Chevy Bolt EV Easily Makes a 165-Mile Trip

Posted on January 29, 2017 by stevegoesgreen

Not long ago, owning an EV meant you were strictly limited on how far afield you could roam. The typical 70 to 80 miles per charge was a real issue.

That’s why, when I heard the Chevrolet Bolt EV had an EPA range of 238 miles, I knew it was the only choice for me. I couldn’t afford a Tesla, but really needed decent range.

I have a particular reason–my granddaughters live about 80 miles away and I wanted to be able to go visit them in my new car without stopping to charge. So yesterday, nearly three weeks after taking delivery, I made the 165.6-mile round trip.

My driving experience since getting my Bolt EV gave me confidence that I could do it. The driving range display gives estimated range, with “Max” and “Min” brackets above and below it, and the estimate appeared to be close to my actual mileage. But you never know until you try.

I filled my battery up on the Level 2 ChargePoint charger at work on Friday, and topped it off with my little 120-volt charger at home on Friday night. On Saturday, just before we left, the display looked like this:

Note: That 203-mile figure is with the climate control on. With it off, the number would be about 10 miles higher.

We headed north and plugged in my wife’s iPhone to use Apple CarPlay to enjoy the James Taylor Greatest Hits album No. 1. It provided a soothing experience for a projected hour and a half on the road. I limited myself to 65 mph on the mostly freeway trip. I used the cruise control part of the time, and drove in Low, too. Low, with its greater brake regeneration, adds about 5 percent to the total.

We encountered some traffic in the MacArthur Maze in Oakland and around Petaluma (as usual), and inched along for a little while. Those two sections of the trip regenerated more energy than flying along unobstructed, and made the trip take a little longer. But I was encouraged that as we made progress, the projected range was staying higher than I expected it would.

After we pulled up in front of my son and daughter-in-law’s house, I examined the gauge:

At an hour and a half, we had driven 82.8 miles, but the range indicator only moved from 203 to 144–or 59 miles. We had nearly three quarters of the battery charge left. That was fantastic!

We spent about four and a half hours with the family, and after a pleasant meal and much animated conversation and some hugs, we climbed back into the Bolt EV and headed home. I wasn’t worried about running out of charge on the way home.

This time, it was later, and traffic flowed steadily at 65 mph the whole way. That meant less opportunity to regenerate electricity, and we took more of a hit in the range. The final screen looked like this (darker because it was nighttime when we arrived home).

This time, the 82.8 miles reduced the range by 91 miles–about 50 percent more than the trip up there–but not that far off from the actual traveled distance. We had less recharging ability, but saved a quarter of an hour of road time. 53 miles was a fine cushion. Our 165-mile trip showed up as 150 miles of range used. The Bolt EV passed my test.

The silence of the motor and smooth ride made our trip pleasant, the upgraded Bose stereo and Apple CarPlay kept us entertained, and I now know my Bolt EV will do the job!

Loading up my Bolt EV!

Posted on January 19, 2017 by stevegoesgreen

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So far, most of my trips in my Bolt EV‘s first week and a half have been commuting solo to work and back home and running various errands around town. Yeah, my wife and I went out to brunch once. But today, for work, I filled my car with three colleagues and an enormous suitcase to go to a meeting a half hour away.

Interestingly, the Bolt EV didn’t seem to handle differently with the additional several hundred pounds aboard. And, everyone seemed to be pretty comfortable. Further, with the quiet of the EV powertrain, conversations were easy to follow between the front and the back rows.

As for the suitcase, I just removed the delicate privacy panel and dropped it in. I didn’t even need to remove the false floor panel to accommodate it. Piece of cake.

Why I’m Driving an EV

Posted on January 18, 2017 by stevegoesgreen

Today’s news: 2016 was the hottest year on record, for the third year in a row.

Driving electric is only one small step, not the whole answer, but as the earth continues to heat up, we need to do whatever we can to make a difference.

Over time, as our power plants all use renewable energy, every EV will become cleaner. And when we learn to consume less, that’ll make a difference, too.

Meanwhile, the arrival of climate deniers in our new president’s cabinet is not going to help us cool down. Do what you can, now.

