How Do The Chevy Bolt & Chevy Spark EV Battery Packs Compare To One Another?

[MINK]

GM has been selling the Spark EV model through the Chevrolet brand for a few years now. It’s obviously a compliance car for the Californian market, offered in somewhat limited quantities, but it was also a stepping stone to the Chevy Bolt. With the launch of the Bolt fast approaching, it seems that it may be an interesting exercise here to take a closer look at how the battery packs of the Spark EV and the Bolt stack up against one another.

Push EVs stimulated the idea and did the legwork, so we’re sharing that excellent comparison a bit more widely, with a bit of my own thoughts.

The most obvious, and one of the most important, distinctions between the two models’ battery packs is the shape and installation location — the Chevy Bolt utilizes a so-called “skateboard” design, whereby the battery pack is located under the floor, whereas the Spark EV is clearly more of a jerry-rigged solution.

Full article: https://cleantechnica.com/2016/09/03/chevy-bolt-chevy-spark-ev-battery-packs-compare-one-another/

 

[new2evs]

It would prove true that technology progresses only for the better

 

[stephen]

Chevy Bolt is way advanced than Spark EV.

 

[Aidan]

Technology has progressed very quickly in this area so hands down newer technology is better

 

[JimmYK]

The comparison is not even fair to any of those cars! It's an insult to Chevy Bolt and expects Spark to be more advanced than its time!

 

[SparkE]

Well, it's not surprising that the Bolt has better batteries than the Spark - it was designed years later. And the Bolt was designed from the get-go as a BEV, unlike the Spark, which was an existing gas vehicle before the EV was introduced (and after, as well since both gas & electric versions were sold simultaneously). The Spark used to be the Daewoo Matiz. Or rather, the Spark is the latest instantiation of what used to be the Matiz.

I leased a Spark EV rather than buying one, as I expected battery tech to evolve greatly. My 'tipping point' to buy a BEV is a range of about 150 miles - I plan on getting a Bolt (after it has been out a while and any rough edges smoothed over - either year 2 or 3 of production). I'm looking forward to seeing an actual production car in the hands of customers.