For the 2016 model year, the Volt is back and while it's still not the perfect car for everyone, Chevrolet has improved it in many ways that continue to appeal to fans of the first generation and expand its niche to a wider audience. What's more, the 2016 Volt is also cheaper than its predecessor, starting at $33,995.
More range
The heart of every EV is its battery. The 2016 Volt's 18.4 kWh battery pack boasts 20 percent more capacity than last year's despite simultaneously shaving about 20 pounds of mass. The T-shaped pack's internals are also composed of fewer lithium-polymer cells (192 versus the old 288), so it's simpler in construction with fewer potential points of failure.
What that means is that the new Volt can now silently roll on pure electric power for up to 53 miles on a full charge -- that's a 40 percent increase in EV range over last year. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates the Volt's electric motors' efficiency at 106 mpge (miles per gallon gasoline equivalent), again an improvement over the previous model. During my testing, I ended up fairly close to those estimates, reaching 52.6 electric miles and 103 mpge.
Like before, the Volt combines its electric powertrain with a gasoline range extender generator. It's a direct-injected 1.5-liter engine that is able to better supply power for the electric motors when the battery is depleted, extending the Volt's cruising range to about 420 miles total (up from last year's 380 miles). When the gasoline engine is running, efficiency drops to 42 mpg, which is still very respectable for a car of this size.