![]() ![]() The potential market success of the Chevrolet Volt depends on its pricing, or whatever leasing plan the distributor and principal think up. Its running costs are also significantly lower if you charge it regularly, like a (auto)mobile phone. It might not be a full-blown electric car and its outright performance is nothing to write home about, but the Chevy Volt is definitely more fun to drive than your usual petrol-electric hybrid. The Chevrolet Volt is definitely more practical in the real world than a pure electric vehicle.įor Singaporeans who “everything also want”, the Volt’s powertrain provides a workable compromise until quick-charging stations become as common as parking aunties in HDB precincts. It’s the Energizer Bunny theory on wheels. But when one needs to drive across the Causeway to Kuala Lumpur or if there is no convenient power point with which to recharge the car, then this range-extender function could be a life saver. Of course, doing so on a daily basis will defeat the original purpose of owning a Volt. When the need arises, one can simply run the Volt as a petrol vehicle of sorts, with the gasoline engine boosting the batteries and basically keeping them running on empty. This is where the Chevrolet Volt’s petrol component comes into play. Most electric cars today can go a maximum range of 150 to 200 kilometres before they need a time-consuming recharge. While the Volt doesn’t offer the “kick in the backside” surge of the typical electric vehicle at low speeds, it does offer something no other production electric vehicle has at the moment – crucial extra range when the batteries run dry. I’m a big fan of electric vehicles, having tried the groundbreaking General Motors EV1 years ago in the US, as well as the Tesla Roadster Sport in Singapore. With the Volt driven enthusiastically, these batteries were depleted after only 47 kilometres or so, sending the vehicle into “extended range” mode.Īnd this is where I think the Volt shines brightest. The lithium-polymer batteries employed in the Volt were developed together with LG Chem and have an 8-year, 160,000km warranty. The crease in the wing mirrors, for instance, actually helps reduce drag, while the slight upturn in the boot lid contributes to a low drag coefficient of just 0.287.Įven the audio system is a weight-saving element – part of the Bose Energy Efficient Series, the Volt’s hi-fi is 40 per cent lighter and uses 50 per cent less energy than a conventional equivalent stereo. ![]() No aerodynamic details were overlooked during the car’s development. Garden hobbyists will like the Chevrolet Volt’s 300-litre liftback trunk, where plants and flowers can possibly sprout.Ĭhevy engineers on site explained that after many hours spent in the wind tunnel to achieve the best possible drag coefficient for the Volt, they concluded that the low-slung polyurethane lip was necessary. With 149bhp and 368Nm, the Volt is quite quick off the mark, dashing to 100km/h in 9 seconds flat, but don’t expect scintillating performance throughout. Quietly select D with the conventional-looking shift lever and off you go. The instrumentation then lights up, followed by an eerie silence. “Start” the car and it plays a cheesy tune, which sounds bizarrely like a Corvette cranking up. Imagine getting into the car first thing in the morning, with the batteries fully charged. Instead, it’s connected to a 55kW motor-generator that simultaneously charges the battery and powers the 149bhp electric motor.ĭepending on the state of charge, how heavy the throttle application is and which driving mode you’re in, the gasoline engine can come online to “improve” fuel economy at highway speeds or provide more juice to help the Volt climb up a steep incline.Īdmittedly, the actual technical algorithm behind the patented Voltec drive system was not explained in detail at the media test drive in Shanghai, but it’s a moot point for most drivers, because what’s most important is how the Volt drives. The powerplant is not directly connected to the drive wheels per se. #Chevy volt range on electric only fullThis should be enough for most Singaporeans to get to work and back.Įven if your weekday commute is a round trip of more than 60km, fret not, because the Volt’s 198kg of 16kWh batteries can be recharged from empty to full in less than four hours, using a normal wall socket!ĭon’t have a wall socket near your office parking lot? This is where the Volt’s 1.4-litre petrol engine comes in. #Chevy volt range on electric only driverUsing just its lithium-ion battery pack, the Volt has a real-world range of about 60 kilometres (the literature says 40-80km depending on the driver and his driving style). Chevrolet Volt’s cockpit has Cruze-derived bits, but they don’t detract from the high-tech feel. ![]()
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