General Motors just announced that the 2016 Chevrolet Volt will be able to go 53 miles with one battery charge beating the prediction by experts of 50 miles.
The second generation of the Volt offers a 40% improvement. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) certified and confirmed the range with which GM hopes to attract more customers and improve the sales of the vehicle.
According to Pam Fletcher, chief engineer in GM for electrified vehicles, the company knew they had to get over 50 miles in order to attract customers.
“Buyers showed the range is the top reason for buying the car”, said Fletcher in an interview after announcing the new vehicle.
With the range topping 50 miles, customers will now be able to drive in electric time for most of the time they spend in the car.
The Chevrolet Volt combines a gasoline burning with a lithium-ion battery for power. The 1.5 liter engine offers 420 miles of driving, while the 18.4 kWh battery will now provide more than 53 miles. The fuel economy of the car when powered by the gasoline engine reaches 42mpg. However, when customers drive the car on electricity alone, the MPG of the 2016 Chevrolet Volt goes up to 106.
At the moment, the drivers of the Volt use battery power for more than 80% of their trips. The expectations in GM are that with the improved battery life, customers will be able to use the Volt for 90% of their trips.
Apart from improvements in the mileage of the car, GM has also improved some other features of the Chevrolet Volt. Some of the improvements include the option to use regular gasoline as an alternative to the premium gasoline, faster acceleration, more power for the heater and a storage bin.
Even though GM made solid improvements in the mileage and features of the Volt, the second generation is actually $1,200 cheaper than the previous model. The base price for the 2016 Chevrolet Volt stands at $33,995 which includes destination charges. However, customers in some countries may be able to buy the car cheaper if you take federal incentives into account. For example, outside of California, the price can go down to $26,495. However, the customers who will want to take advantage of the quick recharge time, will need to pay a little more. The car ships with a standard 120V outlet that charges the battery in 13 hours. However, for the quick recharge time, customers will need to purchase a 240V outlet.
The second generation of the Chevrolet Volt will go on sale this fall, with high expectations in GM that sales should sky rocket as a result of the added mileage. This year General Motors managed to sell only 7,000 Volts which is one third less than what the company sold last year.