Busy Bolt EV Weekend–Plenty of Juice

Posted on January 16, 2017 by stevegoesgreen

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I picked up my Bolt EV last Sunday, but really just drove it home in the rain. I’ve commuted all week, but this was the first weekend to really stretch out. And the weather was dry. (Above: 2017 Bolt with 1965 Eichler house. I lived there as a teenager).

I filled up my battery on the ChargePoint Level 2 chargers at work on Friday, then drove home. With 177 miles available (middle number on the left, I felt confident.

Saturday morning was local errands–the auto supply store for new car washing tools, the florist, and the health food store. Then, I took my wife out to lunch. Normally, we park right behind the restaurant, but this time, we parked three blocks away so I could use the charger. I didn’t mind–it added steps for my Fitbit–one of the many things I plug in to charge these days.

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It was Blink Network station, and I was unhappy to find that my card didn’t work! It has been a while, I guess. I ended up using the guest method, with its convoluted method of sending you a code, but I had to pay Guest prices. I later found out that if I used the app on my iPhone (which I already had) I could have done the same procedure, but gotten the member rate. I ordered a new card, just in case.

The charge pushed me up to 184 miles. At the Blink charger, I met Wayne, a Leaf owner who was fascinated by my Bolt EV. Finally – an eager person to talk to. Of course that’s what we early owners want, isn’t it?

Next, I drove 33 miles eastward to visit an old friend who was having an 80th birthday celebration. I kept it to 65 mph and drove mostly on the freeway. The range dropped 24 for the 33-mile trip.

After that, I drove south for about a half hour to hear my friend and his daughter play some Jazz. That trip flew by, too, with the Bolt EV at night showing off its colorful screens and cruising near silently down the freeway. After the show, I drove home. My 94-mile trip in the afternoon and evening showed a 91-mile change in the range. This is good to know, since I plan to make other freeway trips, and the numbers are pretty accurate so far.

I put my car on the slow charger at home, since my new level 2 home charger isn’t installed yet. But, it didn’t add more than about 25 miles overnight. I learned today from one of my new friends on the Chevy Bolt EV Owners Group Facebook page that I need to move my charging amps from 8 to 12. That’s supposed to double the charge. I did it, so we’ll see! I’ve been following the progress on my MyChevrolet app.

Sunday’s adventure included my first use of Apple Car Play. It works wonderfully, with big, bright screens for the navigation I needed and for playing music from Spotify. I also sent a hands-free text message using Siri. Plugging in my phone and tucking it under the armrest makes it an out-of-sight out-of-mind experience. I did notice that the screen in the car allowed a lot of functions, including searching for types of destinations, but didn’t let me enter a specific address. For that, I had to use the phone itself–presumably while parked, before starting out. Must be a safety feature.

On the way home, I stopped at Whole Foods, thinking I’d hang out and use their fast EVgo quick charger. But there was a car parked there, so I pulled into the only Level 2 spot there was.

I walked over to look at the quick charger. I discovered that some jerk had parked his white second-gen Volt in the spot–but wasn’t using the charger! How RUDE. I had about 50 miles left, so it wasn’t an emergency.

As I pondered this state of affairs, a guy pulled up in a black Fiat 500e, hoping to charge up. He parked in a non-EV space and came over. He’d only had his car for a week (like me), but had no EV experience. He’d set the Fiat to charge overnight but the car didn’t cooperate, for some reason. In any case, 500e’s don’t have a quick charge socket, so he wanted a Level 2 slot. I decided that he needed it more than I did, so I told him to pull around and gave him my spot. I felt I had to make up for the goofball who parked in the Quick Charge spot without using it.

After making a small indentation in the false floor panel in the rear area a couple days ago, I decided to protect the entire cargo area. I bought a workout pad at Big 5 for $19.95 and cut it into shape for my hatch area (with seats folded down). Now I can carry my musical gear without damaging the surface. Besides smelling a little odd, it did a great job.

Wrapping up this rambling monologue, I had no problem with range–my biggest goal with the Bolt–and enjoyed lots of very pleasant driving all weekend. I used all three major charging companies in the S.F. Bay Area, and my house, too.

