Consumer Reports, what many could consider the Fox News of consumer evaluation publications, has just finished up its first evaluations on the Chevrolet Volt. Unsurprisingly, the critics were less than impressed by the car.
During their testing, CR claims that its Volt maintained a range between 25 to 27 miles of pure electric driving in Connecticut’s “extremely harsh weather”, constantly compared the car to the less advanced Toyota Prius, and complained about the cabin heating system and the battery’s hindered ability to warm up the cabin compared to a system using an internal combustion engine. If they understood that batteries produce much less heat than an engine, they would have expected this. Or maybe they did, and just felt like making waves. The critics also complained about the five-hour charging time, calling it “annoying”.
Hey, CR, the Droid wasn’t the first take on the cell phone. And to evaluate a cell phone like it was some kind of rotary dial land-line phone doesn’t make much sense, either. So to judge today’s EV or EREV like it was any other gasoline-powered car or hybrid doesn’t make much sense. We will be paying attention on what you will have to say about the more electric, much more Japanese Nissan LEAF to see if you keep things on an even keel (because your same gripes over the Volt will be found in the LEAF), and your final take on the Volt when your testing is finished.
Source: The Detroit News
Comments
“CR claims that its Volt maintained a range between 25 to 27 miles of pure electric driving in Connecticut’s “extremely harsh weather”, ” GM’s response was that the true range was 29-33 miles of electric driving. Doesn’t seem to be much difference.
Also there is NO question about the price of the Volt and the fact that ii is far more expensive than other high mileage gas powered cars like the Chevy Cruze. I contend the Cruze is a more economical choice than the Volt because of its lower initial cost. the Volt’s high price was the main point of the review.
The range comes as no surprise. Motor Trend is currently winter testing a Volt in Michigan and they are experiencing the same results in both range and cabin heat. However, Motor Trend knows better than to see the Volt as some Prius knockoff. And Motor Trend understands why the Volt’s cabin doesn’t heat as quickly as a typical ICE vehicle.
Also, it seems that every other publication besides Consumer Reports understands the price tag of the Volt. And consumers that buy the Volt are not just people that are looking to drive an EREV, but are also people that look to own the latest piece of technology. These are people that are unafraid and capable of throwing in more money to own the latest gadget, be it a computer, phone, television or car. So for CR to look at it from a dollars and cents perspective, really doesn’t make much sense at all.
GM needs to payoff CR like tuyota
When it comes to certain types of vehicles, CR shouldn’t even be consulted. From what I have seen, they tend over-generalize things and make unfair comparisons… not to mention their love affair with Toyota…..