Bolt no more

[ChasingCoral]

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/04/25/gm-bolt-ev-production-to-end-later-this-year.html

GM to end production of electric Chevy Bolt, its first mass-market EV, later this year
PUBLISHED TUE, APR 25 20238:57 AM EDTUPDATED AN HOUR AGO

Michael Wayland@MIKEWAYLAND
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KEY POINTS

• General Motors plans to stop production of its electric Chevrolet Bolt models by the end of this year, CEO Mary Barra told investors Tuesday.
• The Chevy Bolt EV and EUV, a larger version of the car, make up the vast majority of the company’s electric vehicle sales to date.
• The battery cells in the cars are an older design and chemistry than the automaker’s newer vehicles such as the GMC Hummer and Cadillac Lyriq, which utilize GM’s Ultium architecture.

UAW Local 5960 member Kimberly Fuhr inspects a Chevrolet Bolt EV during vehicle production on May 6, 2021, at the General Motors Orion Assembly Plant in Orion Township, Michigan.
Steve Fecht for Chevrolet

DETROIT – General Motors plans to stop production of its electric Chevrolet Bolt models by the end of this year, CEO Mary Barra told investors Tuesday when discussing the company’s first-quarter earnings.

The Chevy Bolt EV and EUV, a larger version of the car, make up the vast majority of the company’s electric vehicle sales to date. However, the battery cells in the cars are an older design and chemistry than the automaker’s newer electric vehicles such as the GMC Hummer and Cadillac Lyriq, which utilize GM’s Ultium architecture.

Barra said a suburban Detroit plant that has produced Chevy Bolts since 2016 will be retooled in preparation for production of electric Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra trucks scheduled for next year.

There’s irony in the timing of the Bolt getting axed. It comes amid record production and sales of the vehicle for mass-market consumers, which was GM’s initial goal.

General Motors CEO Mary Barra unveiled the Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicle during the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
Patrick T. Fallon | Bloomberg | Getty Images

The company plans to produce more than 70,000 Bolt models this year, as it targets to sell over 400,000 EVs from early 2022 through mid-next year in North America.

GM pushed the Bolt out ahead of the Tesla Model 3 in 2016. The two were considered to be the first long-range EVs designed for mainstream drivers, starting at around $35,000.

But Bolt sales never caught on as well as many executives hoped, as EV sales overall remained minuscule outside of Tesla. The Bolt also suffered a major setback more recently, as GM recalled all of the Bolts ever produced due to a supplier-related battery issue that caused several fires.

“When the Chevrolet Bolt EV launched, it was a huge technical achievement and the first affordable EV, which set in motion GM’s all-electric future,” Chevy spokesman Cody Williams said in a statement. “Chevrolet will launch several new EVs later this year based on the Ultium platform in key segments, including the Silverado EV, Blazer EV and Equinox EV. ”

The Vermont State Police released this photo of the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV that caught fire on July 1, 2021 in the driveway of state Rep. Timothy Briglin, a Democrat.
Vermont State Police

GM expects to launch its upcoming EVs far faster than it has its high-end Hummer models and Cadillac Lyriq, which have been rolling out at a snail’s pace compared with its traditional vehicles.

Barra said when the Orion, Michigan, plant, which currently produces the Bolts, reopens and reaches full production, employment will nearly triple, and the company will have capacity to build 600,000 electric trucks annually.

GM has set a target to reach production capacity of 1 million EVs annually in the U.S. and in China, each, as it attempts to catch up to industry leader Tesla.

The Bolt models, starting under $30,000, are the least expensive new electric vehicles on sale in the U.S. GM’s upcoming Equinox EV is expected to have a similar starting price when it arrives this fall.

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[SpaceEVDriver]

Well, that's a bummer. I hope they replace them with something that's still almost affordable.

 

[MacherAWD]

You can order a new Bolt in Mass for $16k after rebates. The value is amazing, having owned a Bolt LT I still tell people to buy one.

 

[AhardFSU]

Well, that's a bummer. I hope they replace them with something that's still almost affordable.