The Bolt EV is turning out to be everything I’d hoped for. My only regret is that I didn’t get around to washing it yet.

Fun with the Tesla Model X

Posted on January 12, 2017 by stevegoesgreen

I’ve wanted to spend some quality time with a Tesla for a long while. Sadly, Elon & Company don’t hand out their electronic keys to just anyone, so I didn’t get any significant seat time until my good buddy and colleague Rob K generously lent me his recently acquired bright white Tesla Model X P100D for half a day.

The Model X stands tall and sits wide, making a big impression. The shape is nicely rounded, and while the rear lamps seem almost generic, the nose, with its pert little pout and no grille, is still a little emotionless to me.

After sending the falcon-wing doors slowly upward and removing the unnecessary child seat from the middle row, Rob attempted to show me the latest holiday Easter egg Tesla provided. Sadly, the car didn’t respond, but I got to see an amazing video of lights flashing and doors wagging on Rob’s phone. Because Tesla can update your software any old time, changes in displays and vehicle functionality can occur regularly. I did learn that Tesla will warn you it’s coming, so you can stop and not drive the car while it’s going on—a safety precaution.

We chatted about the ingenious Matchbox car sized Model X key, which locks, unlocks, opens, or closes the area on the model you touch.

With a little simple guidance on the controls, Rob sent me off. My goal was to ride through the local curvy roads, and hit the freeway, and head south to my see my other friend, Michael C, with whom I’d have a relaxing lunch. Then I’d take him on a ride so he could sample the X too.

The X feels like a room on wheels, with seemly acres between you and the opposite side door. The surfaces wear real carbon fiber, leather, suede, and high quality plastic. The simple fold of the interior door grip is kind of a Scandinavian Design touch.

The windshield is humongous, reaching way up overhead. Tinting keeps you from getting fried, but what about sun visors? Tesla folds them in half lengthwise and tucks them up next to the windshield pillar. They attach magnetically. When you need sun protection, you pull it out and position it where the sun is. That may be in the center of the glass in front of you or at some other angle—you decide. It was still a habit to reach for it and be disappointed—but I settled in after a while.

The controls are not too hard to figure out. The shifter feels familiar in a modern German sedan way. Steering is smooth and assisted, and the electric motor is nearly silent, so moving out at a light is like asking the magic carpet to please hurry along. I noticed aggressive regenerative braking, so that you can essentially do “one pedal” driving. The brake pedal is a nice place to rest your foot when you’re sitting at a light.

Much has been made of Tesla’s enormous 17 -inch capacitive touch screen—sitting there like a huge iPad—but it’s not just a sea of undifferentiated icons. The stuff that fills an ordinary 7- or 8-inch screen becomes the top half of a screen twice that size. The climate controls, looking clean and logical, are arrayed along the bottom. I saw mostly audio settings and the navigation map and instructions sharing the remaining real estate. So, no squinting required. When I requested directions—using voice commands—the system misunderstood the name I gave, but got it right the second time.

When you request a map, it fills the ENTIRE panel, so it’s easy to follow. The narration was completely familiar.

The combined 532 horsepower from the front and rear electric motors, and awesome 713 lb.-ft. of torque propel the 5,594-pound Model X along like you’re being launched out of a slingshot, and that’s not even including the expensive Ludicrous mode. Car and Driver clocked a 3.3-second zero-to-60 time.

With the electric motor taking up little space up front, the Model X offers a “frunk” to hold some smallish things.

I decided I’d better visit one of the famous Tesla Superchargers. So, I asked for directions to the nearest one using the voice button. I was directed a few miles away, to the lot at the Computer History Museum. I saw a collection of mixed Teslas parked there, along with something else—a waiting line. Mike, the patient attendant, said that this was one of the busiest Supercharger locations, and lines were normal. I think that some of the more remote locations would be easier to simply pull into. Because I had plenty of charge, I decided that I could wait for next time to sample the charging experience.

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I got a chance to sample the car’s semiautonomous driving skills. It’s stone simple to operate. Just pull the little cruise control stalk twice and a blue steering wheel icon pops up on your screen and the car stays in the center of its lane, follows the curves of the road, and stops safely behind the car ahead.

