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The Sicilian posted:Yes, better sell the compact Euro brand that is supplying half of Buick's lineup to sell more trucks and suvs. GM has such foresight sometimes, better continue lobbying for decreased EPA regs while they are at it. Since 2008 Opel has been involved in exactly 2 Buick models, the Regal and the Cascada, that today barely rack up 1,000 sales a month.
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Mar 7, 2017 02:41
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Ola posted:Kind of bad news for the Ampera-E, perhaps good news in the long run. What will happen to the opel gt concept?!?
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Mar 7, 2017 08:39
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What is maintenance like on newer Volts? Still trying to decide whether to go with that or a Leaf in the next couple of months. How are things like oil changes in the Volt handled if you drive 99% on electric only?
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Mar 7, 2017 23:36
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Ciaphas posted:What is maintenance like on newer Volts? Still trying to decide whether to go with that or a Leaf in the next couple of months. Mostly tire rotations (no jack or lug wrench included FYI) and coolant checks 2 years or 10000 engine miles on oil changes Forced gas burn around the 1 year mark to purge the fuel tank
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Mar 8, 2017 02:24
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KozmoNaut posted:Camera-based "mirrors" are probably never going to replace actual mirrors. With a mirror, you're looking "through" the mirror into the distance, so you're focusing on roughly the same distance as looking at the road ahead. With a monitor, your eyes have to adjust to an object right up in your face, which takes time and can be uncomfortable to do quickly. The Bolt has a wide-angle display option with the mirror and it's very good. You get used to the different focal length in minutes. If anything it's the fact that the view is from lower down than you expect (cameras are above the license plate) that takes more time to adjust to.
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Mar 8, 2017 03:22
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Sagebrush posted:The most critical problem with using a camera as a mirror, to me, is that you can't temporarily adjust the angle of view by moving your head. The camera only sees what it's pointed at, and to see anything else you have to move it around. This is why it gives you 180 degrees of the view behind. It's really quite good!
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Mar 8, 2017 03:24
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Goober Peas posted:Mostly tire rotations (no jack or lug wrench included FYI)  Goober Peas posted:and coolant checks Cool, thanks. How does the forced burn work, is it an automatic thing or just something I need to remember to eventually do?
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Mar 9, 2017 00:57
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Ciaphas posted:
The 'puter does all the work. There will be a message on the display, then the gas generator will come on. It will do this until any fill-up will dilute the stale gas.
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Mar 9, 2017 19:37
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Neat! To me the Volt seems like the better car all around, but the idiot purist in me still wants to lease a car that doesn't have an ICE at all. 
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Mar 9, 2017 21:49
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Ciaphas posted:Neat! Yes you are an idiot purist then. Other reasons you might want a Leaf over a Volt: More headroom, More Cargo Capacity, Cheaper. Disclosure: I work for GM.
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Mar 9, 2017 22:48
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That's why I bought a Leaf, it's not an ICE. Used they are cheap enough that I could keep my primary ICE car on the side and have the Leaf as a commuter-mobile. You can get a used Leaf for cheaper payments and less money overall than leasing a new one and you can sell it again or drive it into the ground. After reading a bunch of forums posts from Leaf owners where after 4 or 5 years their only maintenance costs were tires and windshield wipers, that sealed the deal. If everything goes to plan in 2-3 years my Leaf will be "free," as my monthly payment is less than I spent on gas commuting before I even factor in oil changes and other maintenance. In that time I will probably sell it and buy another used EV. If I were only to be confined to a single car then a Volt looks really appealing.
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Mar 9, 2017 23:00
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I'll probably be leasing new either way. For me it comes down to whether I'm ok with the more limited Leaf range when I can only charge 110v at home as my only car. Living alone helps in this case at least.
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Mar 9, 2017 23:39
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Yeah, you're going to be frustrated with the Leaf unless you get a 240V charger. Less so with the Volt (but still likely).
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Mar 10, 2017 00:55
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drat me for renting an apartment then, I guess. You'd think they'd be more amenable to me calling an electrician for the 220/240 wiring, considering the laundry room (and its 240v dryer) is abutting the garage.
