3 Best and Worst Things About the Chevy Volt and a GIVEAWAY!!

If you caught any of my posts last week, you know I was test driving a Chevy Volt.  I had heard of this new electric car from Chevrolet and was so excited to try it!  Sean and I were nicely fighting over who got to drive – we loved this car.  It truly felt like the future had arrived.  It was a strange feeling to charge your car at night, like you charge your phone!  “Honey, did you plug-in the car?” are not words we say very often!

The Best

1.  Not having to buy gas!

The Volt goes approximately 35 miles without using any gas :)  It is always an electric car but after the charge in the battery gets low, a gas-powered generator recharges it.  Because we make a lot of short trips – taking Rosie to school and back, visiting my mom, grocery store etc. , we were able to drive a ton of miles without having to use a drop of gas.  It is the best feeling!  And I was surprised that I got used to the feeling pretty quickly.

2.  The way it sounds (or doesn’t sound!)

The electric engine is so quiet!!  I keep wanting to type “it’s very cool”, because it is!!  My favorite was turning it on (you push a button – not turn a key) and backing out down the driveway.  It feels like the car is off and you are just rolling, but in reality, it’s running.  So cool.  (sorry, couldn’t help myself).  When you are on the highway, there is normal tire/road sounds, but the engine is still quieter than a gas engine.  Once the generator kicks in, it’s a little noisier still, but still not the level of a gas engine.  I forgot to try it, but I read in the manual that there is actually some kind of pedestrian warning signal, because it is so quiet, people don’t hear it coming!  So cool.

3.  The technology toys

I was fascinated by the amount of information and control you had using the touch panel.  The LCD touch screen was almost like having an iPad in the car.  The energy reports were fascinating.  Even the weather report was just visually impactful (as well as helpful).  A multi-year OnStar subscription is included in the prices.  “All the bells and whistles”.  As someone who loves computers and all the things they can do, this car was fun!

The Worst

1.  The battery

The battery is big enough to power the car for approximately 35 miles, which I’m sure is amazing technology, but I can’t help but want more.  It will be exciting someday when we can go even further!  I’m also curious to see how it performs in cold weather.  I read that cold affects the capacity of the battery and you use more power to control the climate inside the vehicle.  The 35-mile-number drops when it’s cold, I’m sure.  And in Chicago, that’s a big part of the year.  While I love it, I still look forward to a day when you can drive hundreds of miles on one charge.

2.  Having to remember to plug it in

There were a couple days when I came home tired and just wanted to pull in the garage and crawl in the house.  I didn’t want to fuss with plugging it in.  It is amazingly simple to do!  The plug is bigger than the cord on your vacuum cleaner, but it really is as easy as doing that.  I know, I’m spoiled and lazy.  Also, once it become a habit, it would be easier.  (I don’t like charging my phone, either.)

3.  It’s not mine!

Sean and I truly would be thrilled to own a Volt.  Right now, we have a minivan and a truck, but if we decide to go the car route, we would definitely, without question, buy a Volt.  We are frugal, but love to enjoy life and have “luxury on a budget”.  With the Volt, you get both.  And while we are not green-to-the-extreme, we are conscious of energy usage and preserving the environment for our child and future grandchildren.  It feels good to drive a Volt.  On many levels, it just feels good, and I had to give it back.

By the way, a reader asked me what the inside dimensions were, how much room there was for a family.  There are only four seats – the seats in the back are bucket seats to make room for the battery that runs down the center.  While it only seats four – it does seat four very comfortably.  I rode in the back seat one trip to test it out and there was a lot of leg room and the seats are very comfortable!

Okay, on to the exciting part, right?  THE GIVEAWAY!!!!  The name of the blog is, Lucky YOU, not lucky me.  So, lucky me got to drive a Volt for a week, but what about you?  Chevrolet is going to also giveaway a week to a lucky reader!!  Yay!!  They have a few restrictions – you need to be in the Chicagoland area*, be over 21 years of age and have a valid drivers license.  That’s it!  Enter in the rafflecopter form below.  Good luck!

*Are you in the Chicagoland area?  Go to mapquest.com and look for driving or walking directions from your house to Willis Tower, 233 S Wacker Dr, Chicago, IL 60606.  If it’s 50 miles or less, bingo! you’re in the Chicagoland area, for purposes of this giveaway.

Disclosure of Material Connection: All opinions are my own unless otherwise stated. I was given use of a Chevy Volt for a week in the hope that I would blog about it. This disclosure is in accordance with FTC guidelines.