You’re not supposed to let go of the steering wheel, although you can. But after a few seconds, the perimeter of the instrument panel flashes and a message pops up – Put Your Hands on the Wheel! We’ll be having no lawsuits here, thank you very much. I did ride a few times with my hands on my knees and it felt odd but safe. I’m sure the full autonomy mode will seem like no big deal when it arrives—probably sooner than you think.

When I arrived at my lunch destination, I found a place around the corner and parked. Then, I wondered how I was supposed to turn the car off and lock it. After searching fruitlessly for the “start” button, I phoned Rob. He said, “Just put it in park. When you step out of the car and walk away, the doors will close automatically and the car will lock. Who would have thought of that? It goes against my 47 years of dutifully locking my car every time I leave it. When you walk up to the car, with your key in your pocket, the doors pop open a little, swinging fully open when you draw near.

Those expensive, trouble-prone, but awesome rear falcon-wing doors are fun. I opened and closed them with the door switches. All the doors open and close on their own with just a hum and a gentle electric pull. You could get used to this.

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The big audio half of the panel temped me to sample things I don’t normally listen to. Rob mysteriously didn’t have my favorite—SiriusXM Radio—hooked up, but I touched an icon to hear a podcast about porta potty maintenance and some unfamiliar musical selections on the Tesla Top 20 Music channel.

The biggest surprise for me was that after a few minutes, I felt relaxed and at home in the Model X. It’s so pleasant and the electronics work so simply and subtly, that I wanted to just park it and hang out, like a relaxing little hotel room. The driving experience, especially in a P100D model, is super brisk, but the exclusive amenities are what make this a six-figure car. See the website for details.

My Chevy Bolt EV – Day 3

Posted on January 11, 2017 by stevegoesgreen

I don’t think the sun has come out yet on me and my Bolt EV, but I’ve enjoyed motoring around in it anyway.

I’m used to adjusting to a new car every week, so this one is no different–except that it’s staying with me for three years. I got my phone hooked up at the dealership, so that was easy. Now, I’ve got my favorite FM and SiriusXM stations all set up on the audio screen. I’m using the little up/down paddles on the left side of the steering wheel to move between them. I’m a big fan of controls you can operate without looking. This is the best system I’ve had since Chrysler/Jeep/Fiat’s system on the back of the steering wheel.

That wheel in the Bolt, by the way, has controls all over it, as it should, and it’s nice and fat and the leather wrapping feels comfortable in my hands. Like some of the interior working areas, it’s dark gray, but the rest of the interior is light gray and white, so it’s airy and pleasant in there, even with rain outside.

I’ve charged the car up to full now. It read like this today, with the climate control turned off, getting about 10 more miles of range.

Of course, this is an approximation, but the range shows that with careful driving, achieving what the EPA got in its tests is a reasonable possibility. The Bolt EV shows the estimated range based on your driving (only 106 miles on my car so far, so not much to go on). The Max and Min are what’s possible. While driving home today, I had the Max up to 286 miles–thanks to some sloggy stop-and-go in the rain.

I’ve tried out all three of the versions of the instrument panel. This is the Enhanced one, with more information on the sides. There are two others, Classic and Modern. Classic has the least detail. The Modern one uses a little ball on the right side. Keeping it centered makes you drive more efficiently. The Enhanced panel shows if you’re using or regenerating power–a typical, and useful stat to have in an EV.

I’ve noticed that I’m comfortable in the tall, firm, seats, but they are a little firmer than most others I’ve experienced in my hundreds of test cars. Since the car has a firm suspension and the tires are highly inflated, it’s already a firm ride. But that makes the car feel responsive and sporty–up to a point. We’ll see how the chairs feel during longer trips–although I doubt if I’ll ever spend five hours straight in the car unless I know I can charge it up on the other end of that trip.

With all this rain, I’ve seen a lot of my wipers. They are the kind that are mounted on the outer ends of the windshield area and cross each other. This leaves a little “v” of uncleared window in the upper middle, but the mirror and the cameras take that up anyway. They clear almost to the windshield pillars, so that’s great. I’ve used them in the standard two settings and a variety of intermittent settings–and the occasional mist cycle. Totally standard.

