sgt1372
Well-known member
Instead of burying this extensive review in another thread, I decided to post this "estimated 150" mile review of my recent driving and charging experience with my Bolt LT as a separate thread. I hope people will find it informative and useful.
While I swore elsewhere in this forum that I would NEVER drive my Bolt into the City (of San Francisco) from my home in the far East Bay, I actually did so yesterday. The reasons were varied but the weather and other conditions made the choice of my Bolt over the other 4 vehicles that I own the best of choice for the day.
It was also an opportunity to actually determine how far I could drive the Bolt on my normal route into the City driving the way I like to drive – like I stole it --- which is very aggressively on the freeway, where I typically cruise at 75-80 but will hit speeds of 85 to the speed limiter at 93 in order to pass and/or get around heavy traffic. On the other hand, on City streets, I am mindful of the congestion and traffic and drive within the limits of those conditions.
First, I’d like to say how much I love the way the Bolt accelerates and how nimble its handling is on the road. I know what driving a FAST well handling car is like. I use to ride motorcycles – very fast ones. My BMW is motorcycle fast (not as fast as some other cars but definitely fast) and handles extremely well. I also have driven faster and better handling cars as a member of a local sports car club called Club Sportiva.
In any event, the Bolt is QUICK. Hit the sport mode button and nail the accelerator and you’ll be gone before any other car knows it. You won't win any races but that's NOT what practical driving in traffic is all about. The excellent handling of the car combined w/the excellent torque and acceleration available allows you to hit any hole really FAST – again before the drivers in the cars you’re squeezing through know you even were thinking about doing it. Just superb functionality for driving on the freeway in the SF Bay Area. I don't think the anticipated Tesla M3 or any other EV can do much (if any) better. I absolutely LOVE it!!!
Anyway, since I knew that I would have time to recharge while in the City, I had no concern about whether I could make it into the City and back and just drove the car as I normally drive all of my vehicles. Here’s what happened. BTW, all range figures are based on the mid-range estimate shown on the screen in my Bolt.
The starting range after a full charge on my L2 at home was 217 miles.
Remaining range at the EvGo station in SF was 128 miles after traveling 77.2 miles (64.6 on the freeway and 12.6 in the City).
After the L3 recharge at the EvGo station (more on that later), I had 172 miles of range, which would have been more than enough to get back home. Not so sure about heading back home w/o a recharge with just 128 miles of range available. More on that later.
After recharging at the EvGo station, I headed over to a parking lot that I knew had 3 L2 ChargePoint chargers in it. I always park in a garage when I’m in the City whenever I can because I don’t like potential damage that can happen to my car when parked on the street. I grew up in the City and know all about that.
I consider parking in a garage as insurance against such incidents. The garage was also closer to where I wanted to be in the City and gave me a chance to top off the Bolt further for FREE – at least as far as the charging was concerned. The parking fee was another matter.
So, I hooked up the Bolt to one of the L2 chargers and went to dinner w/my GF. 2 hours later, the range on the car was 209 (around 2 mins before a full charge was predicted) and 8 miles less than when I left from home.
I then dropped off my GF at her home in the City and headed back to my home in the East Bay. The range at the end of the return trip was 120 after driving 71.8 miles (about 10 of those in the City before hitting the freeway).
Total actual miles driven was 149 miles. There was a minor discrepancy in miles driven between the odometer and the energy info screen of less than 1 mile. I’m using the odometer figure. The mileage on the energy info screen was 149.8. The energy used during the trip was 47.7 kwh and the energy use rate was 3.1 m/kwh.
The ending range after a full recharge at home after the trip was 199 miles – 18 less than when I started the trip -- which was the car's adjustment for my more aggressive driving style during the trip and probably a more accurate assessment of the available range given that driving style.
So, what did I learn?
