Chevrolet Volt/Cadillac ELR Thread: 2016 EPA Ratings

[Beeblebrox237]

Ah, thanks

 

[RocZX]

Less Chevy dealers certified to sell the Volt due the cost of the tools to service it

Some Chevrolet dealers have stopped carrying the Volt after deciding that their sales didn't justify an additional $5,100 for tools to service the plug-in hybrid.

Last month, General Motors notified Chevrolet dealers of the added cost for tools, among other requirements, to keep selling and servicing the Volt.

Some dealers believe that GM is raising the requirements to be a certified Volt dealer because it wants a smaller network that would steer more Volts to bigger-volume dealers and regions. GM spokeswoman Michelle Malcho says that's untrue.

"It's pretty standard" to require dealers to buy tools to service certain nameplates, Malcho said. Last year, Volt dealers spent $1,800 to $2,800 on tools.

She would not say how many Chevrolet dealerships have quit the Volt program since dealers were informed of the extra cost, but said they account for less than 1 percent of the Volt's sales.

As of January, GM wants Chevrolet service technicians to remove and ship sections of the Volt's 435-pound battery pack to GM for repair, rather than shipping the entire pack. To do that, they need a $4,735 battery depowering tool to drain the battery before removing a section. The device accounts for the bulk of dealers' additional costs.

AutomobileNews

 

[YSSMAN]

It seems odd, but it makes sense. The small-town Chevrolet dealers nearby really don't cater to those that would want to buy them in the first place, it isn't a big loss. With their, what, 7000 dealers nationwide, I don't think anyone is going to be going without in a big way.

Although, it does make me wonder, are some of the higher costs due in part to the introduction of the Spark EV later this year?

 

[oopssorryy]

Speaking as someone who used to recycle hybrid batteries, this isn't a good idea. The company I worked for was well known for stressing safety, but thee is only so mitch you can do when working with the acid inside those things. Peple will get seriouly hurt even when you're doing everything by the book, I've seen it happen.

 

[Robin]

As of January, GM wants Chevrolet service technicians to remove and ship sections of the Volt's 435-pound battery pack to GM for repair, rather than shipping the entire pack. To do that, they need a $4,735 battery depowering tool to drain the battery before removing a section. The device accounts for the bulk of dealers' additional costs.

Drive it round the block a few times till it stops moving?

I haven't seen one Vauxhall Ampera round here, maybe its something to do with the fact that the price gives rip off Britan a new meaning... $32.000 in the US and $50.000 in the UK, just for giggles

I would buy one, I think its a neat looking car inside and out but pricey here.

 

[YSSMAN]

The 2014 Cadillac ELR is a Volt for Those With 'Special' Tastes

Not much to really say here other than we've known that it's coming for several years now. The recipe is pretty basic... Take the underpinnings of the very well-regarded Chevrolet Volt, stretch a very attractive Cadillac coupe body over it, and cover every inch of the interior with leather.

In fact, this just might have one of the nicest-looking interiors I've seen from GM in quite some time. Perhaps they've finally figured out that it's where people spend the greatest amount of time?

I'm interested to see how they price it versus the Volt...

 

[Cano]

very attractive Cadillac coupe body

No kidding, that thing looks sexy.

 

[homeforsummer]

I'd rock it. Never been overly fussed on the styling of the Volt (it's nice, and the Ampera is better, but it's not quite there). This, on the other hand, looks great. And it's a coupe, and I like coupes.

Oh, and 40 miles of electric silence in a luxury car? That is what electric vehicles do well.

 

[FoolKiller]

Oh, and 40 miles of electric silence in a luxury car? That is what electric vehicles do well.

Don't worry. The US government will solve that issue.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mobileweb/2013/01/07/electric-cars-noise_n_2426725.html

I suggest we make them all play ice cream truck music. Or the Benny Hill theme song.

 

[Joey D]

Ill take Millennium Falcon or a Pod Racer sound effects for mine. Seriously if that's the future of electric cars sign me up!

 

[Tornado]

The problem I have with that (at least from those pictures) is that the window rake is so dramatic that it's almost to the point where "which end am I looking at" when seen at a glance.


