![]() ![]() The throttle is sharp, a bit jumpy at parking lot speeds, and it’s not difficult to start driving the Volt in the efficient way it encourages you to. Pushing down on the accelerator of this fun little Chev will result in a surge of torque, and the car takes off effortlessly. The 10.5:1 compression ratio of the engine means if you choose to do a ton of highway driving, you will inevitably dip into the gasoline side of the car, and it requires premium fuel. The 1.4L gasoline engine used as a generator is from the same series as seen in other GM offerings such as the Cruze (minus the turbocharger), and offers 83 lb-ft of torque. Being an electric vehicle, the torque is available instantly, and makes the car feel considerably peppier than it is and an absolute blast when darting around the city. ![]() Power from the Volt is 149 horsepower and 273 lb-ft of torque. Based on this, the typical urban buyer should be able to use the Volt without ever having to dip into the range extender system. Statistics say that the average Canadian drives 40km round trip for work on a daily basis. On a full charge, I was able to muster 63km out of the Volt, which isn’t bad at all. The gasoline engine under the hood serves as a generator to extend range should you have to drive it longer than the electric range will allow. Let’s straighten this out before getting further into this review this Chevrolet is a “series hybrid”, which means the car is driven solely by the electric motor. Others are disappointed that it’s not “fully electric” because it has an actual gas tank. A ton of people have written it off by calling it a hybrid, which it really isn’t. The Volt has a little bit of controversy around it. I was given the keys to a 2015 Chevrolet Volt for a weeklong test, and I was happy to finally play with one myself. In the past, we’ve driven a couple examples of Chevrolet’s electric offering, but it’s been in the warm months. What we’ve noticed in the past is that hybrid and plug-in electric vehicles work optimally with regards to overall range and driving dynamics in warmer weather, and that winter temperatures take a serious toll on these factors. We’ve had some high-end sports cars, affordable hot coupes, and of course, the usual plethora of green vehicles in our garage for review purposes. This winter has been a particularly interesting one.
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