Re: [EVDL] EVLN: Bolt EV is like, premium fast. You should buy one> (the “lost hybrid decade”)
I have to agree with this review. I got a Bolt about the same time this guy got his. It is definitely the nicest car I have ever driven. First, the seat goes back far enough and raises up high enough that my thighs actually rest on the seat. In every other car I've had, my knees have always been higher than my hips and my thighs have never even touched the seat. I feel downright cramped when I get into my 2011 Leaf. The aggressive regen in one pedaL driving mode makes driving in traffic almost a pleasure. It certainly relieves a lot of the stress, even more so than the regen in the Leaf. I have been waiting for this driving mode since I first got my Honda EVPlus in 1997. The acceleration is great! I had a very hard time bringing myself to buy a GM car, especially an electric one after the EV1 episode, but I'm very glad I bought the Bolt. GM let me buy it too. I wasn't forced to lease it like Honda made me do with the EVPlus. I will never buy a Honda again. Ed > On Oct 2, 2017, at 8:58 PM, brucedp5 via EV wrote: > > > > 'The past ten years was the “lost hybrid decade,” when technology tripped > all over its own shoelaces' > > https://medium.com/@ethanstock/after-10k-miles-the-electric-chevy-bolt-is-the-best-car-ive-ever-owned-you-should-buy-one-c61493b47164 > After 10K miles, the electric Chevy Bolt is the best car I’ve ever owned. > You should buy one. > Sep 17 2017 Ethan Stock > > [images > https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1600/1*K8by1LTbTyaFYZLvnQUmvQ.jpeg > > https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1600/1*mtYMIZtcD4LGhFB4TLS4NA.jpeg > The Bolt and trees, coexisting happily > ] > > I am not an environmentalist. I grew up on a farm where we planted corn, > logged trees for lumber, and shot deer because, despite great PR, they’re > actually the vampires of the plant kingdom. > > I like good cars. I like fast cars. After a series of teenage and college > cars that I thrashed within, and on one memorable occasion past, an inch of > their lives, the first car that I ever purchased was a 1988 BMW 535is, the > near-twin of the original, earth-shattering M5. Mine had been heavily > massaged by world-famous BMW tuner Steve Dinan, and it was glorious. > > I then moved to London and entered a delightful, insane 100 horsepower > motorcycle phase that featured a Honda VFR 800 and CBR 600, the latter of > which left me in several pieces on the shore of Lake Geneva at the > French-Swiss border during a truncated European adventure that averaged > north of 80mph. > > Returning to America and to reality, I bought an Infiniti G35, the vastly > more reliable Japanese reincarnation of the BMW 5 series, and then, moving > into my family phase, an Acura MDX to haul the kids in 300 horsepower style. > > I think that I averaged about 19 miles per gallon for the two driving > decades of 1997–2017, even including the motorcycles, which doesn’t make me > particularly proud, because our planet is melting. > > Saving the planet is not something that I spend every waking hour thinking > about, but I’ve got two kids under 10 years old, and I’d like this place to > not actually fully melt during their lifetimes. As someone who puts a lot of > miles on my car every year, I know that I’m part of the problem, and as a > guy who builds technology for a living, I’d always imagined that technology > would solve the problem. > > We will someday refer to the past ten years as the “lost hybrid decade,” > when technology tripped all over its own shoelaces. The first hybrid to > cause a big stir — the Toyota Prius — had the acceleration of worn-out > rubber band, the handling of a Carnival cruise ship, and for all that > misery, still only improved its planet-melting gas consumption from ~30 to > ~45mpg. Its imitators, like the horrific Honda Civic Hybrid, which I was > doomed to drive for several years after inheriting it from my wife’s > ex-college car to my long-distance-commute slug, were even worse. > > Imagine my delight when I read about Chevy’s new all-electric Bolt, > introduced in January of this year. Fast. Stylish. Amazing 238 mile range. > $29,900 after federal incentives, and yet a practical hatchback with lots of > interior room. It seemed like the perfect car to move into a more > enlightened phase of my automotive existence. > > I ordered one of the very first ones made from my friend Derek at Tom Bell > Chevrolet, and he delivered it on January 9th, 2017. > > Yesterday, it crossed 10,000 miles, and it’s the best car that I’ve ever > owned. > > As my first electric car, I need to say a couple things about the whole > electron lifestyle. The immediate, vivid impression is how smooth this car > is. I’ve owned some fairly premium gas-powered cars where a lot of engineers > put a lot of effort into twiddling the mechanical geometry of their moving > parts, but no amount of human ingenuity can fully address the fact that > several hundred pounds of metal are rotating, counter-rotating, > reciprocati
