The Chevrolet Bolt EV, unveiled in January 2016 at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, received a significant boost when the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rated the vehicle and noted that it is officially able to drive 238 miles on a single charge.
That number is remarkable considering Elon Musk’s Tesla, the current electric vehicle leader, received 208 miles in its EPA rating for the Model S sedan. Both cars are equipped with a 60-kWh battery. Musk noted that Tesla’s next car, the Model 3, is aiming for nothing short of a 215-mile range.
The 2017 Bolt is expected to become available at Chevrolet dealerships later this year. This is the closest the company has come to an official launch date for the $37,000 vehicle, which is expected to arrive approximately one year ahead of the $35,000 Tesla Model 3 that has a waiting list of more than 300,000 buyers. Both numbers are before federal and state tax credit deductions, which should take $7,500 off the price.
The Bolt was unveiled in concept form just 21 months ago, and then entered pre-production in March 2016, a week ahead of the Tesla Model 3’s official announcement. The Model 3 won’t hit its pre-production phase until late 2017.
Chevy was careful to promise too much of the Bolt’s range, only stating that it would likely exceed 200 miles. Earlier this week, the automaker began asking its fans on Facebook to guess what the Bolt’s official EPA estimated range is. Few people guessed a number above 220, let alone 238.
The EV also received an unexpected boost when Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak noted that the Bolt “may replace” his Tesla Model S.
Comparably, traditional gasoline-powered cars rarely achieve a range of more than 400 miles on a single tank that gets 30 miles to the gallon. An average American driver commutes approximately 40 miles per day, which means that he or she would get a full work week of travel out of the Bolt EV before having to recharge.
Source: Mashable
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