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Mar 10, 2017 01:39
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Yes I had only 120v charging for the first few days before I installed 240 in my garage myself. Not a tenable situation, it would take over 20 hours to charge from 15% so I would only be in the mid 80s before leaving for work and needed to charge at work to make it home. L2 at home is amazing. I drive 70 miles minimum each day though so maybe it's not as critical for you.
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Mar 10, 2017 02:43
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I've had my 2013 Leaf for 3.5 years and only ever charged on 120v. Helps that I rarely need a full charge, 2 days in a row. Think I've had to resort to my other car 3 times total for range concerns, mid way through a day. If you need the full range, you will certainly need 240 though. Best car in winter to just get in and go, warm air 2 blocks in and the heated steering/seats are just as fast. Oh, if you live somewhere that gets to -20f, don't expect more than 40 miles with heat on.
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Mar 10, 2017 03:13
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Same here, 2015 Leaf and I've only ever charged it on 120V at home. My commute is 50km round trip and it's reliably charged to full in the morning. If I drain the battery almost completely (2-3 commutes without charging, depending on season -- or a trip to the in-laws'), it won't be fully charged the next morning, but it'll be close enough to get me to work and back.
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Mar 10, 2017 03:55
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I'm glad to hear about the success stories for folks only using 120v charging. The realities of trying to find a reasonably priced place to live are setting in, and it's looking like the apartment lifestyle is my permanent thing going forward. That said, for some odd and awesome reason, Atlanta is chock-full of CHAdeMO/CCS chargers according to PlugShare, so if I hit an "oh poo poo" moment I can get an 80% charge in a half hour and let it soak up the last 20% at home.
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Mar 10, 2017 16:41
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drgitlin posted:The Bolt has a wide-angle display option with the mirror and it's very good. You get used to the different focal length in minutes. If anything it's the fact that the view is from lower down than you expect (cameras are above the license plate) that takes more time to adjust to. I think it would be really nice for parking, but I would probably still use the normal mirror for actual driving.
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Mar 10, 2017 16:52
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Ripoff posted:I'm glad to hear about the success stories for folks only using 120v charging. The realities of trying to find a reasonably priced place to live are setting in, and it's looking like the apartment lifestyle is my permanent thing going forward. That said, for some odd and awesome reason, Atlanta is chock-full of CHAdeMO/CCS chargers according to PlugShare, so if I hit an "oh poo poo" moment I can get an 80% charge in a half hour and let it soak up the last 20% at home. Yeah, my apartment complex has regular 120v outlets, but the one across the street has a public level 2 charger that I can use if I need charging quicker. It's worked great for me so far. And someone mentioned maintenance, I just did the five year maintenance on my 2011 Leaf, only had to replace the tires and wipers. Everything else is still fine (other than the battery which I really need to get around to warranty replacing).
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Mar 10, 2017 18:00
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Phuzun posted:I've had my 2013 Leaf for 3.5 years and only ever charged on 120v. Helps that I rarely need a full charge, 2 days in a row. Think I've had to resort to my other car 3 times total for range concerns, mid way through a day. If you need the full range, you will certainly need 240 though. I have the opposite problem where it gets to +120f in the worst parts of summer  I don't need the full range of even the Volt on electric most days; my daily commute is 20 miles round trip and I don't do much driving otherwise. The Mazda3 I'm about to turn in after 3 years leasing has about 17k on the odo 
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Mar 10, 2017 19:45
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Ciaphas posted:I have the opposite problem where it gets to +120f in the worst parts of summer Leaf would be fine for you then. 20 miles round trip keeps it within range at the worst. Maybe don't go 100% in the heat to avoid battery issues, not sure. We get maybe a month of 90+f heat, and haven't lost any range in 15k miles. The sweet spot is the 60-80f, when I don't run AC or heat.
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Mar 10, 2017 23:57
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Speaking of, for you more experienced Leafers: what's the impact of the AC on range? Is it as less or more than the heater in winter? 95F ish running the AC like you would in an ICE car. There is lots of info about the heater but less about the AC and I'm curious.
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Mar 11, 2017 00:24
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Vitamin J posted:Speaking of, for you more experienced Leafers: what's the impact of the AC on range? Is it as less or more than the heater in winter? 95F ish running the AC like you would in an ICE car. There is lots of info about the heater but less about the AC and I'm curious. I found the AC to be practically nothing compared to the heat element heat, I did not have the heat pump heat.
