DC fast charger

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rfguy

Member
Joined
Jul 29, 2017
Messages
7
I recently visited the local dealer and found a model that is loaded. The only option lacking is the DC fast charger plug. I asked the dealer if this is an upgrade that can be added later but they could not answer so I thought I would ask here. So that is my first question and the next is given we would be driving this car mostly local and long trips would be rare, how important is this? Thank you for a great forum site.

At this time I have not made an offer or commitment on this model.
 
No, there appears to be no way to install the DC fast charging option after the fact. If you were able to find a wrecked Bolt with a DC fast charger, I suppose it would be theoretically possible to transfer the parts, but then there's the issue of how to update the firmware which may also need to be changed.

So the simple answer is: if you want DC fast charging then buy a car that's equipped with it.
 
Your wife calls from her sisters home 270 miles away and needs you to come immediately because of a family emergency, but you got a great price on the Bolt EV without a DCFC input and your wife drove the gas vehicle! Which rental agency do you call for the rental vehicle?

It CANNOT be added later!
 
MichaelLAX said:
Your wife calls from her sisters home 270 miles away and needs you to come immediately because of a family emergency, but you got a great price on the Bolt EV without a DCFC input and your wife drove the gas vehicle! Which rental agency do you call for the rental vehicle?

It CANNOT be added later!

I'd call Avis

If she called and told me I need to bring 40 sheets of plywood I'd call a different rental company as opposed to regretting not buying a pickup truck.
 
sparkyps said:
MichaelLAX said:
Your wife calls from her sisters home 270 miles away and needs you to come immediately because of a family emergency, but you got a great price on the Bolt EV without a DCFC input and your wife drove the gas vehicle! Which rental agency do you call for the rental vehicle?

It CANNOT be added later!

I'd call Avis

If she called and told me I need to bring 40 sheets of plywood I'd call a different rental company as opposed to regretting not buying a pickup truck.
I am not sure your attempt at an analogy is helpful to the OP or funny as satire! :roll:

What am I missing?

Selling the Bolt EV, or any other long range EV, without a DCFC input port is nothing short of fraud!

The only reason it is NOT included in every Bolt EV is that GM's marketing department wanted to be able to sell it as a "$29,995 car after the $7,500 federal tax credit" and so the $700 DCFC inport port must be an immediately needed option for everybody!

Just like the "minority" GM franchise dealer who successfully sued GM for discrimination and won because they were offloading cars without air conditioning to his Florida dealership!!
 
MichaelLAX said:
sparkyps said:
MichaelLAX said:
Your wife calls from her sisters home 270 miles away and needs you to come immediately because of a family emergency, but you got a great price on the Bolt EV without a DCFC input and your wife drove the gas vehicle! Which rental agency do you call for the rental vehicle?

It CANNOT be added later!

I'd call Avis

If she called and told me I need to bring 40 sheets of plywood I'd call a different rental company as opposed to regretting not buying a pickup truck.
I am not sure your attempt at an analogy is helpful to the OP or funny as satire! :roll:

What am I missing?

Selling the Bolt EV, or any other long range EV, without a DCFC input port is nothing short of fraud!

The only reason it is NOT included in every Bolt EV is that GM's marketing department wanted to be able to sell it as a "$29,995 car after the $7,500 federal tax credit" and so the $700 DCFC inport port must be an immediately needed option for everybody!

Just like the "minority" GM franchise dealer who successfully sued GM for discrimination and won because they were offloading cars without air conditioning to his Florida dealership!!

I made it a point to get a DCFC in my Bolt.

I don't think oddball situations such as your wife being 270 miles away with your gas car are justification for getting a DCFC. Is it a reason to get a gasser because you might get home after driving 230 miles and get a call from your wife and your Bolt only has 8 miles of range left? Of course not. Nor are any other similar situations.

The reason to get a DCFC on a leased vehicle is if you anticipate making trips > 240 miles R/T and don't want to rent a car and don't have another vehicle to make the trip. For many people the $750 isn't worth it. For others it is. I certainly survived with an 83 mile Spark EV (with DCFC), I just used it according to its abilities. If you have a Bolt without a DCFC you'll do likewise.

I think a DCFC option is LESS important with the Bolt than with the Spark EV. Depending on where you live, it might be an utterly useless option.

Whether or not Chevy and dealers are properly explaining the option and making people aware that it isn't standard is something else. Selling them without the option isn't fraud.
 
sparkyps said:
I made it a point to get a DCFC in my Bolt....Whether or not Chevy and dealers are properly explaining the option and making people aware that it isn't standard is something else. Selling them without the option isn't fraud.
Fraud is in the mind of the beholder!

You were educated and new about the technology and "made it a point to get" one!

You are NOT the person we are talking about here!

