there is probably only three vehicles I could have that many EV miles in just over two years.

A Tesla @ more than double the price but such a nice car. BMW i3 but it was not out when we got our car and it is way more expensive than the Volt.

We are at 81.5% EV for the life of the car the 2016 volt we would be even higher. This weekend we will drive it just outside Charlotte NC and think nothing of it. Feel free to check out my and others stats. Volt Stats: Details for Volt #2013-02615 (Flynn's Light Runner)
This data comes straight from OnStar.

EV cars are much harder to buy than standard cars because you need to look at how you want to use your car and pick what is right for you.
You are in great shape no matter what you buy because you have extra solar power to charge it with.

I have a friend with a Leaf and they love it I have another friend with a Tesla and he loves it. (he is going to let me drive it I get down his way that will be fun he has solar installed at his house.)

Driving on the sun is such a clean way to drive any EV car and it is so much fun!
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Old 04-13-15, 11:04 AM   #363
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I'm not willing to splunk down quite so much cash for a new car myself, but I have been looking at the little Mitsubishi iMiEVs. Only 62 miles of range per the EPA. But that is more than enough for my 7 mile one way commute plus errands. The 2012 models coming off of their leases are selling for under $8k! It would be a step up from the 1999 Chevy Metro I'm currently using as a commuter. It is a very basic car from what I hear though. If the Leaf doesn't do it for you, the iMiEV certainly won't impress.
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Old 04-13-15, 11:05 AM   #364
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On 4/12/2015 we have had solar up and running for 2 years.
We have made 36.3 MWh of power we are at .10 KWh so that is 3,630 dollars of power.
This last winter we only used solar power to heat with this saved us $725 from a year we only heated with natural gas.
We also powered our EV car 16,500 miles on solar power. We are very happy with solar and there has been no maintenance at all just watch the KWh add up.


Flynns Arcade 12.560kW

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Old 04-13-15, 11:12 AM   #365
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I'm not willing to splunk down quite so much cash for a new car myself, but I have been looking at the little Mitsubishi iMiEVs. Only 62 miles of range per the EPA. But that is more than enough for my 7 mile one way commute plus errands. The 2012 models coming off of their leases are selling for under $8k! It would be a step up from the 1999 Chevy Metro I'm currently using as a commuter. It is a very basic car from what I hear though. If the Leaf doesn't do it for you, the iMiEV certainly won't impress.
EV’s can be a great bargain used. The used Volts were the same price as new ones after the tax breaks when I bought mine but that is not the case now. They are all coming off lease and getting cheaper by the day.
The 2016 Volt is expected to come in cheaper than Gen 1. That will depress the used prices even more.

No matter what one you buy used can be a great way to go and you can get payback much faster.
Less than 8k sounds like a very good bargain.
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Old 04-13-15, 12:26 PM   #366
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EV’s can be a great bargain used. The used Volts were the same price as new ones after the tax breaks when I bought mine but that is not the case now. They are all coming off lease and getting cheaper by the day.
The 2016 Volt is expected to come in cheaper than Gen 1. That will depress the used prices even more.

No matter what one you buy used can be a great way to go and you can get payback much faster.
Less than 8k sounds like a very good bargain.
Funny you should mention this, I've been wondering what a used Volt will cost once the 2016 hits the market. It might be a cheap way for me to get one especially off a lease.

Rob
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Old 04-13-15, 01:02 PM   #367
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Things to thing about when buying a used volt.

The hold feature came in 2013. If you know you are going past the EV range and some driving is on interstate and the some is in town. You can use the hold feature to make the motor run on the interstate and use EV where it is more efficient. I like this feature.

2013 Chevy Volt And The New EV Hold Mode: Feature Spotlight | GM Authority

Each year they increased the battery size. You get a few more miles each year newer you buy. It should anyway.

