High Boltage.

By Peter M. DeLorenzo

Detroit. Well, it has been an interesting week, to say the least. Some readers out there took great umbrage with my adventure with the all-electric Chevrolet Bolt, suggesting that The Autoextremist was dead, R.I.P. WordGirl predicted as much, saying that I would be pilloried relentlessly for having the temerity to experience BEV ownership for myself. She was right, of course (she usually is). 

But for those out there insistent that this marks the end for The Autoextremist, all I can say is that reports of my demise have been greatly exaggerated. I certainly don’t have to prove my automotive credibility after creating content for this site for going on 22 years. I’m not being boastful in saying that my accumulated automotive experiences have been beyond noteworthy, and I savor each and every moment and take none of them for granted. My experience with some of the most legendary high-performance cars alone is enough to fill three books, so, I don’t feel it necessary to justify my automotive existence or pay much attention to those who suggest I’m “dead” for going electric. In fact, going electric may be the most extreme thing I could have done at this juncture.

So, for being a V8 guy through and through, how is the Bolt so far? I have a few thoughts in no particular order. First of all, the look of the Bolt is crisply executed and looks more substantial in person than you might think, especially in the “Summit White” color I have. And from what I know about the next-gen Bolt that’s coming, the size of the Bolt will increase slightly as it evolves to more of a crossover look.

I find the interior, which has been criticized, to be better in some respects than the reviews indicate, but there are some faults. I think the aesthetics are quite good overall, but I would prefer that the materials were more adventurous. I applaud the interior design team on the Bolt for pushing the envelope a bit, but they didn’t push it enough for my tastes. (My frame of reference in this case is the interior of the under-appreciated BMW i3, which I still consider to be the leader in this department and by quite a bit, even more than Tesla.) Functionally, the interior of the Bolt is quite good. The instrumentation is clean and ultra-legible, and the center-stack presentation is contemporary and instantly informative. The one glaring aspect of the Bolt interior that needs addressing are the seats; they’re too thin and not supportive enough. I expect the next-gen Bolt interior to be much better than the current one. I will be very disappointed if it isn’t.

But the one thing that the AE readers want to know, especially those who would only relinquish their V8s if and when their cold dead hands are pried off the steering wheels, is what about the driving? How does the Bolt feel? I think the basis for their queries are justified in that they’re starting from the perspective that somehow the Bolt is some sort of “toy” and not a real car. 

Let’s begin right there. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that the Bolt is definitely not a toy. The sum total of the engineering involved in the Bolt is thorough and substantial. It is a very impressive machine to drive. The usual descriptors for BEVs apply: Seamless. Silky smooth (kudos to Adam Sandler’s “Zohan”). Eerily quiet. And, of course, ultra-responsive due to the instantaneous torque that comes with an electric motor.  

I said this last week and I will reiterate it here, the Bolt qualifies as an AE-approved vehicle for exactly this reason: It. Is. Fun. To. Drive. As in, if GM isn’t working on an “RS” version for the next-gen Bolt I will be shocked. I’ve driven the Bolt exactly like I would any other car at my disposal. In the urban slog and out on the freeways in the Detroit Metro area, the Bolt has been a satisfying performer; it is composed and present even cruising at 80-85 mph. The Bolt could easily be a VW GTI fighter with the right tuning, and that’s saying something because the GTI remains my all-time favorite daily driver. With the accelerating developments in GM’s battery technology, combined with the usual array of suspension and braking tweaks that the True Believers in GM Engineering can do, I see no reason why a Bolt RS couldn’t be a compelling product entry down the road. I know I would certainly consider driving one.

But maybe the most interesting thing about driving the Bolt? Its Regen braking feature. You can put the Bolt in "D" and drive as you normally would in any automatic transmission-equipped car, or you can put it in "L" - which activates the Regen braking feature. With Regen engaged, when you take your foot off of the juice pedal the Bolt slows immediately - it also activates the brake lights - without touching the brakes, and as it does it puts juice back in the battery. The faster you're going, the more juice gets put back in the battery when you de-accelerate. It takes a while to get used to, as you think you're not going to slow for an upcoming stop light and then you end up stopping well short, but once you get the hang of what's going on, it's a thing of beauty. I always drive the AE Bolt in "L" - it's that good. And efficient.

And so, this will be the last update of the new AE Bolt for a while. I will be doing updates in our “On The Table” column periodically in the coming months so that you’ll know how it fares in the BEV-sapping cold of our winter here, but so far it has proven to be an impressive machine. As for those of you out there insisting that The Autoextremist is over and done with - who says that I haven’t already ordered a V8-powered machine to augment my fleet? (Man can’t live by electrons alone, apparently, at least not yet. -WG) But even if I did, you’re not going to know about it. After all, I find it liberating and oddly invigorating to be “over.” Or as our friend Dr. Bud so eloquently put it: “The more you know, the more you just never know.” 

And that’s the High-Octane Truth for this week.

(AE photo)

The AE Chevrolet Bolt photographed in front of the Birmingham, Michigan, public library.