2012 Chevrolet Volt

Rating from Electric Car Groupie

(5)
Comfort:		4 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		5 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"Love the Chevy Volt! It is a good looking, quiet drive--with a peppy engine (accelerates well when extra speed is needed). It also gives you a guage that shows you when you are driving most economically. It is the unknown hero of the gas crisis... if you drive it efficiently-- you can get 45 miles (or more) on a charge. If you are going further than 45 miles... the gasoline engine takes over-- so you never worry about being stranded. Plugs in to a normal grounded household outlet. I am able to take my son to school, go to work, come home (41 miles roundtrip) -- all on electric. Truly have no idea how much gas costs today-- because I don't buy it anymore! Back seat area is not huge-- but comfortable enough for someone 6 ft or shorter. Plus-up options include beautiful leather, Bose speakers, and back-up assist camera. It is a shame-- it is the best kept secret for economical and fun driving. Government also gives tax credits to offset purchase costs. Look into it!"

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from MHCalif

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		4 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		5 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"My husband (JDHCalif) wrote a lengthy review and I wanted to add my 2 cents. We are actually now getting nearly 130mpg per day because his company installed an electrical outlet in his office parking area. The car costs about $2 to fully charge at PG&E rates and each full charge takes the car about 45 miles. Even though we drive 130 mile+ daily commutes we are burning almost no gas...not insignificant in CA where gas is now $4.63 per gallon. The Volt is proving to be more than twice as economical as our Prius...and it drives so much better - even the regen brakes feel better. We are going to sell the Prius and get another fully loaded Volt for me (which net/net costs less than a comparably loaded new Prius)."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from JDHCalif

(5)
Comfort:		4 out of 5
Performance:		4 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		4 out of 5
Value for the Money:		5 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"I have a 2nd Gen Prius & a Volt (first American car I?ve owned) so I have some basis to compare them. To sum it up: In Calif. the comparably loaded new Prius goes for more than the Volt (thanks to the Fed and State rebates, and yet the Volt gets singificantly higher MPG. In fact, after several thousand Bay Area commute miles I am getting an average 80 mpg - and it would be higher if I had a electrical outlet to plug into at work (they are putting one in for me). Also, the 3 yr CA HOV Lane access that comes with the Volt is priceless - it saves me 50 min on daily commutes. Regarding the drive characteristics: The best way that I can describe how the Volt drives & handles is that it is solid & competent. The doors close with a solid thud & when underway, the steering is connected to the road & the cabin is extremely quiet. Said differently, the Volt drives like a much larger/more competent ?regular? car without engine noise (oh, and the Volt accelerates much faster than the Prius, i.e. much better low-end torque). The 3rd Gen Prius (like the 2nd Gen I own) is bouncy & jittery (especially in any kind of wind or weather), loud, has a numb steering feel & is tinny ? don?t get me wrong, I expect this from a light car that gets extremely high mileage...but compared to the Volt, the Prius is a golf cart. It's no wonder that the Volt has won so many ?Car of the Year? awards & Consumer Reports' super high marks."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from HawaiiBob

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		5 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"Island living and the Volt are perfect for each other. My island is only 50 miles across, and Hawaii is making a great effort to provide a welcoming embrace for electric vehicles. Free parking, including the airport and parking meters, open access to HOV lanes and a concerted effort to install lots of recharging stations. I commute 64 miles round trip everyday and thanks to charging stations everywhere I do it all on electric. I've owned the car for 5 months now, I've put 5500 miles on it. I'm still have the gas the dealer put in when I picked it up. I'm at 750 MPG now, I did play with the gas engine when I first got it or it would have been much higher. I traded in my beautiful C6 Corvette for this car. Corvette owners are some of the pickiest owners around. If the Volt had any defects believe me I would have groused about it plenty, but perfection is hard to beat. The Corvette does what it does extremely well, the Volt does what it does better. Electricity rates and gas prices here are the highest in the nation and the Volt still in the end just makes sense. Complain about bail outs all you want, listen to Fox News pundits if you like, I'm as conservative as they come and I'm here to tell you the car is a wonder. Don't believe me if you want, check out the stats for 600 owners, google voltstats. Onstar downloads mileage data from all the cars 4 times a day, see what we're all seeing for yourself."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from Woody

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"We got this car after looking around at many different options but with the $7500 back and the thought of saving gas we couldn't pass it up. I traded in my Avalanche (13mpg city and 17 mpg hgwy) even though I loved the car gas was just killing us with my wife and I driving and a 17 year old driving and 15 year old almost there. First off I have a buddy and he has a Prius and it is a nice car but for my taste the exterior on is downright ugly (just my opinion). The Volt is very stylish and sporty looking, nothing like a typical tree hugger car. Anyhow I figure real world driving we are getting 77mpg (to charge it is about a third of the cost of a gallon of gas) including the cost of electric. This would be more but the first day from the dealer did not have any charge on the vehicle. My wife drives to and from work about 39 miles 4 days a week without using a drop of gas. I use the car the other day and travel 100 miles on a little over a gallon of gas. In electric mode we are getting anywhere from 44 to 53 on one charge. Even after the electric runs out I have never gotten any worse that 40 mpg. Everyone that has sat in the car has been impressed and most didn't have a clue about how truly amazing the vehicle is. Best advise I can give is go test drive one yourself. Until you have used the vehicle its hard to understand how cool it is."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Just getting around

