REPORT: Chevy Volt to start at $32,000 after tax credit?
by Jeremy Korzeniewski on Sep 14th 2009 at 12:55PM 
While we know a good bit of information about GM's upcoming range-extended electric automobile, one major question lurks high above the rest: how much with the Chevy Volt cost? Well, that's a tough nut to crack. There will be a sticker price plastered on the car's window when it finally goes on sale in November of 2010 that may very well be at or near the $40,000 mark – pretty pricey for a car wearing the golden Bowtie – but that's not the end of the story. In a bid to sweeten the pot a bit, the U.S. government has promised to offer a $7,500 rebate in the form of a federal tax credit.
Though there's been no official price point announced by The General for its upcoming EV as of yet, there are clues. For instance, what appears to be a GM-approved survey recently sent out by a company called Gongos suggests that the Volt "will effectively cost between $32,000 and $38,000" after the tax rebate. It's not an official pricing acknowledgment of any kind, but it's an interesting tidbit nonetheless, and it's in line with recent hints from across the pond that peg the Volt's post-rebate price at $35,000. We think it's a reasonable asking price – especially after the expected running costs of about 2 cents per mile are factored in. What say you?
Gallery: 2011 Chevy Volt
[Source: GM-Volt.com]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Daryl Cobranchi 1:38PM (9/14/2009)
If, after the gov't rebate, the premium is only $10,000, the breakeven point vs. a gasoline-powered car that gets 30 mpg is 158,000 miles (with costs/mile for gasoline of 8.33 cents vs. the claimed 2 cents per mile for the Volt). And since the battery is not likely to last that long (and will cost many thousands to replace), $35k still seems quite pricey.
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meme 2:07PM (9/14/2009)
"And since the battery is not likely to last that long"
Since when? They're *warrantying* it for 150k, and parts don't generally break the day their warranty expires. And the pack is unlikely to outright "break"; it'll simply drop below the 80% capacity that GM considers minimum to yield a 40 mile range.
In case you're curious, the pack costs $8k right now. Which means ten years from now, it'll probably be $4k or less.
Matt234 2:08PM (9/14/2009)
I'm skeptical. Does the math work out in a similar way for the Prius? Following that argument, how did the Prius do? Are the lots overflowing with unsold Priuses? (Or is it Prii in plural?). No, they sell pretty well.
I'm tired of seeing this math comparing the Volt with some arbitrary car. Trying to calculate the breaking even number of miles is like GM's MPG number calculation for Volt. Both bogus.
What's the value of cruising around in the only electric car with a range extender in town? Priceless. At $32,000 after tax credit these cars will sell like hot cakes. And for the record I'm not an electric-car-nut (sorry to the genuine nuts whom I offend with that disclaimer).
Daryl Cobranchi 3:17PM (9/14/2009)
According to the press release above, the battery warranty is 8 years/100,000 miles. I'll stand by my guess that 158,000 miles will be a stretch.
Boyprodigy1 3:12PM (9/14/2009)
Apology accepted.
CaramelZappa 6:21PM (9/14/2009)
@Matt234
Of course you're not an electric car nut, us real nuts don't like the Volt because it still uses gasoline. No offense taken.
alex 12:09AM (9/15/2009)
you all need to get the heck over the price. GM expects it to be a small seller. It's only for early adopters who want to pay more because they feel compelled to make a statement and drastically reduce their oil consumption. Over the next few years GM will be able to refine the technology, increase efficiency and bring the price down for future generations of the car. Once that happens we can start comparing it to the prius and talking about whether it makes economic sense.
But for now, you're all declaring failure on GM's part because the car that they planned to be expensive and low volume is going to be expensive and low volume.
smartone 2:38PM (9/14/2009)
Congress can just pass a new amendment that ups the tax credit to 15k for cars that get more than 229 MPG.
this would reduce the price of the volt to 25k
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PopSmith 5:14PM (9/14/2009)
While there are many things about the Volt that bug me, the biggest one is that Government Motors only used a 40-mile (by their numbers) battery pack. It is nice to see that the car can be driven sans gasoline but it would have been nicer to see them put at least a 75-100 mile pack in the car instead.
