All that said, though, it's a cohesive and appealing look that lives up to the car's tech-forward powertrain. The design also carries echoes of the 2015 Honda Civic sedan, and the taillights evoke the older Subaru Legacy sedan to boot. Especially in the same color, they’ll look similar on the showroom floor-perhaps too similar-except the Cruze will start below $20,000 and the Volt starts above $33,000. Regrettably many of the Volt’s styling cues look similar to those of the Chevrolet Cruze compact four-door sedan. While the new Volt is less bluntly distinctive than the first version, it's fresh and appears to be popular among non-Volt owners, who dub it sporty and modern. The rear deck-while still high-is also less flat and plain than in the prior generation, and the liftgate has only a single glass panel now. There's a two-panel Chevrolet "grille" design, but it's made up of two distinctive flat-silver blanking plates with a sort of circuit-diagram pattern. Up front, the lights and fenders sweep back from the pointed nose. It qualifies for a $7,500 federal income-tax credit, a $1,500 California purchase rebate, and various other state, local, and corporate incentives. The base 2017 Volt LT starts around $34,000 before any incentives, and a fully optioned Volt Premier can reach $40,000 or more. Optional safety equipment includes adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitors, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-keeping assist with lane-departure warning, forward-collision warnings, and automatic emergency braking.Īll Volts come with power features keyless ignition automatic climate control, OnStar 4G LTE with a three-year subscription, a built-in wi-fi hot spot, and Apple CarPlay on the infotainment home screen. All models come with 10 airbags and a rearview camera as standard equipment. The IIHS calls the Volt a Top Safety Pick+ and federal testers give it five stars for safety, across the board. To call it a seat would be a stretch it's little more than a cushioned pad over the battery pack, with the wide battery tunnel requiring the occupant's legs to splay into the foot wells on either side. Responding to owner requests, Chevy has given the Volt a fifth seating position, though it's only for occasional use on short trips by small, lithe passengers. The front seats remain low to the ground, with good bolstering, while the the two rear outboard seats take the form of individual buckets. The Volt is reasonably comfortable for four adults. When temperatures drop significantly, that range may fall to 40 or 45 miles-and the engine will switch on to heat the cabin below freezing. Build quality in the several Volts we've tested has been excellent, and a range of 50 miles or more is realistic in temperate weather. Even when the range-extending engine switches on, the new Volt doesn't feel strained under full power, maintaining the smooth, silent feeling of electric drive. It's not a sport sedan, but it's easy and comfortable to drive, even somewhat calming. It has a heavy feel for its size, but the weight is situated low in the chassis, so it corners flat and has decent feel from the electric power steering. On the road, the Volt is remarkably quiet, smooth and vibration-free, and powerful when needed. An 8.9-gallon fuel tank and the larger battery give a rated range of 430 miles on electricity and gasoline together. For lowest energy use, its combustion process has been modeled to simulate the ultra-efficient Atkinson cycle under some circumstances. It delivers 101 hp at 5,600 rpm, and runs on regular (87-octane) gasoline. It's a 1.5-liter 4-cylinder from GM's latest global family of 3- and 4-cylinder engines. Once the battery is depleted, after 50 miles or so, the engine switches on and the Volt turns into a conventional hybrid car (until its next recharge) with an EPA rating of 42 mpg combined. Chevy quotes acceleration from 0 to 60 mph of about 8 seconds. Total output between the pair is 111 kilowatts (149 horsepower) and a remarkable 294 lb-ft of torque. As long as charge remains in the battery, the Volt's two motor-generators power the front wheels alone the engine never switches on even if maximum power if required, unlike most other plug-in hybrids. The 2017 Volt's T-shaped lithium-ion battery pack has a total capacity of 18.4 kilowatt-hours, giving it a stellar EPA rating of 53 miles of electric range, about one-third more than the 38 miles of 2013-2015 Volts. Inside, the new Volt retains the central display screen and instrument-cluster display of earlier models, but the cockpit is more intuitive, with conventional knobs for things like audio tuning and climate control that are much closer to standard Chevrolet interior hardware.
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