Looks really nice on the inside, though. Much nicer than the Volt, and as hfs says above, I think a luxury electric car probably could make a lot more inroads into the market in terms of acceptance anyway.

 

[DeathSmiles]

The 2014 Cadillac ELR is a Volt for Those With 'Special' Tastes

Not much to really say here other than we've known that it's coming for several years now. The recipe is pretty basic... Take the underpinnings of the very well-regarded Chevrolet Volt, stretch a very attractive Cadillac coupe body over it, and cover every inch of the interior with leather.

In fact, this just might have one of the nicest-looking interiors I've seen from GM in quite some time. Perhaps they've finally figured out that it's where people spend the greatest amount of time?

I'm interested to see how they price it versus the Volt...

Beautiful. No wthis makes sense. The reason myself and I'm sure others have yet to buy an eletric car, is one because they are butt ugly (the Volt isn't terrible, but it isn't the best looking thing out there by any means), and two because of the price.

But a LUXURY version, that looks like that? And it's a COUPE? Yea, I'd buy that. I'd drive that hard.

 

[homeforsummer]

Don't worry. The US government will solve that issue.

Yeah, I've seen that. For the handful of people potentially getting hit by slightly quieter vehicles than the other tens of thousands of people getting hit every year by regular vehicles.

Oh, and I'd have the Jetsons car sound...

 

[Tornado]

I actually don't think the idea is without merit. I'm just curious how many of those 2800 people that may be hit are going to get hit for doing something they shouldn't be doing in the first place.

 

[DeathSmiles]

Oh, and I'd have the Jetsons car sound...

Lmfao. I think you are my new favorite poster, now.

 

[FoolKiller]

I actually don't think the idea is without merit. I'm just curious how many of those 2800 people that may be hit are going to get hit for doing something they shouldn't be doing in the first place.

Well, it was the blind that first raised a complaint over the Prius. And if we are regulating with blind people in mind, I think there needs to definitely be a singular standard range of sounds so as to not create confusion.

Although I don't feel that a regulation was necessary. Manufacturers were already beginning to add sounds.

 

[Pupik]

Oh, and I'd have the Jetsons car sound...

 

[Omnis]

Would be so Cadillac if they offered it in a yellow paint ...


... called yELR.

Oh my god, I can't stop giggling at this.

 

[YSSMAN]

Looks really nice on the inside, though. Much nicer than the Volt, and as hfs says above, I think a luxury electric car probably could make a lot more inroads into the market in terms of acceptance anyway.

It's not just that it's a pretty car, it's also carving out it's own segment in the market. The price will be the biggest deciding factor, I assume. I mean, how much can you really charge for a dressed-up Volt? Furthermore, will they push the Volt down in price because of it?

The ceiling on this thing has to be somewhere around $50k. Just so they can stick it to Tesla in a slight way. The best thing GM could do would be to set this thing up at $50,995 and make the only options on it the colors of the inside and outside. That, and kick the Volt's price down by about $5k, not only to put distance between the two cars, but also to compete with the lower cost Nissan Leaf.

 

[a6m5]

Beautiful. No wthis makes sense. The reason myself and I'm sure others have yet to buy an eletric car, is one because they are butt ugly (the Volt isn't terrible, but it isn't the best looking thing out there by any means), and two because of the price.

But a LUXURY version, that looks like that? And it's a COUPE? Yea, I'd buy that. I'd drive that hard.

I actually don't mind the looks of the most hybrids & electric cars, but I would agree that they are most definitely not sexy. This Caddy is sexy.

 

[homeforsummer]

*Vid*

EXACTLY. World = instantly a better place.

The issue I have with the noise thing is that it assumes that all drivers are dumb and don't slow down a little if they see someone about to cross the road (particularly someone with a large white stick), and that all blind people are dumb and step into the road without warning if they do the sightless equivalent of having a quick careless glance.

As for the ELR, I agree with Brad - the price needs to be right too. But I reckon people will be prepared to pay for the tech. Volt sales have been slow compared to expectations but they increased almost constantly through 2012. Big awards and high customer satisfaction scores seem to be sinking in.

