Slightly cute, a little bit frumpy.
Emme Hall/Roadshow
When the Chevrolet Bolt EV debuted in 2016 it was, let’s say, the shit. With greater than 200 miles of vary and a sub-$40,000 price ticket, no person cared that it regarded like a wedge of cheese and had an inside filled with low cost plastics. It was all about that vary, man. But right here we’re in 2020, and wow, the world positive has modified. The Bolt has extra opponents now than it ever has, and from a variety of automakers. Does Chevy’s compact hatch nonetheless stand out?

Like259 miles of rangeOptional quick chargingHatchback versatility

Don’t LikePoor inside materialsAging designNo adaptive cruise management

The 2020 Bolt EV has a bigger, 66-kilowatt-hour battery pack, which provides the hatchback an additional 21 miles of vary. Its 259-mile beats the Hyundai Kona Electric, Kia Niro EV and Nissan Leaf Plus, although the Tesla Model 3 nonetheless leads the way in which. The Bolt’s charging instances stay largely the identical as earlier than: 10 hours on a Level 2 residence charger or about 100 miles of vary in 30 minutes with its non-obligatory fast-charging capabilities. The Leaf Plus, in the meantime, gives a fast-charging connection customary. The electrical powerplant pushes out 200 horsepower and 266 pound-feet of torque. That’s nice for driving round city, merging onto the freeway or racing to beat that yellow mild. By shifting into Low I can profit from one-pedal driving and regenerative braking, lifting my proper foot for max regen whereas slowing the automotive down. I can even activate extra regen utilizing a paddle on the left aspect of the steering wheel that’ll gradual the automotive rapidly. Or, you already know, I can simply use the brake pedal. The conventional brakes really feel fairly good and there is no apparent transition between digital and mechanical stopping. There are loads of EV pages within the Bolt’s infotainment system, too, which is able to present you the battery degree and remaining vary, which is useful when you could run errands on a Saturday after forgetting to plug the automotive in on Friday evening.

I do know most Bolt homeowners aren’t in search of corner-carving athletics, however a torque-tastic electrical powertrain is inherently enjoyable — fast off the road, and immediately. Sadly, the Bolt’s chassis and tires aren’t as much as the problem. The hatchback is straightforward to upset over bumpy pavement and the Michelin Energy Saver all-season tires provide little or no grip for the sake of most effectivity. The steering is properly weighted, nevertheless, and the low heart of gravity retains the Bolt principally flat whereas cornering. A Mini Cooper SE is far more enjoyable to drive, although with a variety of solely 110 miles, it positively is not for everybody.There aren’t many driver-assistance aids, which is a disgrace. The Bolt cannot be had with adaptive cruise management, and each blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert are solely accessible on the top-level Premier trim. Other niceties like automated emergency braking, lane-keeping help, ahead collision alert and entrance pedestrian braking are non-obligatory, too. If you are in search of extra superior tech, the Nissan Leaf Plus gives the automaker’s ProPilot Assist tech, to say nothing of Tesla’s Autopilot. On high of that, the Bolt is not accessible with embedded navigation. This is not an enormous drawback, since Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are customary, and homeowners can reap the benefits of the MyChevy app to seek out native charging stations.

200 horsepower, 266 pound-feet, 259-mile vary.
Emme Hall/Roadshow
However, I’m discovering a whole lot of success with the Chargeway app. It divides stations into colours for various charging varieties, and numbers for charging pace. All I’ve to do is inform the app I’m in a Chevy Bolt with the non-obligatory fast-charging setup and I do know I can go to any station labeled inexperienced with the numbers 1 by way of 4. Easy peasy. The app additionally provides me the bodily deal with and model of charger, plus native facilities and buyer opinions.

The Bolt’s infotainment system is housed on a 10.2-inch shade display screen, and whereas the graphics and interface are crisp and clear, the response instances are actually laggy, sufficient that I discover myself stabbing an icon twice, considering that it hasn’t obtained my faucet. There is a typical 4G LTE Wi-Fi hotspot for connectivity and machine charging is dealt with by a 12-volt outlet and two USB-A ports up entrance. An non-obligatory infotainment bundle on the Premier trim provides wi-fi charging and two extra charge-only USB-A ports for rear passengers.Inside, the Bolt has some cool, space-age-looking white trim on the sprint, and the cabin actually feels very open and ethereal. Overall, nevertheless, the supplies are dangerous. What was not so nice in 2016 now simply appears low cost when seen in opposition to the competitors. However, my Premier trim comes with heated entrance and rear seats in addition to a heated steering wheel. My tester additionally has the rear digital camera mirror, which makes use of a video feed from the backup digital camera. I can flip the view from video to straightforward mirror at any time and I actually take pleasure in having a wider field of regard. The inside appears good, however the supplies are terrible.
Emme Hall/Roadshow
The Bolt gives loads of small storage choices like a little bit cubby for my cellular phone and an open heart console. Cargo room behind the rear seats is simply shy of 17 cubic toes, which is on the small aspect for the category, but it surely opens as much as a really beneficiant 56.6 cubes when the rear seats are folded.The 2020 Chevy Bolt begins at $37,495, together with $875 for vacation spot, and earlier than any federal or native incentives are factored in. If it had been my cash on the road I’d follow the decrease LT trim and skip the accessible infotainment bundle and heated rear seats. Instead I’d outfit my base Bolt with the $555 consolation bundle to get heated entrance seats and the $495 confidence bundle to get blind-spot monitoring. DC quick charging is $750 and is a should in the event you anticipate to go on any highway journeys. Oh, and I’d additionally decide the brand new Oasis Blue paint shade. The brilliant aqua brings a little bit of persona to the Bolt. All in, my best Bolt prices $39,295 together with vacation spot. Meanwhile, my totally loaded tester prices $43,735.It’s a pleasant little EV, however there are such a lot of higher selections.
Emme Hall/Roadshow
The Bolt might have been the bees’ knees when it debuted, however the competitors has achieved a hell of a job maintaining and even surpassing Chevy’s EV. The Kia Niro begins round $40,000 together with vacation spot, and whereas it gives much less vary, it is acquired extra fashion and options, together with navigation and adaptive cruise management. The Hyundai Kona will get about the identical quantity of vary and begins at round $38,000 with vacation spot, however some could also be delay by its bizarre face. Finally, you may get the model cache of driving a Tesla Model 3, but it surely’s dearer with choices, and irrespective of how good Autopilot is, the automotive completely doesn’t drive itself.It’s nice that Chevrolet continues to be innovating battery know-how and gave the Bolt a couple of extra miles for 2020. And it is no secret that GM has an onslaught of electrical automobiles on the way in which. In the meantime, although, the Bolt lags behind its electrical rivals in too many huge methods.