Skip to main content

Chevrolet Bolt- Cheaper Than $30,000 But Is It Worth It?

The Chevrolet Bolt has high hopes and is ready for a fierce competition with the Tesla Model 3. However, should you put that gas pump down and pick up that charger right now?
Chevy Bolt

The Chevrolet Bolt, GM's answer to Tesla, just announced that it's new electric vehicle will cost $37,495. However, a federal tax break of $7,500 would drop the cars price to $29,995, making it one of the cheapest electric vehicles that a new car buyer could buy.

GM claims that the Chevrolet Bolt has a driving range of 238 miles on a single charge, and features 200 HP and 266 lb/ft of torque, along with a 102 inch wheelbase measuring out about 160 inches. In my opinion, that's not bad for a little electric car. GM even has its own website to compare your driving habits with the Bolt, and shows estimated savings by buying a Bolt. Clearly, the car is being marketed very hard.

General Motors hasn't revealed how many orders there are for the new Bolt, but they have mentioned that there are interests for corporate and government fleets. Not to mention, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak said on Facebook that he planned to buy one. Keep in mind, however, that electric car sales make up less than 1 percent of the total number of cars sold in the United States.

As mentioned earlier, GM is releasing this car in hopes of competing with the latest Tesla, the Model 3. The Tesla Model 3 is the latest automobile to be designed by Tesla and is expected to be released by years end. The Model 3 is going to be priced around $35,000 and Tesla has already received well over 100,000 pre-orders. Clearly a large crowd of people can't wait to get their hands on this car.

Personally, I feel as though electric cars need more work before I would drive one. I would love to see a high-performance version of an electric car, or even something with more "sport" to it. I've always mocked those little cars, but the electric cars of today are changing for the better. It excites me to see this happening, and I can't wait to see what the future holds.

Electric Vehicle News and Reviews
News Opinion
Chevrolet

Comments

Glenn (not verified)    September 22, 2016 - 9:11AM

Permalink

This strange article is short on facts and poorly worded. Mistakes and omissions abound.

"...vehicle will cost $37,495... a federal tax break of $7,500 would drop the cars price to $29,995, making it one of the cheapest electric vehicles that a new car buyer could buy"
Nissan Leaf, Focus EV, Smart fortwo ED, Mitsu iMiev, Golf EV all start under $30k BEFORE $7500 incentive. Also, -- *car's* price

"General Motors hasn't revealed how many orders there are for the new Bolt..."
That might be because they aren't officially taking orders yet.

"The Tesla Model 3 is... expected to be released by years end."
Correct, if you mean end of 2017. If it's released on time. Also, -- *year's* end

"...Tesla has already received well over 100,000 pre-orders."
Correct if you mean close to 400,000. It's like saying that most people are well over 4 years old when they graduate from high school.

"I would love to see a high-performance version of an electric car..."
Does 0-60 in 2.5 seconds count? I invite you to visit tesla.com or perhaps youtube.

"I've always mocked those little cars..."
We do tend to mock things that we don't understand and know little about.

"...electric cars of today are changing for the better."
correct.

Charlotte Omoto (not verified)    September 27, 2016 - 2:35AM

Permalink

I'm sorry about the negative tone, too, but the corrections in the comment are accurate. Telsa has ~400,000 reservations and Chevy is not taking any reservations. In fact, a major Chevy dealer in S Cal, a prime area for Bolt sales said that they won't get one for sale until 2018. Any all electric car, Nissan Leaf or others have a pretty good acceleration from 0-30 that is noticeable to those who haven't driven an electric car. And now pre-owned Nissan Leafs are VERY inexpensive. I've seen those with less than 20,000 miles for ~$15,000!

Brad (not verified)    September 22, 2016 - 11:04PM

Permalink

Hey Zach,

Thanks for the article! :) Now, before I start, I want you to know that I'm not knocking you, in the least. Or this article post. I'm knocking GM. There are three major car manufacturers in the plug-in electric car space. Tesla, GM, and Nissan. The rest are merely biding their time (except maybe BMW). All three came in early, and really invested in the technology to make a great electric car available world wide. Out of those three, GM really has the complete electrified line up. They have the best plug-in hybrid car in the world in the Volt and they now are about to launch the best electric car in the world that's not a Telsa. But they have to advertise the heck out of this new Chevy Bolt car. Like all their other gas models. If they care at all about electrification of their Chevy brand they have to spend the money and make clever and fun adds that normal people will understand and love. If they just make a web site and create an internet ad campaign that tech geeks might enjoy then they're going to ostracize the car into relative obscurity like the Chevy Volt. Which is an amazing car that they just don't care about. This new Chevy Bolt is a new opportunity for GM to shout to the world that they finally get it. That electric cars are awesome. If they don't, the car will fade away from the public eye, and no one will care about it. No matter how great the car is. That will open the door for Tesla, their flashy new Model 3 car, and name recognition to change the game all over again.

GM can afford to allow the Bolt to fail, but the Bolt is the future. Like it or not, and it's time for GM to finally get behind an awesome electric product.