I'll admit $32,000 after rebate isn't bad for a car with new technology (the "generator" concept). It better not be anywhere near $40k starting (post-credit) because that would put it into near-Model S range.
If the Volt has a range of "over 300 miles" on a tank of gas with a fully charged battery does that mean that it's only got tank that holds just over a gallon of gas? (Unofficial EPA number of 230+40 for the battery = 270).
meme 2:09PM (9/14/2009)
Erm, warrantying it for *100k*, not *150k*. I cnat tpye tody. :P
Anyway, as before, "Parts don't generally break the day their warranty expires. And the pack is unlikely to outright "break"; it'll simply drop below the 80% capacity that GM considers minimum to yield a 40 mile range."
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Bill 2:40PM (9/14/2009)
Probably 10 years/150,000 miles in CARB states
pax copia 2:26PM (9/14/2009)
The end of next year? Heck, the Volt might very well be outdated before it even launches. $32,000 and up after subsidy is simply a lot to ask today and at this time next year it might even seem worse.
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Boyprodigy1 3:13PM (9/14/2009)
Your move Nissan...
Jon 3:08PM (9/14/2009)
$32k isn't much more than the high-end Prius so it's definitely a competitive price for a green car. I really hope they offer it for this price.
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pax copia 4:09PM (9/14/2009)
What? The Prius starts at $22,000 and seats 5 whereas this car appears to only seat 4 and starts at $32,000. That is a ten thousand dollar differential and by this time next year, when the Volt is said to appear, Toyota could (and most likely will) have the price down even further.
Jon 4:12PM (9/14/2009)
That's why I said HIGH-END Prius (i.e. the most expensive model).
falstaff 10:36PM (10/03/2009)
No, the Prius is not fair comparison. The Volt will have a 'high-end' options as well and those models will cost more than $32k with all the tricks.
Bahnburner 4:33PM (9/14/2009)
Or, the Government could rebate the whole cost of the car...then it'll sell like hotcakes!
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Brandon 5:13PM (9/14/2009)
The Volt is based on the Cruze right? Maybe to people on here $35,000 doesn't sound like much because this is a "green" car and it saves the world and outputs rainbows from its tailpipe like the Prius, but to normal people $35,000 is going to sound like a lot for a glorified Chevy Cruz. Especially if the Cruze gets 40mpg like they are claiming.
So with $4.00/gallon gas, the $15,000 Cruze will cost $0.10 per mile. Now if the Volt costs $0.02 per mile to drive, it would take 250,000 miles to recoup the $20,000 premium the Volt costs over the Cruze. That is if the Volt lasts 250,000 miles.
Now lets say the Volt is really is more of a premium small car and has features, performance, comfort level closer to say the Audi A3. Unlikely for a Chevy, but maybe, who knows how they want to position this thing. The A3 TDI goes for $30,000 and gets 40mpg. With $4.00/gallon diesel that is also a cost of $0.10 per mile. At that rate it takes 62,500 miles to recoup the $5,000 premium over the A3 TDI.
On the other hand we could put it this way; for the average american driver putting on 15,000 miles a year, fuel costs in the volt would be $300. Fuel costs in the Cruze would be $1500. So in fuel costs they would be saving $100 a month, not bad. But remember Americans buy everything on credit. The payment for that $15,000 Cruze with a 60 month loan at 6.00%APR would be $290. The payment for that $35,000 Volt with the same loan terms would be $680. So total monthly cost of fuel plus car payment for the Cruze would be $390 and the Volt would be $705. That is going to be a tough sell for the average American. Just some things to think about.
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DasBoese 10:01PM (9/15/2009)
The Volt shares the Cruze's Delta II platform, but for all intents and purposes it's a completely different car, and yes, it'll be be a "premium" car, i.e. quality interior and plenty of gadgets to toy around with.