If you buy an extended warranty it is best and cheapest to do it before the 36,000 mile warranty runs out. Do not buy the extended warranty from the dealer you buy it from unless they will give you a great price. You can buy the GM extended warranty from any dealer and I can point you to people that will discount it a lot. This information is on the Volt forum.
I saved many $$$ when I told my local dealer what I could get it for else where he dropped the price 1,000 on the spot and still was not completive.

Depending on the range you need the extra battery my not be a big deal but now you know.

Chevrolet Volt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

“The 2011 Chevrolet Volt has a 16 kW·h / 45 A·h (10.4 kW·h usable) lithium-ion battery pack that can be charged by plugging the car into a 120-240 VAC residential electrical outlet using the provided SAE J1772-compliant charging cord. No external charging station is required.[62] The Volt is propelled by an electric motor with a peak output of 111 kW (149 hp) delivering 273 lb·ft (370 N·m) of torque. Capacity of the battery pack was increased to 16.5 kW·h (10.9 kW·h usable) for 2013 models, which increased the all-electric range from 35 to 38 mi (56 to 61 km). Other specifications remained the same. The battery pack capacity was increased to 17.1 kW·h for 2015 models. This incremental upgrade is likely to reflect in an improvement in range over previous model years, but as of July 2014, the 2015 Volt has not been re-certified with the EPA.[3] “


There some other little things but these are some of the big ones.

There are no tax credits on used EV but the price usually reflects the tax credit by a lower price.
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Old 04-13-15, 01:36 PM   #368
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Originally Posted by pinballlooking View Post
Things to thing about when buying a used volt.

The hold feature came in 2013. If you know you are going past the EV range and some driving is on interstate and the some is in town. You can use the hold feature to make the motor run on the interstate and use EV where it is more efficient. I like this feature.

2013 Chevy Volt And The New EV Hold Mode: Feature Spotlight | GM Authority

Each year they increased the battery size. You get a few more miles each year newer you buy. It should anyway.

If you buy an extended warranty it is best and cheapest to do it before the 36,000 mile warranty runs out. Do not buy the extended warranty from the dealer you buy it from unless they will give you a great price. You can buy the GM extended warranty from any dealer and I can point you to people that will discount it a lot. This information is on the Volt forum.
I saved many $$$ when I told my local dealer what I could get it for else where he dropped the price 1,000 on the spot and still was not completive.

Depending on the range you need the extra battery my not be a big deal but now you know.

Chevrolet Volt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

“The 2011 Chevrolet Volt has a 16 kW·h / 45 A·h (10.4 kW·h usable) lithium-ion battery pack that can be charged by plugging the car into a 120-240 VAC residential electrical outlet using the provided SAE J1772-compliant charging cord. No external charging station is required.[62] The Volt is propelled by an electric motor with a peak output of 111 kW (149 hp) delivering 273 lb·ft (370 N·m) of torque. Capacity of the battery pack was increased to 16.5 kW·h (10.9 kW·h usable) for 2013 models, which increased the all-electric range from 35 to 38 mi (56 to 61 km). Other specifications remained the same. The battery pack capacity was increased to 17.1 kW·h for 2015 models. This incremental upgrade is likely to reflect in an improvement in range over previous model years, but as of July 2014, the 2015 Volt has not been re-certified with the EPA.[3] “


There some other little things but these are some of the big ones.

There are no tax credits on used EV but the price usually reflects the tax credit by a lower price.
Wow! That's great info and I'll sure use it when the time comes!
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Old 04-13-15, 09:34 PM   #369
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We like the e-Golf a lot. There is basically no maintenance on EV's, at all. The only scheduled maintenance I know of is changing the gearbox oil at 150K miles or 10 years whichever comes first, on the Leaf.

No oil changes, no tune ups, no exhaust, no multi-gear transmissions. Brakes get very little wear, because of regenerative braking.
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Old 04-13-15, 09:40 PM   #370
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Maintenance cost or savings is something a lot of people over look when looking at EV’s.
That savings really adds up over time.

It is funny I have had people say they would not want to take the time to plug the car in every day.
It is quicker that waiting at a gas pump to fill up your car.


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