How about this woman:

kathytrask said:
so, i ordered a chevy bolt for my husband for his birthday, i had given specifications to the dealership, i had even discussed with them how awesome i thought it was that it could charge X amount of miles while he was at work/or traveling and taking a long lunch break with Fast Charge...you think that would mean my car would come with that :(. but when the car was delivered to my house and after i signed papers and they drove off, we noticed that that car wasn't installed with the DC option in the car!! ugh! The dealership won't take the car back without some crazy restocking fee, etc, so needless to say we are stuck with 240V option only that takes 8-9 hours at night.

so, question is this. my husband has been driving it and now, fully charged it say 175 mile max! we've had it a week. it used to be 241?? How do we get this back up so he can go farther? can we get this back up? we are very new to the electric car world. His last car he had for 15 years so this is all very very new!

These are the people I am talking about...

This is not an obsoleted car like the Spark EV. This is a state of the art, long range Bolt EV being sold without a DCFC input port! There should be blinking red lights all over those cars with warnings with FULL disclosures about the dangers of buying one of those models!!

Selling a Bolt EV without the option without disclosure is fraud: pure and simple!!!
 
EldRick said:
Selling a Bolt EV without the option without disclosure is fraud: pure and simple!!!
Nonsense. Get off your high horse.
You're entitled to your opinion, not your insult; which by the way is the last resort of the insecure! :lol:
 
rfguy said:
I recently visited the local dealer and found a model that is loaded. The only option lacking is the DC fast charger plug. I asked the dealer if this is an upgrade that can be added later but they could not answer so I thought I would ask here. So that is my first question and the next is given we would be driving this car mostly local and long trips would be rare, how important is this? Thank you for a great forum site.

At this time I have not made an offer or commitment on this model.

Welcome to the forum!

DCFC is important...that is, if it's available in your area, and you're going to use it. If you're going to own the car (and not lease it), a Bolt equipped with DCFC may have higher resale value and/or may be easier to sell down the road. So with that in mind, is the extra $750 for the DCFC option worth it to you?

With that said, it's possible that some dealers may be discounting non-DCFC equipped Bolts beyond the $750 value of the option. So, if you are driving the car mostly local, and you have access to a second car for those rare long trips, it might make sense for you to pocket those savings.
 
What does DCFC cost to use?

It is pretty damn expensive!

The average cost is as follows:
Assume 30 minutes per session.
Assume $0.25 per kwh of charge.
Assume 4 miles (best case) per kwh.

Use it 1 time, cost is:
$750 + $5 charge for 20 kwh = $755 for 20 kwh
Cost is $9.44 per mile.

Use it 10 times, cost is:
$750 + $50 for 200 kwh = $800 for 200 kwh
Cost is $1.00 per mile.

Use it 20 times, cost is:
$750 + $100 for 400 kwh = $850 for 400 kwh
Cost is $0.531 per mile.

Use it 50 times, cost is:
$750 + $250 for 1000 kwh = $1000 for 1000 kwh
Cost is $0.25 per mile.
And you are really paying $1 per kwh of charge.

Use it 150 times ( 1 per week for 3 years ) cost is:
$750 + $750 for 3000 kwh = $1500 for 3000 kwh
Cost is $0.125 per mile.
And you are really paying $0.50 per kwh of charge.

DCFC is only a time saver.
DCFC is never a cost saver.

Unless it helps you avoid a tow. :lol:
 
oilerlord said:
rfguy said:
I recently visited the local dealer and found a model that is loaded. The only option lacking is the DC fast charger plug. I asked the dealer if this is an upgrade that can be added later but they could not answer so I thought I would ask here. So that is my first question and the next is given we would be driving this car mostly local and long trips would be rare, how important is this? Thank you for a great forum site.

At this time I have not made an offer or commitment on this model.

Welcome to the forum!

DCFC is important...that is, if it's available in your area, and you're going to use it. If you're going to own the car (and not lease it), a Bolt equipped with DCFC may have higher resale value and/or may be easier to sell down the road. So with that in mind, is the extra $750 for the DCFC option worth it to you?

With that said, it's possible that some dealers may be discounting non-DCFC equipped Bolts beyond the $750 value of the option. So, if you are driving the car mostly local, and you have access to a second car for those rare long trips, it might make sense for you to pocket those savings.
DISCLOSURE:

The author of this post owns a 2014 "compliance" EV, not a long range EV like the Bolt EV and has a fleet of other gas and diesel vehicles. He has no "skin" in this game! So when you make the mistake purchasing this vehicle with your dollars, you will have no recourse against him!
 
gpsman said:
What does DCFC cost to use?

It is pretty damn expensive!

The average cost is as follows:
Assume 30 minutes per session.
Assume $0.25 per kwh of charge.
Assume 4 miles (best case) per kwh.