I carried my upright bass in the car tonight. It worked perfectly, as I expected. I removed the feather-light cargo cover and flipped down the seats. With the hard panel in place in the back, I had a nice, flat surface for the bass. The scroll lay on the center armrest. Perfect. My fellow orchestra member has ordered her own Bolt EV–in the same color–so she was very excited to see mine tonight.

That’s all for now–but there’ll be much more. I’ve got more screens to view, for example (although I’ve already gotten to know about the Energy ones).

My Chevy Bolt EV is Finally Here!

Posted on January 9, 2017 by stevegoesgreen

I ordered my Bolt EV on October 11, 2016. Today, January 8, 2017, I picked it up and drove it home in the rain. A little water wasn’t going to stop me from getting my blue baby.

Sometimes, when you get something you’ve been waiting for, there’s a letdown, but today things went fine and turned out exactly as I hoped they would. And thanks to Don Mays and the folks at Boardwalk Chevrolet in Redwood City, it was painless, too, although I was there for over three hours.

It’s a funny story, really. On Friday, I took my 1993 Plymouth van to the junkyard to be crushed for California’s old gas car buyback program. You can read about it here. On the way home, I got a call from Don, my Chevy salesman, letting me know that he wasn’t exactly sure when the Bolt would land at the dealership–but it would be soon. I had been hoping that by finally getting rid of my ancient ride, I’d clear cosmic space in the universe for the Bolt. And–it turned out I was right. At around 4 p.m. Friday I got the call. The truck carrying my car had just arrived (it’s one of those blue ones).

I knew that Sunday was going to be stormy, but we got up and waited for the phone call. At 11:12 a.m., just after the dealership opened, Don called and said my car was ready for pickup. So off we went–my wife kindly offered to drive me over.

When we arrived, we saw two Kinetic Blue Bolts in front. I checked the window sticker and identified mine. It was on the charger. Apparently, when they brought it over from the service area it had just 90 miles on the battery–not full–but it gathered some more while it sat there waiting for us.

Of course, there’s paperwork to do when you lease a car, but it was easy enough. Interestingly, they ask you to sign an agreement regarding whether to mount a front license plate bracket or not. Apparently this is a big deal to Corvette buyers (who don’t want the holes drilled). I personally expect to wear my plates like the law requires, so I just said, “sure.”

The lease process was straightforward. They give you a $2,500 “lease cash” payment, and then take off the Federal $7,500 off the lease price (since I’m not the buyer). You can request what you want the monthly payment to be and how much you want to put down to get it. As it turns out, I had planned to put down a substantial cash amount to lower the monthly payment. I ended up giving them $9,000 ($10,000 minus my $1,000 deposit) and ended up with a $335 a month payment, including taxes. Of course, there’s no January payment–it’s included. I’ll be receiving a $2,500 rebate from the State of California (eventually), and I’m getting $1,000 from junking the van, so it’s not as bad as it sounds.

Don brought my dripping wet car into the dealership so we could get pictures (like the one at the top). The car was nicely prepped–shiny and clean. The interior was spotless and with just 3 miles on the odometer. There were even a few pieces of protective plastic still on the door handles. I’ve smelled a lot of new cars as a journalist, but this is the “freshest” of them all so far.

I’m glad I chose the lighter interior. All cars receive the white band across the dash and onto the doors, and white console trim, but mine is light gray on the doors and light gray and white on the leather seats, so it feels bright and airy in there. The other choice is dark gray and light gray. Here’s a cool design element–at night, a blue line outlines the lower dash.

New cars have a lot of electronics in them, and EVs especially require some explanation. I sat in the car while Don showed me some features. While he installed my temporary registration and removed my window sticker, I set up my OnStar account–a GM benefit for safety and turn-by-turn directions, among other things. The SiriusXM radio came right on, as you’d expect.

The Bolt EV has bright, colorful displays in the instrument panel and dash center, so it’s easy to know what’s going on. They put on a little video celebration when you first touch the glowing Start button. Then, the screens appear. They are certainly more interesting to look at than the Ford Sync3 system, which works fine but is more of a monochrome blue. The instrument panel has a large digital speedometer, and the slim typeface is quite stylish.