[EVDL] EVLN: Bolt EV is like, premium fast. You should buy one> (the “lost hybrid decade”)
'The past ten years was the “lost hybrid decade,” when technology tripped all over its own shoelaces' https://medium.com/@ethanstock/after-10k-miles-the-electric-chevy-bolt-is-the-best-car-ive-ever-owned-you-should-buy-one-c61493b47164 After 10K miles, the electric Chevy Bolt is the best car I’ve ever owned. You should buy one. Sep 17 2017 Ethan Stock [images https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1600/1*K8by1LTbTyaFYZLvnQUmvQ.jpeg https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1600/1*mtYMIZtcD4LGhFB4TLS4NA.jpeg The Bolt and trees, coexisting happily ] I am not an environmentalist. I grew up on a farm where we planted corn, logged trees for lumber, and shot deer because, despite great PR, they’re actually the vampires of the plant kingdom. I like good cars. I like fast cars. After a series of teenage and college cars that I thrashed within, and on one memorable occasion past, an inch of their lives, the first car that I ever purchased was a 1988 BMW 535is, the near-twin of the original, earth-shattering M5. Mine had been heavily massaged by world-famous BMW tuner Steve Dinan, and it was glorious. I then moved to London and entered a delightful, insane 100 horsepower motorcycle phase that featured a Honda VFR 800 and CBR 600, the latter of which left me in several pieces on the shore of Lake Geneva at the French-Swiss border during a truncated European adventure that averaged north of 80mph. Returning to America and to reality, I bought an Infiniti G35, the vastly more reliable Japanese reincarnation of the BMW 5 series, and then, moving into my family phase, an Acura MDX to haul the kids in 300 horsepower style. I think that I averaged about 19 miles per gallon for the two driving decades of 1997–2017, even including the motorcycles, which doesn’t make me particularly proud, because our planet is melting. Saving the planet is not something that I spend every waking hour thinking about, but I’ve got two kids under 10 years old, and I’d like this place to not actually fully melt during their lifetimes. As someone who puts a lot of miles on my car every year, I know that I’m part of the problem, and as a guy who builds technology for a living, I’d always imagined that technology would solve the problem. We will someday refer to the past ten years as the “lost hybrid decade,” when technology tripped all over its own shoelaces. The first hybrid to cause a big stir — the Toyota Prius — had the acceleration of worn-out rubber band, the handling of a Carnival cruise ship, and for all that misery, still only improved its planet-melting gas consumption from ~30 to ~45mpg. Its imitators, like the horrific Honda Civic Hybrid, which I was doomed to drive for several years after inheriting it from my wife’s ex-college car to my long-distance-commute slug, were even worse. Imagine my delight when I read about Chevy’s new all-electric Bolt, introduced in January of this year. Fast. Stylish. Amazing 238 mile range. $29,900 after federal incentives, and yet a practical hatchback with lots of interior room. It seemed like the perfect car to move into a more enlightened phase of my automotive existence. I ordered one of the very first ones made from my friend Derek at Tom Bell Chevrolet, and he delivered it on January 9th, 2017. Yesterday, it crossed 10,000 miles, and it’s the best car that I’ve ever owned. As my first electric car, I need to say a couple things about the whole electron lifestyle. The immediate, vivid impression is how smooth this car is. I’ve owned some fairly premium gas-powered cars where a lot of engineers put a lot of effort into twiddling the mechanical geometry of their moving parts, but no amount of human ingenuity can fully address the fact that several hundred pounds of metal are rotating, counter-rotating, reciprocating, springing, and vibrating in every gasoline car. The Bolt is perfectly smooth, a perfectly linear experience. It’s hard to describe in words, but it feels luxurious. Convenience is the other remarkable change. We installed a 220 volt charger on the side of our garage, and every night, I plug in the car, and every morning, it’s got a “full tank of gas” to go wherever we want in the whole metro area. Never being “low” and never needing an extra 10 minutes for a gas station stop is a delightful, unexpected benefit to going electric. But did I mention that this is the best car I’ve ever owned? The “electric” part is great, but this is a car. And I like cars. It is fast. How fast? 0–60 in 6.3 seconds fast. But it feels even faster, because from the very first foot of acceleration, it’s already pulling hard, because electric cars have 100% of their torque from zero RPM, unlike any gasoline car. But how fast is 0–60 in 6.3 seconds, really? Here’s a brief history of my 0–60 times plus two comparables: 1988 BMW M5 [ice], 6.4 sec, $48K. The fastest sedan in the world at that time. 2004 Infiniti G35 [ice] 6.1 sec, $33K. 2007 Honda Civic Hybrid [ice]. 11.8 sec, $23.9K. Like watchin
