[ref
http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVLN-Bolt-Bingo-gt-with-a-200mi-EV-you-can-forget-all-of-the-searching-for-the-next-charge-td4682907.html
]
http://www.plugincars.com/countdown-chevy-bolt-next-major-ev-milestone-131885.html
Countdown to the Chevy Bolt: The Next Major EV Milestone
July 08, 2016 Brad Berman
[image
http://www.plugincars.com/sites/default/files/2017-bolt-620.jpg
2017 Chevrolet Bolt
]
The recent EV news cycle has been dominated by chatter about the
fatal
accident of a Tesla driver who over-relied on the company’s assisted
driving
system. Hopefully, focus on that disturbing and distracting incident
will
soon subside, so our attention can turn to what deserves more
attention: the
release of the first affordable mainstream 200-mile electric car.
Reminder:
It’s a Chevy.
Tesla is nearly two years away from selling its first relatively
affordable
model. Keep in mind that the first set of Model 3 units will likely
be
expensive upper-level variants with price tags well beyond the
so-called
affordable $35,000 range. In the meantime, now that we’re in the
second half
of 2016, you can start the six-month countdown to the truly
affordable Bolt.
Shad Balch, manager of new product communications for Chevy, in an
April
interview with the Los Angeles Times, said, “There will be some
options, but
the base [Bolt] car will have most of our content and connectivity
features,
including active safety features. That will all be standard from the
lower
trim level.”
In other words, General Motors is not wavering or hedging on its
commitment
to its long-standing target price. GM is currently saying that the
Bolt will
be sold for approximately $30,000, after tax incentives, which are
expected
to be $7,500. (Besides, there's a strong chance that by the time the
Model 3
is in full production, tax credits for Tesla vehicles [
http://plugincars.com/most-model-3-buyers-will-not-get-7500-tax-credit-131591.html
] will be depleted.)
Pause and Reflect
Let’s be clear about GM’s achievement: the Bolt will be the first
200-mile
all-electric car offered anywhere near the net price of $30,000. The
company
is accomplishing this feat about two years before any of its
competitors.
That’s remarkable, but what’s mind-boggling is that it only took six
years
between the time the company first offered the Volt—a plug-in hybrid
that
babied its 16 kilowatt-hour pack by only using half its capacity—and
the
introduction of the Bolt, a similarly priced vehicle that utilizes
nearly
all of a pack that carries a whopping 60 kilowatt-hours of energy.
Yes, there have been improvements in battery chemistry and battery
management systems, as well as reductions in cost. But arguably the
true
breakthrough—gained by GM selling the Volt over two generations—is
the human
understanding of how people use plug-in cars.
By producing the Volt and studying how people drive and charge, GM
confirmed
that most drivers only travel about 40 miles on a single day; that
they are
quite comfortable with charging at home every day; and that what they
seek
is the comfort of knowing that there’s an abundant surplus of range
always
left in the car. That might seem obvious to any EV driver, but the
auto
industry’s products are only beginning to reflect that understanding
in
2016.
“Our studies show that 200 miles is the breakthrough point,” Larry
Nitz,
director of propulsion systems at GM, told me earlier this year. “Our
technology has evolved where we can do cars like this that are
cost-effective. We did it.”
Nitz’s insight is that an EV with a 200-mile range will very rarely
get used
to its capacity. If a driver plugs in every day and drives a typical
40-mile
commute, the battery will automatically get babied—just through
normal
driving patterns. Therefore, GM engineers are confident about
allowing the
vast majority of the Bolt’s 60-kWh capacity to get used because it
won’t
happen very often. The 200 miles of capacity is available on an
as-needed
basis, while providing driver confidence all the time.
“If you have a car with 80 or 90 miles of range, your motivation is
to find
the next charging place,” Nitz said. “Can I plug in at work? Can I
plug in
at the mall? Where can I plug in? With the Bolt, you forget all of
that.”
Moreover, he said drivers will forget about range issues even on the
coldest
days of the year in Detroit, when battery range can be cut in half by
frigid
conditions.
“It’s a normal car,” Nitz said.
Bingo. That’s the achievement we’re counting down to see become real:
a pure
battery-electric EV, at $30,000, being thought of as a normal car.
When the
first Bolt customer takes the keys, that auto industry first will be
owned
by General Motors and can never be taken away from the company.
Perhaps that’s why the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV this week was placed on
the
list of 43 models under consideration for the 2017 North American Car
and
Truck of the Year award. And that’s why long-time EV-denying industry
analysts are now saying the Bolt could far exceed sales projections.
Will the car be a smash success? That’s unpredictable. Only time will
tell
if the overall driving experience of the compact EV is as powerful as
the
key 200-mile milestone. Its popularity will depend on currently
unanswered
questions like these:
The Bolt is promised to offer the interior room of a mid-size car in
the
format of a compact, but will it actually feel roomy?
GM says the performance specs—200 horsepower, 266 pound-feet of
torque,
zero-to-60 mph performance under seven seconds—will make the Bolt
truly fun
to drive, but will it feel spirited behind the wheel?
The combination of Drive and Low modes, and a paddle for “regen on
demand,”
will mean EV aficionados can enjoy single-pedal driving, but will
that
experience survive final technical tweaks?
Those finer points aside, the introduction of the first plug-in
cars—the
Chevy Volt and Nissan LEAF—in 2010 was an undeniable breakthrough.
Six years
later, we’re poised for another one. Get ready.
[© plugincars.com]
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