What Electric Vehicle to Buy? A Chevy Bolt EV or a Tesla Model 3?
Check out the 2020 Chevrolet Bolt Premier Edition EV You Are What You Drive — A Bottom Line Review
The Bottom Line: The educated guess is that electric vehicles will take 10% of the global passenger vehicle sales market by 2025, with that number rising to 28% in 2030, and 58% in 2040. According to the same study, EVS currently make up only 3% of global car sales today.
In America, with over 17 million vehicles sold last year, EV sales were a fraction of all new car sales at less than 1.5%. In 2019 a little more than 245,000 EVS were sold in the U.S. That’s not even a blip on the new car sales radar screen. Electric vehicles have been for sale for over 10 years now, and they have yet to catch on as a true sales category.
General Motors has launched several electric cars over the years, starting with the experimental EV1 20 years ago. Next came the Chevy Volt, then the Cadillac ELR, and now the Chevy Bolt as GM’S leader in EV sales. But with only 16,419 Chevy Bolts sold in all of 2019, electric vehicles have a long way to go in the United States to make a dent in retail sales. To try and make that sales dream happen GM has upped their game by building an upscale EV electric vehicle, called the Chevrolet Bolt EV Premier Edition.
This week Chevy sent me a 2020 Bolt Premier EV to test drive and review. This model has a base price of $41,020. The options on the test car are: DC Fast Charging Provisions for $750, the Infotainment Package for $595, and the Driver Confidence II Package for $495. The total MSRP manufacturer’s suggested retail price, including the $875 destination charge, came to: $43,735.
To put this in perspective the Chevy Premier Edition Bolt was designed to do a sales battle with the Tesla Model 3 electric car. While the Tesla outsells the Bolt 3 to 1, you cannot buy a model 3 for $40,000. Most Model 3’s cost near $60 Grand. So the Bolt is a real good buy in the electric car world. And in my opinion, it looks a heck of a lot better than any Tesla Model 3.
Technology is always in the forefront of any electric car purchased. The Bolt has all that covered with a 10.2” multi color touch screen center display stack with Bluetooth, Voice Command, Android Auto, Apple Carplay, Siriusxm Radio, Remote Start, and Onstar 4G connectivity.
The exterior sports 17” Ultra Bright Machined and Painted 5 Twin Spoke Alloy Wheels with Puncture Sealing All Season Blackwall tires, HID projector headlamps, LED daytime running lamps, Outside Heated Power Mirrors with turn signals, and Satin Finish Roof Rack Rails with Black Lower Side Sills.
The interior has Heated Leather Seats, 60/40 Split Heated Rear Seats, a Tilt & Telescoping Leather Wrapped Steering Wheel, and a fold down rear center armrest.
The Premier Edition also comes with a Bose 7 Speaker Audio System with a wireless charging pad, 2 USB ports and a AUX input jack.
It’s nice to have tech and comfort, but with electric cars it’s really all about the mileage you can get with a full charge. The Chevy Bolt is an electric vehicle that offers an EPA estimated 259 miles of driving range on a full battery charge. The battery size affects the mileage range of the car. For example, the Model 3 has a smaller battery, and on a full charge it can drive up to 250 miles. So with the Bolt you get a competitive electric car that can drive further, for about $20 Grand less than a Tesla Model 3.
Remember the Chevy Bolt starts at only $36,620. Not cheap, but way less than the competition. The Tesla Model 3 starts at $35,000, but you can not buy one from Tesla for the starting price. They build all their cars with added options to raise the selling price to around $55,000 at window sticker.
The Chevy Bolt is billed as the affordable all electric car. With seating for 5, higher driving miles per battery charge, a lower base price, it’s better looking than the Tesla, and an option list that meets, or exceeds all the EV competition at this price point. The Chevy Bolt turns out to be the logical winner in today’s electric car race.
Call, click or visit your local Chevrolet dealer for a test drive and a price review. Then ask about current federal, state and local electric vehicle incentives, plus any GM EV buyer rebates, and you could be parking a brand new Chevy Bolt in your driveway for way less than you thought.
A word to the wise is sufficient. Be Smart, Stay Safe, and Just Breathe. Remember “You Are What You Drive ©” And maybe, just for those reasons alone, you should “Drive one, Buy one, Today ©” .