The Decision
Dec 10th
See, LeBron and I have something in common. Both of us had very important “decisions” to make and we both put them out there for the world to criticize. Good thing we both get paid roughly the same… plus or minus a few million… divided by two… minus ten.
The time has come to figure out what car makes sense. There are five cars I have really looked seriously at. The Chevrolet Cruze, Chevrolet Volt, Nissan Leaf, Nissan Juke and Ford Fiesta. My brain says stick to your gut and go with the electric option. That immediately gets my list down to two. The Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt.
Please come with me on a Journey of rationalization.
Nissan Leaf
Pros
- All electric, All the time – 98% of my driving could be accomplished with the Leaf.
- No tailpipe – Zero emissions all the time.
- Price - You pay for the tech but the base price of the car really isn’t that bad considering the standard features.
- Maintenance - No oil changes, less fluids to maintain. Hardware simplicity.
- $7,500 Government Tax Credit – This is Gravy. Brings the price of the car easily under 30k.
- $5,000 California Rebate – Now this is getting silly. With 5k factored in we are talking Prius type money.
- What Smog? – No California smog check EVER! Not now, not later. Did I mention EVER!
- HOV Lane – Single car HOV Lane access in California. Prius and Hybrid Civic owners (early adopters anyway) have had this forever.
- Misc Perks – Free street parking at Santa Monica Meters, free park and charge at LAX, etc.
Cons
- Range - 60 to 100 miles depending on conditions. My parents live roughly 100 miles from my current location. Can I consistently make it there on a single charge? Even if so once I get there is it likely that I will be able to leave the car plugged into an opportunity outlet for 20 hours for the return trip? I’ve looked at infrastructure maps and don’t see a good option for Level 2 public chargers along the route.
- Charging - 240v is pretty much required. At my current residence getting a Level 2 charger installed is a process I don’t look forward to. Even if I can get my landlord’s permission I am not sure there is a clean way to get the 240v charger installed at my place.
- Availability – I hemmed and hawed when the reservations went up so I doubt I will see a Leaf I can buy until well into the latter half of 2011 and that is being optimistic.
- Styling – I don’t dislike the look of the Leaf but at the same time I don’t love it either.
Chevrolet Volt
Pros
- What Range Anxiety – Keep going and going and going as long as you keep feeding the tank. No problems visiting the parents in this car. While we only get 40% of that drive on electric at least I know we will make it all the way
- Electric most of the time – My daily commute is 50 miles round trip. I should be able to just about make it to work and back on a single charge.
- 110v charger is a ok – Overnight charge on 110v is all I need. No worry about getting a 240v charger installed.
- Looking good - I really like the way this car looks. From front to back, top to bottom.
- Availability - While I don’t think it will be super simple to find one. I know they are becoming available.
- American made - Made in Detroit by hard working Americans. Always a plus in my book.
- Loaded from the get go – Feature packed. There are a ton of goodies coming standard with the base model. Bluetooth, Nav, Upgraded audio and Advanced displays. The interior feels a little more high end than the Leaf.
- California Smog check – Currently the Volt is treated like other hybrid type cars and do not require biannual smog checks for registration. (Mini Con: Who knows if this will last. California will figure out how to get more of my money somehow).
Cons
- Expensive – $7,500 from the government helps but the base price is at the upper end.
- No California rebate - Sadly model year 2011 does not qualify for the $5,000 California rebate.
- No HOV Access – Just like the 5k rebate the Volt is not currently HOV enabled.
- Misc perks – Car is so unique that places don’t know how to classify it. Unknown if perks like Santa Monica free meter parking and LAX free park and charge are applicable.
- Not 100% Electric – I would drive electric most of the time but the reality is you are still going to burn gas at some point.
- Complicated engineering – Just a lot going on this under the hood of this car. Maintenance is bound to be higher than a more simple design. Oil changes, while not as frequent as a traditional ICE, are still required.
Really there is no loser here so I have to go with my gut and it says:
- I need to go at least 100 miles to visit the family.
- 240v charger is not an option right now so it has to work well off of 110v.
- Supporting Detroit and American auto workers.
I really dig the Leaf and the idea of 100% electric but I just can’t get past these three issues. I am sure in the future all of these things become non issues but right now…
Volt, you win my heart.
Volt drive complete
Dec 6th
I hit up the GM Main Street in Motion event yesterday and finally drove the Volt… and Cruze… and Camero… Convertible Corvette, Nissan Murano, Buick Regal, Ford F150, Acura TL and a few others I don’t even remember now. We just jumped in cars when the line was short
Very cool setup. GM had stations set up with various car classes so in the Chevy Sedan area you would have the Cruze, Fusion, Civic, Malibu, Corolla and you could drive each one around a small cone track in the parking lot of the Santa Anita racetrack. There were about 5 stations total so you had the Compact Sedans, Luxury Sedans, SUV and Trucks, Performance/Sports and the Volt each separated out.
My first stop was the compact Sedans because GM was making you drive the Cruze first before allowing you to drive the Volt. It seems like GM is using the Volt as a gateway car to get people into the car that is readily available to buy. I get it, the Volt is a unique product and limited so why not use it to expose people to the “new” GM. It worked for me. I like the the Cruze at the LA Auto Show and driving it didn’t change that. If I wasn’t dead set at my next car having some type of electric engine I would put the Cruze on my short list.
We immediately headed over to the Volt area to stand in line now that my prerequisite was done Chevy had a Volt sitting open that you could sit in and manhandle. A rep was there to talk about all of the selling features. At this point I just wanted to drive it so we stood in line and awaited our turn. I listened in as the rep talked to people in line about the car. No new earth shattering information is coming out but it was a good way to pass the time. It looks like they have about 5 cars cycling in and out. It probably takes us 15 minutes to get to the front of the line.
We get into the car and our GM Rep goes over the basics. Our car is running on battery at this point so we smoothly accelerate off onto the course. The Volt track ventures out past the event parking and about half way through the car started chirping at me. It appears that in all of the excitement I forgot to put on my seatbelt. You think you are so smart Volt… we will see… we will see. A quick click and the rest of the drive was incident free. The track was really short, the whole drive must have lasted 3-4 minutes. At least there was one small segment that let you floor the accelerator to get a feel for the torque.
With the drive portion over I headed to the stationary car to get more alone time with the gadgets and take a peek under the hood. The girlfriend is not nearly as impressed with the styling of this car as I am. She dislikes the black detail under the window but we press on with the inspection I spent about 15 minutes in the drivers seat punching buttons and twisting knobs. Far less pressure here than at the Auto Show where lines of people breath down your neck as you sit in the car. Folded down the rear seats to check out the cargo area, seems pretty spacious. Checked out the trunk storage area where the charge cable and tire inflation kit are stored, nice little compartments to store items away in this area as well. So for me the Volt picture is now complete and what a surprise… I still like it
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