Comments on: Consumer Reports Doesn’t Like Chevy’s Volt

By: Willhelm

Willhelm — Sun, 12 Jun 2011 18:06:36 +0000

the average age of the five cars at my house is 20 years old and all are still going strong with an average mileage of 250000 kilometers, some of them in the 4 and 5 hundreds

By: Andacar

Andacar — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 18:42:33 +0000

CU has been operating on this kind of double standard for decades, so this is no surprise.

By: Kurt Ernst

Kurt Ernst — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 12:41:32 +0000

Mark, GM originally targeted the Volt to just 5% – 10% of drivers, so even they admit it’s a narrow target audience.

By: Kurt Ernst

Kurt Ernst — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 12:40:05 +0000

Jim, you’re correct that Volts are currently selling above MSRP; worse, no one knows what the residual value of a 3 year old Volt will be. Financially, it’s a much bigger gamble than the Prius, which is a known entity.

Negating the difference in technology between the Volt and the Prius, I see them as two different approaches to the same end: fuel efficient commuting. An Acura TSX costs more than a Honda Accord, so how do people justify spending the additional money on the Acura? It’s all about personal choice.

I’d like to see two things in the next version of the Volt: a more fuel-efficient generator (turbo diesel, perhaps) and a higher performance “Volt SS”. I think both are entirely possible within the next five years.

By: Kurt Ernst

Kurt Ernst — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 11:59:01 +0000

eddie, thanks! I try to write car reviews that people actually want to read instead of just regurgitating data.

By: eddie_357

eddie_357 — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 06:32:24 +0000

with good places like consumer search, who list reviews of ordinary people, who needs CR anyway.as for cars i can depend on Kurt’s reviews,its like he answers to a panel of interested people, every question i think of; he allready answered it!

By: JimW311

JimW311 — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 06:26:28 +0000

The sentiment of this post is about financial sense. In that respect, I agree it doesn’t make any sense to get a volt. Right now you can’t get a volt at MSRP. It’s basically a few thousand more than that. So I can either get TWO prii or one volt. You mean to tell me I’m going to save about 20 grand in gas with a volt VS a prius? You have got to be kidding! Sorry, I am really trying hard to understand where you are coming from but I can’t.

By: Mason

Mason — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 03:32:17 +0000

I never liked CR and have never agreed with their reviews on products that I’ve personally owned, usually when reading a review that quotes CR, I just skip over it, my brain has programed itself to ignore it anymore. I always try to use sites or magazines that feature actual owners that can label specific pros and cons.

By: Mark Smith

Mark Smith — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 01:10:48 +0000

I think you missed the “stop and go” driving part. The Prius can do substantially better in those conditions with the ability to use the autostop effectively. I’d be willing to bet that, depending on the programming, the Volt didn’t do so well under those conditions.

I think that their bottom line is that for the difference in cost and the maturity of the technology, the Volt doesn’t make any sense. Sadly, I’ve come to the same conclusion after running through a bunch of commute scenarios. The Volt only really makes sense in a very narrow range of driving patterns.

By: Kurt Ernst

Kurt Ernst — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 20:23:41 +0000

Set, I agree and have been saying that for years. As objective as CR claims to me, in my experience personal opinion plays way too big a role there.