First 4,400 Volt Owners Eligible for Free Charging Stations

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If you’re one of the first 4,400 buyers of the new Chevy Volt, you’re also eligible for a free home-charging station, according to GM.

This is part of the Department of Energy’s federal grants that will install 15,000 home and public charging stations around the country by December. The grants are worth as much as $2,000 to consumers and will put a 240-volt charging station in Volt owners’ homes. The catch is that the Energy Department will study your charging habits to better understand what will be required to bring more electric vehicles to market.

Volt owners will receive a 120-volt charge cord when they purchase the vehicle, but a 240-volt station will drastically cut down on charging time, from eight hours to about three hours.

Ford already announced that the first 5,000 Ford Transit vans would be eligible for free home-charging stations, while Nissan has said the first 4,700 Leaf customers can get in on the Energy Department grants.

Volt owners in certain program cities may also apply for a free home-charging station through two companies that build home-charging stations, Coulomb Technologies and ECOtality.