 

[FoolKiller]

EXACTLY. World = instantly a better place.

The issue I have with the noise thing is that it assumes that all drivers are dumb and don't slow down a little if they see someone about to cross the road (particularly someone with a large white stick), and that all blind people are dumb and step into the road without warning if they do the sightless equivalent of having a quick careless glance.

Have you seen drivers in America? In some places you can stop at a stop sign and get hit from behind, just to have that guy yell at you for stopping.

And blind people have been properly checking, but in a crowded city (where EV cars are most likely) the background noise is just too loud.

 

[David]

Have you seen drivers in America? In some places you can stop at a stop sign and get hit from behind, just to have that guy yell at you for stopping.

I prefer the guy who cuts me off in the left lane while we're doing 80 on the highway (meanwhile theres a mile of open road behind me) and then puts his arms up, flicks me off, tries to brake check me because I'm now too close to his bumper. Sorry I didn't slam on my breaks to let you cut me off immediately.

 

[Exorcet]

Cadillac coupe

The CTS-V coupe looks terrible. Why does the Volt get to look good?

 

[homeforsummer]

The CTS-V coupe looks terrible. Why does the Volt get to look good?

They need it to. Suspect the overheads are a lot higher. Gotta make it appealing.

 

[Tornado]

Have you seen drivers in America? In some places you can stop at a stop sign and get hit from behind, just to have that guy yell at you for stopping.

And blind people have been properly checking, but in a crowded city (where EV cars are most likely) the background noise is just too loud.

Plus, *stereotype about those Prius drivers who watch their MPG screen rather than watch the road*

 

[YSSMAN]

As for the ELR, I agree with Brad - the price needs to be right too. But I reckon people will be prepared to pay for the tech. Volt sales have been slow compared to expectations but they increased almost constantly through 2012. Big awards and high customer satisfaction scores seem to be sinking in.

Beyond that, I'm quite certain that there are a high number of Volt drivers/owners who want a more luxurious interior and driving experience. Especially when they're buying a car that MSRPs above $40k.

 

[homeforsummer]

Beyond that, I'm quite certain that there are a high number of Volt drivers/owners who want a more luxurious interior and driving experience. Especially when they're buying a car that MSRPs above $40k.

Probably right. People will already happily splash a fair bit of cash on one with a Chevy badge on, so I expect there are those who'd be prepared to spend extra for the Caddy.

My only question is whether the ELR gets too close in price to say, the 40 kWh Tesla Model S, which I think is around the $50k mark.

Now I know the base Model S is only about a ~150 mile range car, rather than the ~250-300 of the 85 kWh car (and ultimately, the ELR will be more usable for those embarking upon longer journeys now and then, even if Tesla's 'Supercharger' quick charging stations are beginning to appear), but depending on the ELR's price it might find itself uncomfortably close in price to something potentially with more cachet in the electric vehicle market.

 

[Keef]

I saw my first Leaf the other day. Conclusion: This isn't SoCal, and the market isn't ready for electric cars. We drive Chevy trucks. The Volt it a Chevy. It also runs on a small and efficient gas engine when the batteries run out which will happen because we're all retired from GM and like to go on vacations.

In the Tesla vs. ELR, the ELR wins hands down. GM has come up with a genius stopgap to the efficiency problem but many people won't respect that because they're GM and they make trucks.

 

[homeforsummer]

I dunno, I think the fact the Volt is GM helps it massively, at least in the U.S. In a nation where people are still generally proud of their domestic automakers, having GM produce one of the most high-profile high-tech cars on the road is quite a coup. Rightly or wrongly, I think for a lot of people it's their, "finally, I don't have to drive a Prius any more" experience.

The ELR is smart simply because people will already pay more for a Caddy, so might not blink as much at a slightly elevated price.

As for Tesla, they've basically just built a great product. It's getting rave reviews even from those who aren't naturally inclined towards electric cars, so it must be fairly good. Another five years down the line when they've got a 3-Series rival on the market, I suspect people will have begun to take it a bit more seriously.