1) Regarding the ability to drive into the City and back home on a single charge – in other words, without recharging in town – I think it can be done but I wouldn’t want to do it. I traveled 149 miles using up 178 miles of estimated range. If I had not recharged in the City, I would have started with a range of 217 miles and ended with 39. Not much of a cushion but doable.
However, for peace of mind, I’d still take the time to get at least a quick recharge at a L3 station to increase the cushion. Using the end of trip range adjustment of 199 miles, there would have been only 21 miles of range remaining. Even less reason to return home w/o topping off in the City first.
2) Regarding the EvGo charging session, there has been a debate in another thread as to whether EvGo sessions are automatically limited to 30 mins or not. I and at least one other person have experienced EvGo charging sessions longer than 30 mins w/o an automatic shutoff. In this case, the EvGo session was timed at 30 mins and 2 secs after an automatic shut-off.
I returned almost exactly at that time because I set my phone alarm to tell me when 30 mins had passed. So, I have now had 2 different experiences w/an EvGo charger – one session that was NOT limited to 30 mins and one that was. So, if you need more than a 30 min charge from an EvGo station, it seems that you will always need to go back to that station in 30 mins to see if the charger has automatically terminated the session or not. If it has, you’ll need to start another session. If not, just go back to whatever you were doing.
The cost of this EvGo session was $5.95 plus 20 cents a minute. I’ll be curious to see if EvGo charges me an extra 20 cents or not for the extra 2 seconds. I’m guessing that they will in the hope that I will not complain and ask for a refund for it. It’s a good way for EvGo to generate more profit. We’ll see about that.
As for the cost in general, I think it is still too high. Rounding off to $12 for the session, I only got 44 miles of additional range for that cost which works out to 27.3 cents per mile. My BMW gets 20 miles to the gallon of premium which costs around $3 these days. In comparison, 20 miles of range on the EvGo charger cost me the equivalent of $5.45/gallon in my BMW – that’s European gas pricing. Way too expensive but you really have no choice if you need a charge.
This is at least one reason for me to avoid recharging in the City but peace of mind dictates to me that I pay the price in order to make sure that I have enough range to get back home.
3) Regarding the ChargePoint charging session, there are many locations in the City where charging on a ChargePoint charger is FREE. However, most of these chargers are located in a public parking lot controlled by the City where you have to pay a parking fee, which offsets the charging cost.
Anyway, I paid $10.50 for parking and nothing for the charge. I would have paid the parking fee regardless, so (at least in my mind) I can regard the additional 39 miles that I got in 2 hours as actually free.
The low rate of charge (19.5 miles/hour) was largely due I believe to the fact that the Bolt was already up to an 82% SOC after the EvGo charging session which began at a 62% SOC and where the rate of charge was 88 miles/hour.
The solo (not shared) ChargePoint charger was probably throttled down due to the fact that the battery was already at 82% SOC at the start of the session but, if I was in a hurry, there is no doubt that it would have been better to remain at the EvGo charger to top off.
Just for comparison’s sake, if I had needed a charge and HAD to park in the garage to get it, the 39 miles of range would have cost 26.9 cents per mile or the 20 mile/gallon equivalent of $5.38 per gallon. Not much different than the cost and range received at the EvGo station and still VERY expensive in comparison with the cost of refueling my BMW.
What’s my conclusion?
The Bolt is an extremely functional and well handling vehicle for trips into the City and around the Bay Area. While I would prefer not to drive it into the City, I will no longer hesitate to do so if necessary. Also, while I think that I could make it into the City and back without topping off, I will only drive the Bolt into town when I know that I will have the time to stop at a charging station to do so. No quick turn arounds like I do in my ICE vehicles that can easily make it into the City and back w/o the need to gas up.
The Bolt is a GREAT car for local use. I do not regret leasing it and, if I can't find a better deal at lease end, I'd probably end up leasing or even buying a Bolt again.
Well done, Chevy!!!
While I swore elsewhere in this forum that I would NEVER drive my Bolt into the City (of San Francisco) from my home in the far East Bay, I actually did so yesterday. The reasons were varied but the weather and other conditions made the choice of my Bolt over the other 4 vehicles that I own the best of choice for the day.
