Marketed in Europe under the Opel and Vauxhall brands, the Chevrolet Bolt will end production on December 20, 2023 due to a multitude of reasons. First and foremost, it's definitely showing its age. Also worthy of note, General Motors muddied this extremely promising nameplate with a recall estimated to have cost battery supplier LG Chem $1.9 billion.
The biggest problem with the Bolt, however, is that it's a subcompact in a world of compacts and larger electric vehicles. Tesla, for example, doesn't go lower than the D-segment Model 3. Speaking of which, remember when everyone and their dog was describing the Bolt as being a Model 3 killer?
Launched too late in the Bolt's life cycle, the so-called EUV is often regarded as being nothing more than a faux crossover with a higher starting price than the EV. It's more than that, though, for it addresses the biggest problem of its hatchback sibling. The Bolt EUV also happens to be sensibly priced, making it a viable alternative to the likes of the Nissan Leaf and the MINI Cooper SE Electric Hardtop 2 Door.
As expected of General Motors, the Detroit-based automaker isn't prepared to bid farewell to the Bolt for good. Back in July 2023, General Motors big kahuna Mary Barra confirmed that a second generation is under development with Ultium hardware and Ultifi software. Fast forward to October 2023, and Barra further confirmed a new chemistry for the high-voltage battery: LFP.
Lithium iron phosphate has both advantages and disadvantages compared to lithium ion, but at the end of the day, bear in mind that LiFePO4 batteries cost less than Li-Ion batteries on a kilowatt-hour basis. In addition to driving range and charging times, the third key to widespread EV adoption is low MSRPs.
Photo: Chevrolet
That being said, Mary Barra returned with a new snippet of information. Speaking to Automotive News, the first female CEO of General Motors made it clear that the Bolt will return to dealer showrooms in 2025. It's not known whether the Bolt II is coming for the 2025 or 2026 model year, but in any case, it won't be long until the carparazzi will snap chassis mules and prototypes testing in the Detroit area.
Believed to feature a heavily updated BEV2 platform rather than the BEV3 of the Chevrolet Equinox EV, the second-generation Bolt is also believed to come in the form of a crossover instead of a hatchback. It's not clear whether the Bolt EUV moniker will return or not. Whatever it may be called, the redesigned Bolt needs to be priced lower than the Equinox EV.
Coming summer 2024, the Chevrolet Equinox EV 1LT FWD starts at $34,995 and promises up to 319 miles (513 kilometers) of driving range. By comparison, the Bolt EUV is advertised at $27,800 with up to 247 miles (398 kilometers) to its name. Being that little bit smaller and lighter, the Bolt EV offers 259 miles (417 kilometers) for a reasonable $26,500.
It's easy to imagine 260 to 280 miles (418 to 451 kilometers) from the newcomer, and it's also easy to imagine a starting price of approximately $30,000. Similar to its predecessor and the Equinox EV, the second-generation Bolt is expected with FWD.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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