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Mar 11, 2017 21:36
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Vitamin J posted:Speaking of, for you more experienced Leafers: what's the impact of the AC on range? Is it as less or more than the heater in winter? 95F ish running the AC like you would in an ICE car. There is lots of info about the heater but less about the AC and I'm curious. Had 2 leafs over 6 years (lease the first one, bought the 2nd) - AC made almost zero difference. Like everyone else says here - its all about the heat. Pre 2014? leafs don't have a great heating system and the newer ones are much better.
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Mar 12, 2017 00:54
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Vitamin J posted:Speaking of, for you more experienced Leafers: what's the impact of the AC on range? Is it as less or more than the heater in winter? 95F ish running the AC like you would in an ICE car. There is lots of info about the heater but less about the AC and I'm curious. It's less. In my 2012 I estimated it was 10-15%.
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Mar 12, 2017 05:36
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for what it's worth; the heated steering wheels and seats don't seem to have a huge impact on the battery, just the heat.
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Mar 12, 2017 07:38
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Rented a Tesla S85D through an AirBnB-for-cars type of service to go skiing yesterday. Annoyingly, the autopilot and CC was disabled for some computer-says-no reason. I had really looked forward to a comfy longer drive on adaptive CC. I'd skip autopilot as the low sun, many tunnels and varied markings along that road makes it more tiring to babysit a computer than to simply steer. But once we got on snow and uphill, it was very impressive. I tried to provoke it in a tight corner, and while a 2+ ton car will definitely punish stupidity, the precise response makes it very easy to feel the grip going away before it actually does. I almost felt like I could react just as fast as the anti-spin. All in all it leaves a big margin for dumbness and in drivetrain terms it is the best winter car I've ever driven. Downhill on ice with non-studded tires would be a different story though. Very bumpy road as well, got to feel the air suspension out. It's not a Rolls Royce which makes a battlefield feel like a ballroom, but while you can feel all the bumps, they all feel quite nice. Drove the same road a week ago in my mom's Mazda2 with four people in it and can say with confidence those were some very deep ruts and sharp bumps. Raised it up to "very high" and kept having to re-raise it when I got to a smooth bit, passed 37 or so kph and it was automatically lowered to high. I could probably have driven fine on high, but the interface is typical of so many fancy features designed by a California coder. It might look smart on a whiteboard, but it's just fiddly and annoying in practice. Still, it's one of those first world problems I think would be able to soldier through and cope with. The car was a 2015 with 78k km and it had some issues in addition to the inop autopilot, like gouges in the side windows from a maladjusted mechanism. Oh well, it's not only a warranty issue but it's somebody else's warranty issue! At the moment I don't need a car in my day-to-day and even if I did I couldn't afford a new Model S - and if I could afford an early Model S, I don't think I'd get one. But I can rent and use a Tesla for an outdoors weekend day every now and then, and pay less over a year than just the insurance would cost. That rocks! Ola fucked around with this message at 12:32 on Mar 19, 2017 |
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Mar 19, 2017 12:28
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BMW getting more specific on their EV strategy. Specifically, in the nearest term, an all-electric MINI in 2019, and an all-electric BMW X3 in 2020. Not bad! https://electrek.co/2017/03/22/bmw-electric-vehicle-plans/ Just don't skimp on the god damned battery packs.
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Mar 22, 2017 19:28
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Ola posted:Just don't skimp on the god damned battery packs. If Tesla's gigafactory is up and running and their Model 3 is actually around $30k post-incentives, and since Chevrolet already got 200+ mikes out of the Bolt, I've got the feeling the message is loud and clear for BMW that anything under a 200-mile range won't be taken seriously. Also I'm one of the weirdos out there that really likes MINI's cars and am stupid excited over the idea of an electric Mini. The X3 is a great idea as well for the SUV-worshipping American public, but what I really want BMW to do is get fuckin' weird and crank out carbon-fiber chassis 2/3-series with an electric drivetrain that cranks out around 350HP. Then offer the same super-light chassis with a boosted to all hell 4 cylinder engine.  What I'm saying is I want a modern E30, I guess.
