NAIAS 2015: A Clearer View For The 2016 Chevrolet Volt

by Cameron Aubernon

Published: January 12th, 2015

naias 2015 a clearer view for the 2016 chevrolet volt

Fuzzy photos from the 2015 Consumer Electronics Show are one thing, official photos of the 2016 Chevrolet Volt are definitely another [Live photos now available – CA].

The second-gen five-passenger PHEV gets its motivation from a 1.5-liter DOHC I4 paired up with two electric motors that are 12 percent more efficient and 100 pounds lighter than the first-gen’s single motor unit. Electrical power comes from a new 18.4 kWh battery pack composed of 192 cells — 96 less than the previous pack — with weight reduced by 21 pounds. Zero to 30 is achieved in 2.6 seconds, while nought to 60 arrives in 8.4 seconds.

Charging can now be set to exclusively occur at home via GPS, where owners can arrange 120V charging levels (either eight amps or 12), have charging occur immediately or at another time, and set a departure time for every day of the week. The settings only need to be entered once, and the Volt will default to those settings upon arrival at the home garage, which should take 13 hours at 12 amps; 240V charging reduces the time to 4.5 hours.

Range is 50 miles on electric-only driving, 420 miles when the 1.5-liter is in play. Fuel economy is 41 mpg, jumping to 102 mpg-e with the electric motors.

Other features include: Chevrolet MyLink; rearview camera; increased use of high-strength steel throughout the body; on-demand energy rengeneration; illuminated charging port; and a redesigned portable 120V cord.

The 2016 Volt is set to arrive in showrooms during H2 2015.

#Chevrolet #Detroit2015 #MY2016 #Naias2015 #PHEVs #Volt

Cameron Aubernon

Seattle-based writer, blogger, and photographer for many a publication. Born in Louisville. Raised in Kansas. Where I lay my head is home.

More by Cameron Aubernon

Comments

Join the conversation

2 of 109 comments

Dal20402 on Jan 12, 2015

Curious about the leasing deals that will be offered on these. I agree it's pretty risky to own a PHEV at this point, with the technology moving so fast, but I might consider leasing one rather than buying another of the enthusiast sleds I usually dream about -- if the price were right. I like electric motoring - so quiet and tranquil, and when you do floor it you don't get any dirty looks.

Like Reply
Dal20402 on Jan 12, 2015

Curious about the leasing deals that will be offered on these. I agree it's pretty risky to own a PHEV at this point, with the technology moving so fast. But I might consider leasing one rather than buying another of the enthusiast sleds I usually dream about -- if the price were right. I like electric motoring. So quiet, smooth, and tranquil, and when you do floor it you don't get any dirty looks.

Like Reply

Recent Comments

Redapple2 Love the wheels
Redapple2 Good luck to them. They used to make great cars. 510. 240Z, Sentra SE-R. Maxima. Frontier.
Joe65688619 Under Ghosn they went through the same short-term bottom-line thinking that GM did in the 80s/90s, and they have not recovered say, to their heyday in the 50s and 60s in terms of market share and innovation. Poor design decisions (a CVT in their front-wheel drive "4-Door Sports Car", model overlap in a poorly performing segment (they never needed the Altima AND the Maxima...what they needed was one vehicle with different drivetrain, including hybrid, to compete with the Accord/Camry, and decontenting their vehicles: My 2012 QX56 (I know, not a Nissan, but the same holds for the Armada) had power rear windows in the cargo area that could vent, a glass hatch on the back door that could be opened separate from the whole liftgate (in such a tall vehicle, kinda essential if you have it in a garage and want to load the trunk without having to open the garage door to make room for the lift gate), a nice driver's side folding armrest, and a few other quality-of-life details absent from my 2018 QX80. In a competitive market this attention to detai is can be the differentiator that sell cars. Now they are caught in the middle of the market, competing more with Hyundai and Kia and selling discounted vehicles near the same price points, but losing money on them. They invested also invested a lot in niche platforms. The Leaf was one of the first full EVs, but never really evolved. They misjudged the market - luxury EVs are selling, small budget models not so much. Variable compression engines offering little in terms of real-world power or tech, let a lot of complexity that is leading to higher failure rates. Aside from the Z and GT-R (low volume models), not much forced induction (whether your a fan or not, look at what Honda did with the CR-V and Acura RDX - same chassis, slap a turbo on it, make it nicer inside, and now you can sell it as a semi-premium brand with higher markup). That said, I do believe they retain the technical and engineering capability to do far better. About time management realized they need to make smarter investments and understand their markets better.
Kwik_Shift_Pro4X Off-road fluff on vehicles that should not be off road needs to die.
Kwik_Shift_Pro4X Saw this posted on social media; “Just bought a 2023 Tundra with the 14" screen. Let my son borrow it for the afternoon, he connected his phone to listen to his iTunes.The next day my insurance company raised my rates and added my son to my policy. The email said that a private company showed that my son drove the vehicle. He already had his own vehicle that he was insuring.My insurance company demanded he give all his insurance info and some private info for proof. He declined for privacy reasons and my insurance cancelled my policy.These new vehicles with their tech are on condition that we give up our privacy to enter their world. It's not worth it people.”