The steering wheel has some controls on the back, like Chrysler/Fiat products, with volume on the right. You can select audio presets on the left side of the wheel. The front of the right side of the wheel has a set of arrows to make selections from a complex menu of inforation and settings, too.

The back of the left side of the steering wheel contains a paddle to initiate regenerative braking–kind of like putting your foot on the brake. This can add to your range and give your foot a rest.

When the lease process was done, I pulled away, and everything felt right. I cruised along the freeway and through the city of Hayward on my way home. I then took my new car on a couple of errands around town. Nobody noticed it, as far as I can tell, but it was dark and rainy out there.

So, my new Bolt EV is finally parked in my driveway, and my adventure has begun. Stay tuned.

Flashback: Fiat 500e Video Review from Last Year

Posted on January 8, 2017 by stevegoesgreen

On the eve of the arrival of my long-awaited Chevrolet Bolt EV, here’s the finished version of a video review I did on the Fiat 500e EV last April. Unlike my normal one-week test period, I got a three-month loan of this cute little all-electric car. Thanks again, Scott Brown of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.

Little did I know when I got my Fiat test car on January 19, 2016 that a year later I’d be starting a new, longer-term EV adventure. But driving this car for three months gave me an appetite for gasoline-free motoring. I named the little blue hatchback Fidelio, and he was a faithful ride.

There are lots of posts on Fidelio on this blog from January through April 2016 to read. Enjoy my wrap-up in this video.

Farewell to My Old Plymouth Van

Posted on January 3, 2017 by stevegoesgreen

To make way for my brand new, all-electric Chevrolet Bolt EV, I’m sending my old reliable standby car to the crusher as part of California’s Vehicle Buy Back Program. Yes, my 1993 Plymouth Voyager is not long for this world.

I’m not really sad about it, but I do feel a little twinge of nostalgia. My older son drove this car in college, and it was his mom’s and stepdad’s family car before that. I have all the records to prove it was purchased brand new with 43 miles on it on April 30, 1993. They took good care of it so I could neglect it and it would still run fine in 2017.

Of course, the Bolt EV is a great upgrade for me–tomorrow’s technology in place of yesterday’s, with all of the latest safety, entertainment, convenience and planet-preserving features. I’ll be cruising in the 2017 Motor Trend Car of the Year–the 2017 Green Car of the Year, and likely the North American Car of the Year (we’ll find out in the next few days).

But this dirt cheap old van doesn’t really deserve to die. As long as I drive it once in a while to keep the battery charged, put in a few gallons of gas and add air to the tires, it’s a fine fill-in car for when my upright bass won’t fit in the test Mazda Miata. It was invaluable the time I needed to haul a 4 x 4-foot oil painting from the gallery to my living room. Registration is about as cheap as it gets and insurance costs are negligible.

As someone who’s always testing a new car, for me to drive around in a 23-year-0ld minivan with a rusted roof and hood and visible spiderwebs on the mirror supports is a different experience. Nobody smiles at you at the traffic light. I feel like Jed Clampett on the Beverly Hillbillies.

But despite its neglected exterior, the metallic blue van, with only 92,000 miles on it, is actually pretty pleasant inside. Sure there are some stains on the rugs, but the tall, chairlike front buckets are very comfortable in blue plush cloth. The look is 1990s utilitarian, but it seems appropriate here. The bulky pull-out cupholders, the temperature sliders on the climate system, the tiny buttons on the aftermarket FM radio. And there’s room for seven people!

The 3.3-liter V6 under the hood of this Sport model hums contentedly when you press the accelerator–it doesn’t buzz like a four-cylinder. The low window line, compared to today’s tall crossovers, provides a panoramic view of traffic around you.

As an SE model, my Voyager has a leather steering wheel – and check out that classic set of full gauges (working oil pressure and battery charge meters on top)! Airbags were still in their early stages, so the pads are big, too. Like those little horn buttons in thumb position?