According to the GM spokesperson, the Equinox EV will be the replacement bc it’s supposed to start around ~30k.

Now, we all know that history has shown that dealers will add markups and the manufacturer will adjust the price higher several times before settling on a final price. If I had to guess, we’ll see the Equinox EV start somewhere near 30k but end up at 40k.

 

[highland58]

Hopefully my wife's new Bolt EUV Premier will arrive soon, 3 weeks since it was produced, but not yet on a train it appears.

 

[Blue highway]

GM has completely failed to ramp up production of any Ultium based car. I'd guess they think they will be able to by the end of the year when a car the CAN produce goes out of production... we will see.

 

[Maquis]

I wonder if they’ll collect them all and send to the crusher? There is a precedent! ?

 

[Anthropod]

Crazy! I was thinking about picking one up. Now I'm not so sure. Remember the spark? What do you think support will be like?

 

[devmach-e]

Crazy! I was thinking about picking one up. Now I'm not so sure. Remember the spark? What do you think support will be like?

With over 200K in the field, support will be fine.

 

[devmach-e]

I wonder if they’ll collect them all and send to the crusher? There is a precedent! ?

Did they do that for the Cruze or Volt? Or any of the Saturns?

 

[azerik]

EV1 is dead
Long live the EV1
(Crusher noises)
Thankfully the Bolt will be around town for a couple more years. I did get to watch a bolt owner try to figure out why I was getting 105kw while he was getting 50kw (which is expected but I guess he didn't know that as he kept stopping and starting the charge)

Did they do that for the Cruze or Volt? Or any of the Saturns?

They did it to the EV1

 

[devmach-e]

EV1 is dead
Long live the EV1
(Crusher noises)
Thankfully the Bolt will be around town for a couple more years. I did get to watch a bolt owner try to figure out why I was getting 105kw while he was getting 50kw (which is expected but I guess he didn't know that as he kept stopping and starting the charge)


They did it to the EV1

EV-1's were lease-only vehicles. Totally different from the Bolts. False equivalency.

 

[highland58]

EV1 is dead
Long live the EV1
(Crusher noises)
Thankfully the Bolt will be around town for a couple more years. I did get to watch a bolt owner try to figure out why I was getting 105kw while he was getting 50kw (which is expected but I guess he didn't know that as he kept stopping and starting the charge)

Yes, the Bolts and EUVs only fast charge up to 50kw rate. If most of your charging is at home then not a big deal. My wife mostly drives local and we have never fast charged her LEAF (chademo yuch) If we will do a road trip it will be in the Mach-E. At least that person did not try to put gas in the Bolt.

 

[AhardFSU]

GM has completely failed to ramp up production of any Ultium based car. I'd guess they think they will be able to by the end of the year when a car the CAN produce goes out of production... we will see.

^^^Yes they (GM), specifically Mary Barra over-promised, mainly to Wall Street analysts for stock market purposes and they really underwhelmed in terms of production with the Hummer EV and the Lyric. She was too busy telling Wall Street that they would produce more EVs than Tesla at the same time they were/are struggling to manufacture the Ultium cars in the high volumes they promised. I expect the same sort of underwhelming production for their EVs that are due to be released this summer and in the fall.

 

[MyLittlePony2022]

I liked the look of the Bolt and I think car companies are not doing a service to consumers by producing all high mileage EV's, that cost $30K and up. There still needs to be a market for economically priced EV's that do not necessarily have an extended range. Many EV users only go short distances and these cars are, in a sense, in-town cars. There will always be a market for high mileage cars. Yes, I cannot wait for the standard EV to get 500 plus miles per charge. I would buy one. However, that is not what everyone wants.

Think about retired people on a fixed income and are not traveling longer distances. They need something affordable and can be used for the shorter driving distances. My friend leased a VW E-Golf for something like $150 a month. Low cost, lower mileage and a good card. The industry needs to produce those types of cars along with the $180K Lucid. f not, only those that are well off can afford EV's. Everyone should have the opportunity feel the instant power of an EV.

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