Chevrolet Bolt EV/EUV To End Production in November

Yes, I guess the battery is an orphan and has had a lot of teething issues. Hopefully, a Bolt with the Ultium battery might be in the plans. Big vehicles are so important in the market, that it is pretty low risk to abandon the Bolt EV. Even as a retired person, I find the Bolt EV to be a bit small for other than two people running around doing shopping, although I never had trouble camping and driving long distance in it, as long as there were only the two of us.
Its no wonder there are no Bolt EV and EUVs in dealers lots....
I was thinking about the Caddy, but the towing package does not seem to be available, so I am waiting to order one... if I ever do... but I would like something to tow my boat, but which does not have its own personal global warmer built-in.

 

It's a bit like Ford abandoning the Ranger pickup. It's unlikely that Ford will ever regain their market share in small trucks now that they have jumped back into that market segment after nearly 15 years of watching people buy Toyota Tacoma pickups instead of Ford Rangers. I think that our '23 Bolt EUV is a great little car -- it's almost too perfect! The car could use a bit more oomph in the DCFC department -- but otherwise it is a really great electric vehicle for a really great price.

 

I know some people locally that have Bolts, and they all like them, a lot. I don't get why so many people put them down, on forums. I guess they are not owners, and don't appreciate how good a deal the Bolt really is, incl the EUV. Pretty decent looking, too.

 

Bad press?

I guess maybe it’s because a Chevy Bolt isn’t a Tesla? It can’t do 0-60 in 3 seconds. Or charge up in 3.5 minutes at a Supercharger. Or fart. But it sure is roadworthy, easy to park, fun to drive, inexpensive to purchase and operate, adequate for occasional road trips, and it supports great 3rd party entertainment and navigation software via CarPlay and AA. The Chevy Bolt represents (in my opinion) what a nearly ideal EV should be.

 

The Bolt offers decent range, acceleration, and utility, but the $2 billion battery-fire debacle, the subsequent lengthy pause in production, and the long line of owners still waiting for a new battery all did significant damage to its reputation. If only GM had chosen a better battery supplier than LG Energy Solution, things might have been different. With America's obsession with crossovers and trucks, it's unlikely GM will be offering another small EV any time soon, which is sad.

 

From what I can tell, Chevy has plenty of customers for the Bolt, but profits are probably pretty slim. So the decision to close it out after this year makes logical business sense, but it also leaves a whopping hole in the market for under-$30,000 EVs. If Chevy won't step into that void, I hope someone does, and quickly.

 

Yes, the battery thing was big and bad.

But I think that GM is doing the right thing by replacing them on all Bolts for free, as far as the owner is concerned, and I applaud them for that. LG appears to be footing the bill for supplying the actual replacements, over $1B. There are a lot of batteries for them to produce so it’s taking LG a while to deliver, plus some batteries are being used by Chevy in new EV’s and EUV’s. I can certainly see why some Bolt owners are frustrated — but at least they will have a “new” car once it has the replacement battery installed for all intents and purposes.

 

My Kona EV had the same battery issues, that yes, caused a lot of anxiety with some owners. Not with me, though, as I knew the chances of fire on my vehicle were infinitesimally small after Hyundai added software to detect a fault early and provided charging guidelines to further reduce that risk. Eventually I got a new battery, which effectively set the odometer back to zero. My car was never out of service more than 1 day. Hyundai also provided us compensation for our troubles, I got a total $1000, some got more depending on when their batteries were replaced.

My Kona was a great EV, actually, and I really enjoyed owning it. I see the Bolt as a cheaper version of that same car, with similar range and charging speeds. And it has a surprisingly rich set of features, certainly all of the most important ones. And with a new battery, that car should last a long, long time.

 

Yes the Chevy Bolt EV/EUV is a great EV. We have a 2023 Kona Ultimate (very similar to the Bolt), we love it. Have had it 9 months now and have just under 40,000KM on it. Fun to drive, very efficient, comfy, costs pennies per KM, super reliable.
Too bad they are canceling the Bolt, they do have to turn a profit but entry level EV's are needed and it looks like the Kona and the Niro will continue at least. I do not have a ton of faith in GM actually ever get their act together though....lots of talk and promises but not much action.

 

The upcoming Chevy Equinox EV will become their entry-level EV, but a notch pricier than the Bolt: about #30K, they say, but haven't released final pricing. Assuming it's eligible for the full federal rebate, it will still be pretty affordable. It will start to be available in the fall, but apparently won't have the full model range available till next spring. I hope GM gets this one right, and that someone comes out with a less expensive entry-level model soon. I don't think Hyundai has said anything about pricing on the new Kona, and I hope the larger size won't mean a larger price.