It was also an opportunity to actually determine how far I could drive the Bolt on my normal route into the City driving the way I like to drive – like I stole it --- which is very aggressively on the freeway, where I typically cruise at 75-80 but will hit speeds of 85 to the speed limiter at 93 in order to pass and/or get around heavy traffic. On the other hand, on City streets, I am mindful of the congestion and traffic and drive within the limits of those conditions.
First, I’d like to say how much I love the way the Bolt accelerates and how nimble its handling is on the road. I know what driving a FAST well handling car is like. I use to ride motorcycles – very fast ones. My BMW is motorcycle fast (not as fast as some other cars but definitely fast) and handles extremely well. I also have driven faster and better handling cars as a member of a local sports car club called Club Sportiva.
In any event, the Bolt is QUICK. Hit the sport mode button and nail the accelerator and you’ll be gone before any other car knows it. You won't win any races but that's NOT what practical driving in traffic is all about. The excellent handling of the car combined w/the excellent torque and acceleration available allows you to hit any hole really FAST – again before the drivers in the cars you’re squeezing through know you even were thinking about doing it. Just superb functionality for driving on the freeway in the SF Bay Area. I don't think the anticipated Tesla M3 or any other EV can do much (if any) better. I absolutely LOVE it!!!
Anyway, since I knew that I would have time to recharge while in the City, I had no concern about whether I could make it into the City and back and just drove the car as I normally drive all of my vehicles. Here’s what happened. BTW, all range figures are based on the mid-range estimate shown on the screen in my Bolt.
The starting range after a full charge on my L2 at home was 217 miles.
Remaining range at the EvGo station in SF was 128 miles after traveling 77.2 miles (64.6 on the freeway and 12.6 in the City).
After the L3 recharge at the EvGo station (more on that later), I had 172 miles of range, which would have been more than enough to get back home. Not so sure about heading back home w/o a recharge with just 128 miles of range available. More on that later.
After recharging at the EvGo station, I headed over to a parking lot that I knew had 3 L2 ChargePoint chargers in it. I always park in a garage when I’m in the City whenever I can because I don’t like potential damage that can happen to my car when parked on the street. I grew up in the City and know all about that.
I consider parking in a garage as insurance against such incidents. The garage was also closer to where I wanted to be in the City and gave me a chance to top off the Bolt further for FREE – at least as far as the charging was concerned. The parking fee was another matter.
So, I hooked up the Bolt to one of the L2 chargers and went to dinner w/my GF. 2 hours later, the range on the car was 209 (around 2 mins before a full charge was predicted) and 8 miles less than when I left from home.
I then dropped off my GF at her home in the City and headed back to my home in the East Bay. The range at the end of the return trip was 120 after driving 71.8 miles (about 10 of those in the City before hitting the freeway).
Total actual miles driven was 149 miles. There was a minor discrepancy in miles driven between the odometer and the energy info screen of less than 1 mile. I’m using the odometer figure. The mileage on the energy info screen was 149.8. The energy used during the trip was 47.7 kwh and the energy use rate was 3.1 m/kwh.
The ending range after a full recharge at home after the trip was 199 miles – 18 less than when I started the trip -- which was the car's adjustment for my more aggressive driving style during the trip and probably a more accurate assessment of the available range given that driving style.
So, what did I learn?
1) Regarding the ability to drive into the City and back home on a single charge – in other words, without recharging in town – I think it can be done but I wouldn’t want to do it. I traveled 149 miles using up 178 miles of estimated range. If I had not recharged in the City, I would have started with a range of 217 miles and ended with 39. Not much of a cushion but doable.
However, for peace of mind, I’d still take the time to get at least a quick recharge at a L3 station to increase the cushion. Using the end of trip range adjustment of 199 miles, there would have been only 21 miles of range remaining. Even less reason to return home w/o topping off in the City first.
