2013 Chevrolet Volt consumer reviews

I've owned the Volt for about 18 mos and although I love the economy, there are a few features I would like changed. The number of controls required to do even simple things are unusually high, compared to the dozen other cars I've owned. To begin with, you need to have the radio turned on for navigation to work or voice commands to work -- this is a design flaw because it requires the manipulation of 3-4 controls extra to get desired functions to work. The voice commands work only about 1 out of 5 times, and there is no "learning" feature. Other cars or devices I've had have been much more reliable in voice recognition... this is a big disappointment as I have to do more hands on, especially with the blue tooth commands for the phone. There is also a design flaw in that there is a lot of redundancy of having to set and reset certain functions daily in the car which I wish I could set and change only as needed. Lastly, the heating system is quite slow to get started on cold days, and on hot days don't try to drive with any of the windows down as the poor aerodynamics cause a terrible vibration which is deafening and intolerable for the driver and any passengers of the vehicle.

I leased a 2012 Chevy Volt. I have driven it 19 months and racked up 18,000 miles so far. I averaged over 133 miles per gallon over the life of my driving. I had no problem driving it in the harsh climate of south central Alaska. I did better on the mileage in the summer than in the winter. The car is very comfortable for me and I love the fact it has no shift points. I have a damaged spine and that has been a real benefit for me. I installed a 240 volt charger for about $420.00 and that has definitely been worth the money. I drive the car a bit less conservative than I should and still get the great mileage. Most of my trips have been around town but I did take five trips out of town over 125 miles round trip each time. I have found the car to handle real well and it does great on snow and ice with good tires. I am going to purchase a new one this time once my lease is up. My gas bill has gone down $272.00 per month since I leased the Volt

Some people are having positive feed on the 2013 Chevy Volt. Take it from me the truth about this car. I have been leasing vehicle every two years for the past twenty two years and this is the worst night mare I have ever leased and stuck with. Had the car for Six month and taken to the dealer six times, once a month. Problems started with the charge hold, first two month it was holding 40miles a charge and dropped to 34miles. When the cold weather hit, it dropped to 22miles a charge and under. The charging door issue, wont open most of the time, so using gas again, serviced twice for that. Braking system very dangers unsure how it past the government testing. On sipper surface this vehicle will slide and wont stop, anti lock system kicks on about two second after it needed it to and still slide. Blind spots all over the vehicle. heating system take a long time to heat the car. Windows always fogging up unless the deforest is on full fan speed. Wiper blade design is horrible. There is a lot more to list but those the most important for to me. If you live in a cold or snow stated the car is not for you. I think Chevy made a big mistake.

Thus far, I've driven about 400 miles (purchased late December 2013), and consumed about 5 gallons of gas . . . mostly due to cold weather, when the engine will run automatically. Presumably, I'll use less when the weather turns warmer. Car handles surprisingly well; very nimble and responsive handling. Electronics on the car are mind-numbing, but you don't need to know anything out of the ordinary . . . the vehicle will do everything automatically. My one way commute is 24 miles; usually, I have 20 miles of electric power range remaining, which means the range is better than 38 miles in practice. Recently-installed charge stations at work are a godsend; Volts and Leafs are very popular at these charge stations. Great value after rebates, federal tax credits, and IL tax credits are applied. The savings continue on gas; $1.00 per day to charge at home(120 volts), but getting close to 40 miles on a single charge . . . and free re-charge at work. Only criticism: I wish it had fog lights; not available as an option.

THE MANAGEMENT OF THE ENERGY SYSTEM AND DRIVING TECHNIQUES MAKE FOR A VERY INTERESTING AND FUN DRIVE. THE CAR'S COMPUTER SYSTEM HELPS TEACH GOOD DRIVING SKILLS.

We bought the car for a needed tax break -- we didn't withhold enough on our taxes but with the $7500 tax break we ended up with a refund. We have 3 cars and this is my favorite to drive. The handling is the best of any car I've ever driven. In a year I have only gassed up 12 times: 5 of those fill-ups were due to road-trips the other times were only partial fill-ups. Coupled with our solar panels the car costs us little to drive -- except of course the healthy monthly payment. But the 0% financing helps a bit. Everyone who rides in the car comments on the good acceleration -- of course I always put it in 'Sport' mode. Navigating the controls takes a bit of getting used to, and the climate control controls could use improvement. A button to just turn off the fan or go to no-heat (instead of having to repeatedly tap) would be a huge improvement. Half of the other buttons could be accessed via touch menu because they're rarely used. Also, not having to have the radio turned on to use navigation would be nice - there are about a half-dozen ways to mute audio though. I may buy another one if they increase the EV range to over 50 and improve the controls. The ergonomics could be improved -- lumbar support, rear ventilation, improved rear visibility. The car is sealed tight like a refrigerator so we must often run the defroster to keep the windows from fogging.

Well built, solid car. Premium materials and finishes. Charge sustaining mode mileage is pretty good. Range is affected by outside conditions.. Ie more mileage when warmer, less when colder. Overall it's a pretty cool car, but best if you have the ability to charge at work and home or have 30-50 mile round trips.

The Volt is fun to drive, and perfect for my 32 mile round trip commute -- coming up on 700 miles on only 1.6 gallons of gas. The car handles well, sporty suspension, can accelerate quickly when needed. I don't notice that I'm driving an EV except for the fact that 1. it is so quiet and 2. I rarely stop for gas. Seating is comfortable, including rear seats where my 14 and 16 year old kids have ridden without complaints (have even said it's nice). Great for day outings, but I wouldn't want to use it for an extended family vacation -- not enough space for stuff. The climate system takes a little while to figure out -- because there is no gas engine running, you can't blast hot air into the cabin on cold days. Heating the car quickly cuts down on the electric mileage -- on a full charge I get 42 miles, but heating the car on a 27 degree morning takes about 5 miles worth of electric. Given my commute is 32 miles, this still leaves extra electric for an errand or two on the way home. Charge takes all night, so I'm getting a 240 charger so I can recharge more quickly. With the $7500 federal tax credit this car is a great deal!

There are a few drawbacks to this car. One is the tight backseat. The other is the lack of airconditioning vents in the rear seats. Everyone who sits in my backseat complains. Great commuter car where you occasionally have to go on gas without range anxiety. Maintenance is not a big problem as the car is using electric most of the time oil changes are usually only once a year. Love the volt concept, just wish it were a foot longer.

We bought this car 4 weeks ago. It is such a pleasure to drive. I use this car for a daily 52 mile round trip commute. It can't make the round trip on battery only, however I have been getting a combined mileage from 102 to 144 mpg on a daily basis. This is in Minnesota and our temperatures fluctuate considerably. My lower mileage readings have occurred when the temperatures have been in the 20's. Since we haven't had our extremely low temperatures yet, I can't say yet how the mileage will be affected. The car is very comfortable and well appointed. I'm convinced electric is the way of the future.