Use it 1 time, cost is:
$750 + $5 charge for 20 kwh = $755 for 20 kwh
Cost is $9.44 per mile.

Use it 10 times, cost is:
$750 + $50 for 200 kwh = $800 for 200 kwh
Cost is $1.00 per mile.

Use it 20 times, cost is:
$750 + $100 for 400 kwh = $850 for 400 kwh
Cost is $0.531 per mile.

Use it 50 times, cost is:
$750 + $250 for 1000 kwh = $1000 for 1000 kwh
Cost is $0.25 per mile.
And you are really paying $1 per kwh of charge.

Use it 150 times ( 1 per week for 3 years ) cost is:
$750 + $750 for 3000 kwh = $1500 for 3000 kwh
Cost is $0.125 per mile.
And you are really paying $0.50 per kwh of charge.

DCFC is only a time saver.
DCFC is never a cost saver.

Unless it helps you avoid a tow. :lol:

If you're going through a cost exercise like this and assume a usage rate of $.25 then you should subtract your house usage rate of the top, you're not charging at home for free, the national average (America) is $.12
 
gpsman said:
What does DCFC cost to use?

It is pretty damn expensive!
...
This is SO off topic, but interesting!; can a moderator please move to a separate thread!
 
gpsman said:
What does DCFC cost to use?

It is pretty damn expensive!
Did you ever go to an airport for a flight and stay hungry instead of eating at the high priced food outlets at the terminals?

Did you ever go to a Major League Sporting event and stay hungry instead of eating at one of their high priced concession stands?

Did you ever go to a major live music concert and stay hungry instead of eating at their high priced concession stand?

When my EV is hungry, I am far from home and my only choice is a DCFC, I gladly pay the DCFC price!
 
EldRick said:
Selling a Bolt EV without the option without disclosure is fraud: pure and simple!!!
Nonsense. Get off your high horse.
Are you the same EldRick who over in the "seat discomfort" thread that SeanNelson referred me to, had this to say about Bolt EV purchasers who were dissatisfied with their seats:

EldRick said:
Check your lease and an attorney - Quickly! You may have three-day rights of rescission under federal law.
Which law school did you attend? I want to be sure to never recomend it to any prospective law students!!

"High horse??"

What's that saying about people who live in glass houses not throwing stones!?! hahahahaha

You are SO busted!!
 
I say again. Nonsense.
I was mistaken about the rescission - it does not apply to new cars.
That has nothing to do with your flaming assertion about fraud.
Selling a Bolt EV without the option without disclosure is fraud: pure and simple!!!
 
You are totally discredited on this topic! Your opinion is meaningless!

Everyone knows there is no 3 day right to rescind the sale of an automobile. Did you reimburse their attorneys fee?
 
Rights of rescission apply to used cars in certain states: do your own research.

"In California, for example, car dealers are required to inform consumers about Contract Cancellation Option Agreements for used cars costing less than $40,000. These agreements, which cost roughly $250 for a car listed at between $10,000 and $30,000, allow the buyer to return the vehicle within two days if they have a change of heart."

Your own inflammatory assertions about "fraud" demonstrate a regrettable lack of maturity.
 
EldRick said:
Rights of rescission apply to used cars in certain states: do your own research.

"In California, for example, car dealers are required to inform consumers about Contract Cancellation Option Agreements for used cars costing less than $40,000. These agreements, which cost roughly $250 for a car listed at between $10,000 and $30,000, allow the buyer to return the vehicle within two days if they have a change of heart."

Your own inflammatory assertions about "fraud" demonstrate a regrettable lack of maturity.
Oh, I'm sorry, this OP:
Kent Hill said:
The front seats are really awful.

My wife and I test drove the car last week for roughly 5 minutes and loved it. We came home in a leased LT.
The next day, 10 minutes into her first drive, my wife said "wow these seats are really uncomfortable" and 15 minutes in she was in pain. Both of us are not big ( 34 inch waists). There is a plastic railing underneath the seat just jams into your hip and makes driving anywhere more than 5 minutes, not a pleasurable experience. It doesn't hurt me so much , as long as i concentrate to sit in the middle of the seat, but comfortable it is certainly not. and why should have to concentrate to sit in the middle of the seat on a 40K car? Sucks because we love everything else about the car.

Now what do i do.... wonder if i can get out of the lease after 24 hours.
of which you were the first to reply was a USED CAR?

I must have missed that?!?

Thank you for your second attempt at name calling insults; since you can't seem to correctly stick to the issues and the facts!

Why don't you just quit while you are so far behind or maybe I will PM Mr. Hill and see if he has asked you to refund his attorneys fee!

NOTE: I notice you edited your 2:43pm message after the reply to make it sound more "sympathetic!"
 
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