2) Regarding the EvGo charging session, there has been a debate in another thread as to whether EvGo sessions are automatically limited to 30 mins or not. I and at least one other person have experienced EvGo charging sessions longer than 30 mins w/o an automatic shutoff. In this case, the EvGo session was timed at 30 mins and 2 secs after an automatic shut-off.
I returned almost exactly at that time because I set my phone alarm to tell me when 30 mins had passed. So, I have now had 2 different experiences w/an EvGo charger – one session that was NOT limited to 30 mins and one that was. So, if you need more than a 30 min charge from an EvGo station, it seems that you will always need to go back to that station in 30 mins to see if the charger has automatically terminated the session or not. If it has, you’ll need to start another session. If not, just go back to whatever you were doing.
The cost of this EvGo session was $5.95 plus 20 cents a minute. I’ll be curious to see if EvGo charges me an extra 20 cents or not for the extra 2 seconds. I’m guessing that they will in the hope that I will not complain and ask for a refund for it. It’s a good way for EvGo to generate more profit. We’ll see about that.
As for the cost in general, I think it is still too high. Rounding off to $12 for the session, I only got 44 miles of additional range for that cost which works out to 27.3 cents per mile. My BMW gets 20 miles to the gallon of premium which costs around $3 these days. In comparison, 20 miles of range on the EvGo charger cost me the equivalent of $5.45/gallon in my BMW – that’s European gas pricing. Way too expensive but you really have no choice if you need a charge.
This is at least one reason for me to avoid recharging in the City but peace of mind dictates to me that I pay the price in order to make sure that I have enough range to get back home.
3) Regarding the ChargePoint charging session, there are many locations in the City where charging on a ChargePoint charger is FREE. However, most of these chargers are located in a public parking lot controlled by the City where you have to pay a parking fee, which offsets the charging cost.
Anyway, I paid $10.50 for parking and nothing for the charge. I would have paid the parking fee regardless, so (at least in my mind) I can regard the additional 39 miles that I got in 2 hours as actually free.
The low rate of charge (19.5 miles/hour) was largely due I believe to the fact that the Bolt was already up to an 82% SOC after the EvGo charging session which began at a 62% SOC and where the rate of charge was 88 miles/hour.
The solo (not shared) ChargePoint charger was probably throttled down due to the fact that the battery was already at 82% SOC at the start of the session but, if I was in a hurry, there is no doubt that it would have been better to remain at the EvGo charger to top off.
Just for comparison’s sake, if I had needed a charge and HAD to park in the garage to get it, the 39 miles of range would have cost 26.9 cents per mile or the 20 mile/gallon equivalent of $5.38 per gallon. Not much different than the cost and range received at the EvGo station and still VERY expensive in comparison with the cost of refueling my BMW.
What’s my conclusion?
The Bolt is an extremely functional and well handling vehicle for trips into the City and around the Bay Area. While I would prefer not to drive it into the City, I will no longer hesitate to do so if necessary. Also, while I think that I could make it into the City and back without topping off, I will only drive the Bolt into town when I know that I will have the time to stop at a charging station to do so. No quick turn arounds like I do in my ICE vehicles that can easily make it into the City and back w/o the need to gas up.
The Bolt is a GREAT car for local use. I do not regret leasing it and, if I can't find a better deal at lease end, I'd probably end up leasing or even buying a Bolt again.
Well done, Chevy!!!
). As part of your backup plan, you have Dirito Bros VW in Walnut Creek (I680 just N of CA-24) - Chargepoint, 24kW, $0.20/min, no connect fee AND Richmond Kennedy Swim, 599 S 45th St, Richmond (off I80 near Cutting Blvd) - ChargePoint, 44 kW, $7/hr, no connect fee. Just in case you need an extra 5-10 kWh to get home with 'peace of mind'. Both are a lot less expensive than EVgo. Or you could just slow down for the last 20 miles.