My Sport Wagon shows off its subtly styled alloy wheels and high-profile tires (yeah, the rims aren’t big or fancy, but they ain’t hubcaps, either).

I took my van out for a few errands today. It zipped along just like usual. You can’t see the rust from this angle. The paint on the vertical surfaces is actually pretty decent.

Colorful bumper stickers date from my son’s college days. I’ve enjoyed retaining them on my car.

This is a second-generation Chrysler Corporation minivan, an enhanced version of the original ’84 model. Chrysler invented the minivan in the early 1980s and dominated the field for years. Now, Toyota and Honda do. But, of course, today is also the era of the crossover SUV, so minivans are less hip, anyway. Although, as it turns out, the next “cool” minivan is the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid–my car’s descendant–which is the first of its kind.

But it’s time to move on. Sacrificing our funky, high-polluting old cars is what we need to do en masse to cut CO2 to moderate the effects of climate change. I know that sacrificing an old gas burner for an EV will make a very tiny impact, but we need to do it everywhere. And we need to have clean power plants, too. And we need to share rides. And we need to do a lot of other things. But now, it’s time to say goodbye to an old friend, and welcome a new one.

Bill Mattos, One of the First Three Bolt Owners

Posted on January 2, 2017 by stevegoesgreen

There’s a lot of excitement over Chevrolet’s award-winning new Bolt EV. Chevrolet promised to begin deliveries in December of 2016, and on December 13, in Fremont, California, three lucky customers drove their Bolts home. One of them was Bill Mattos, a retired law enforcement officer, who happens to live right there in town.

It turns out that Bill has been an EV enthusiast for a long time, since he got a rare opportunity to drive GM’s EV1 back in 1999.

“I was taking my Saturn to the dealership and saw this strange-looking car plugged in there,” said Bill. “It was the EV1. They let me drive it and we burned up a lot of electrons. I was blown away.”

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Bill couldn’t buy or lease one—the waiting list was long, and GM notoriously cancelled the EV1 program—but he decided then that as soon as GM offered another EV, he’d be one of the first people to get one.

He got his chance when the diminutive Chevrolet Spark EV came out.

“I really liked the Spark’s acceleration, and it was easy to get in and out of,” Bill said. “But there was the 85-mile range, and while I enjoyed riding in the HOV lane, I sometimes felt a little intimidated by the big cars.”

Bill’s next EV was the larger Chevrolet Volt—a hybrid. He got the second-generation 2016 model. But not long after, he read about the upcoming all-electric Bolt and got excited.

“It sounded like a Spark on steroids,” he said. “I read everything I could find about it.”

And, Bill told the folks at Fremont Chevrolet to let him know immediately when they started taking orders so he could be the first one on the list. And that’s just what they did. On October 2, Bill drove down to Fremont Chevrolet and placed his order.

As it turns out, Fremont Chevrolet is the top EV seller in the Bay Area (and Fremont also happens to be where EV rival Tesla’s plant is located). So, when GM decided to deliver the first three Bolts there, Bill got a call to come on down and pick up his car. The dealership sent a car for him, since he would be driving his Bolt home.

“They had a whole lot of Bolts there, but most were going to other dealers for demo cars,” said Bill. “I originally ordered a silver one, but since I was getting to be first in line, I chose the red one, which included the fast charge port.”

The dignitaries presented Bill with his car, showed him how the features worked, and he was on his way. (Photo courtesy of Fremont Chevrolet. Bill Mattos, left, with Ron Meier, Chevrolet Western Regional Manager.)

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Bill really likes the car so far.

“It feels bigger inside than it looks on the outside, and it’s easy to get in and out of,” he says. “And the acceleration is great, although all EVs have that.”

Bill likes the ergonomics of the new Bolt, and how, with its 238-mile range, he doesn’t have to plug it in every night.

He’s had a few challenges using the new displays, but Bill knows it’s just an initial adjustment—and part of being an EV pioneer.

If you’re in the Fremont area and have a hankering for a new Bolt, contact Kurt Mietz, Fleet and Commercial Specialist, at Fremont Chevrolet. Call 650-766-7777 or email to: kurtm@cacargroup.com.

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Monthly Archives: January 2017