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Mar 23, 2017 10:55
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Jabronie posted:for what it's worth; the heated steering wheels and seats don't seem to have a huge impact on the battery, just the heat. I remember hearing that the Volt was equipped with heated seats specifically to help people use the heater less often.
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Mar 23, 2017 13:29
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Doesn't the Volt heat the engine up to heat the car?
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Mar 23, 2017 15:27
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Ripoff posted:If Tesla's gigafactory is up and running and their Model 3 is actually around $30k post-incentives, and since Chevrolet already got 200+ mikes out of the Bolt, I've got the feeling the message is loud and clear for BMW that anything under a 200-mile range won't be taken seriously. BMW made the modern E30 with the 1-series Coupe 128i sport package, but nobody bought it other than junior ad agency managers (and me, I bought it too). It was really quite good.
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Mar 23, 2017 16:14
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Elephanthead posted:Doesn't the Volt heat the engine up to heat the car? If the outside temperature is below your setting then yes, if not then no. I think there are settings for 32f and one down in the teens. Outside that, no it's got an 6kw electric heater that will happily suck every last ounce of juice out of your battery. I keep mine on the lower setting, and I've never had the engine kick on due to temperature, though I live in the south.
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Mar 23, 2017 16:17
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KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:BMW made the modern E30 with the 1-series Coupe 128i sport package, but nobody bought it other than junior ad agency managers (and me, I bought it too). It was really quite good. Except droopy rocker panels.
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Mar 23, 2017 16:22
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Cockmaster posted:I remember hearing that the Volt was equipped with heated seats specifically to help people use the heater less often. The Leaf certainly was, and heated steering. Which is amazing once you've had it. Warm hands and butt really helps in freezing temps.
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Mar 23, 2017 16:49
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Ola posted:The car was a 2015 with 78k km and it had some issues in addition to the inop autopilot, like gouges in the side windows from a maladjusted mechanism. Oh well, it's not only a warranty issue but it's somebody else's warranty issue! Tesla's bumper-to-bumper warranty is a figure that's around an industry average, 4yr/50k miles, whichever is first. So they better get that checked out in the next couple thousand km  Not that most Tesla owners would have to give much thought to the financial cost of a run-of-the-mill repair. Michael Scott fucked around with this message at 17:09 on Mar 23, 2017 |
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Mar 23, 2017 17:06
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blugu64 posted:If the outside temperature is below your setting then yes, if not then no. I think there are settings for 32f and one down in the teens. Outside that, no it's got an 6kw electric heater that will happily suck every last ounce of juice out of your battery. The trick - especially if you have a 240v charger - is to preheat the car 10 minutes before you get in - while it's still on the charger. That way you're replacing the charge used to heat your car.
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Mar 23, 2017 17:22
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Goober Peas posted:The trick - especially if you have a 240v charger - is to preheat the car 10 minutes before you get in - while it's still on the charger. That way you're replacing the charge used to heat your car. My wife and I have our CMax's programmed to heat up/cool off 10 minutes prior to when we typically leave the house in the morning and our offices in the evenings. It gets everything where it should be while still plugged in. It's funny how different my wife and I approach driving a plug in, though. I asked her the other day how many miles she manages on pure EV on her way to work, and she had no idea. She's been driving this car for 5 months and she claims she's never paid attention to to range or what she's managed to eek out of it. She drive it like a normal car, and that's that. Like many of you, I treat it like a video game, and I just can't imagine not falling for the gameification of it all. I had a 2001 Honda Insight when they came out, and driving it like it was a video game was the only thing that made my terrible commute worth doing. What's really funny is that I'll hop in my Abarth convertible on the weekends and drive it like a lunatic rear end in a top hat, lucky to manage 20mpg out of a 1.4L in a car the size of a shoe. Then, come Monday, I'm in the slow lane feathering the accelerator in the cMax to try to snag an extra 0.01 miles of EV.
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Mar 23, 2017 18:12
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I got to check out the Lucid Air yesterday. I hope this thing makes it to production because it will rock if it does: https://arstechnica.com/cars/2017/03/tesla-might-have-real-competition-soon-meet-the-lucid-air/
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Mar 23, 2017 18:55
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