Rating from The futurist

(5)
Comfort:		4 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"OK, I am an engineer - the person you hire to get the truth, so I promise no marketing tricks or hype or political bashing in this review. I leased Volt in December 2011 and in three and half *winter* months put around 3500 mile on it. Only about 2000 miles on my Volt are electric ones and the rest is composed mostly of three long range trips (400+ miles). As a result the lifetime fuel economy is 82 mpg. As I drive around 1000 miles a month (this is a lease, remember), I spend about about 12 gallons of fuel a month - about $45. My monthly electric bill went up $30. So with my current lifestyle I spend $75 for fuel. My previous car cost me around $175, so savings are in ballpark of $100. Subtract that from the lease price and you realize the car is not that expensive after all. My routine round trip to work is about 28 miles, so, technically I could do much better, but I am not buying car to save money, be super green or get the world record on mpg. Non aggressive gasoline driving on highway results in 35-36 mpg economy. Electric range is temperature depended. My Volt charges from 110V outlet outside on a driveway. My rule of thumb - if temperature is 25F or below expect 25 miles electric range, below 20F Volt's gas engine starts periodically to warm up the battery and I would expect Volt to mostly ignore the battery at around 0F. As temperatures goes up, so does the range. I achieved 38 miles range at 50F and 40+ miles at 60F for my mixed 12 miles highway/16 miles city driving. Highway speeds drain battery fast, think 25-30 miles total (strangely, 25 in the winter anyway). Sports mode reduces range too, but not dramatically. I think, if you have a heavy foot and drive aggressively in sport mode, you can burn down Volt's battery in 20-25 miles depending on temperature. So having these numbers, average daily range, climate and your drive style you may estimate if Volt is for you. Oh, on a side note I estimate my first fuel change to happen after the lease ends plus I do not think I ever use brake pads. Speaking of everything else, the car is very well built, looks great and have futuristic feel and lot of gadgetry. Silent instant electric torque is great source of "fun to drive" factor. Drawbacks? Oh, sure, what car does not have them? Do not plan to have tall adults on a back seat. They won't fit. Cargo space is relatively small, OK for shopping, but I would not use this car to go camping. I would prefer better sound isolation - after silent electric drive the noise of gas engine seems very alien... Well, you may also say "pricey", but for lease it is not at all. So, is Volt for you? Well, if you drive 80 miles a day or plan to use it as a truck or need to drive three kids or want to get 0 to 60 in 5 seconds - then you are clearly outside the "specs" The bottom line - as far as you within the range of assumptions designers put into this car - it's a marvel."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from LoveMyVolt

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		5 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"The Volt is an awesome car. Its looks are eye-catching. Nothing boring about this car, in looks or operation. "Futuristic" is what my family says. And no one will shut you down at a light - unless you let them. Never thought I would own a Chevy, but they beat out the competition in my view. The design is great - so many details are really well thought out. It is amazingly quiet and smooth to drive. I can never go back to a gasoline-only car, with their fumes, noise and vibration. Charging is easy on the 110 outlet in my garage, and I have yet to put gas in the tank for the extended range. Of course, it is reassuring to know that the extended range is there, even though I only needed it once. (In two months and 700 miles, I have used .07 gals of gas.) Chevy has handled the battery safety issue perfectly and I have zero concerns about that. I got a Volt with all the premium features (leather seats, XM radio, etc.), and it has more luxury than my former luxury Japanese car. I think the ONStar is standard and it is reassuring to have. The clincher is that it is basically free to drive - it costs me about $1.00 in electricity to go 35 miles in the city. In my old car, that was two gallons of gas. The only concern is getting used to the front window in terms of visibility. Minor negative is the front plastic piece under the front bumper which is there for aerodynamics but which can drag on the ground if you have a bump, like at the end of your driveway. As someone said, however, you just have to view it as a replaceable part like tires. This probably will get worked out anyway."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from LoveMyVolt

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		5 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"This is the very best car I've every owned. I drive to work and back home on all electric (about 8.5 KWhs)."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from hugh

(1)
Comfort:		1 out of 5
Performance:		1 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		1 out of 5
Interior Design:		1 out of 5
Value for the Money:		1 out of 5
Reliability:		1 out of 5

"Too small, ugly plastic interior, way outdated styling, way over-priced ... I sit in this vehicle and feel no excitement ... GM needs to take a few lessons from Tesla."

I would recommend this car to a friend: No

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Transporting family

Rating from Volt Owner in Ohio

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		4 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"The features we most like about our Volt include the mainstream styling, awesome performance in acceleration and handling, the smooth, quiet ride, and most of all, averaging 160+ miles per gallon and passing gas stations. For typical commutes (averaging less than 40-45 miles), we can virtually never use gas. We have actually achieved as much as 49.4 miles on a single charge (versus the advertised 35 mile range), and with the optional 240V in garage charging station, the Volt fully recharges in 3.5 hours. Other features we appreciate include the 30GB media storage for music, photos and video, the Bose sound system, and heated leather seats. Great cargo area, especially with the rear seatbacks folded down. State of charge, fuel tank level tire pressure, & diagnostics can be accessed from our iPhone. In addition, and possibly most importantly, the Volt eliminates "range anxiety" of an purely electric vehicle, due to the "range extending" capability of the gas powered generator that allows unlimited range on extended trips, while preserving the outstanding fuel economy for everyday commutes. All in all, we absolutely love the 2012 Volt!"

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting