Chevrolet Volt tops Sierra Club ranking of plug-in hybrids

Popular Mechanics just rated plug-ins hybrids (Jul/Aug 2013)
Volt 4.5 stars *****
Accord 4.5 stars *****
Fusion 4.0 stars ****
Prius PiP 3.0 stars ***

PiP they said is no fun and drives "like you are dragging a boat anchor"
Where do they get these auto authors (same place as CR)?

 

Can we seriously inquire about the "promotional" gift they received upon their high marks?

 

Have you test drove both and decided the prius phv is more fun to drive?

 

They have no clue how 98 MPGe was calculated.

 

Why would you say that? There is no indication that they don't understand it was GGE of electricity from the plug. Are you reading something into the article that is not there?

Sierra club seems in favor of substituting electricity for oil, and so am I.

 

Going certain amount of EV miles before gas engine kicking in, has nothing to do with the MPGe rating. MPGe rating is the number of miles it can go on 33.7 kWh of electricity.

 

I am not quite sure where your confusion lies.

The car can go an epa 38 miles @98 mpge on a full charge of electricity on the epa test. Both range and efficiency are important numbers. The 38 miles means the average american driver will be able to stay in electric mode during their daily drive. I'm sure that the range number is why they rated the volt above the ford energi models that are more efficient but shorter range. YMMV

Yes the EPA uses 33.7 kwh as a GGE. There should only be a problem if you don't like that number. The DOE uses some number greater than 80 kwh as a GGE to favor substitution to electricity from oil. In your personal case with a shorter commute, the prius phv may be the better car. YMMV

 

Seeing a lot of Volts on the road around here. A few more Tesla Model S. Still haven't spotted a PiP.

 

On the way home from the airport friday, I saw 3 volts, 2 leafs, 1 tesla S. I was in a smart fortwo EV car2go I picked up at the parking spot. There were lots of prius liftbacks, no prius phvs. Toyota seems to not want to sell plug-ins in texas despite the good market.

 

I got to drive 8 different PHEV/EVs, including a Volt and PIP in a market research study. This included city, freeway and rural driving...about 20 minutes each (besides 5-10 minutes checking out the seats, trunk, the charging ports, etc.) I preferred the PIP...probably because I am most comfortable with it (had a PIP at the time for 4 months, driven a Prius since late 2000). But there were several things about the different cars that I liked much better, especially the Leaf. I ranked the Volt about in the middle on most questions.

Mike

 

Driving 8 different plug-ins should have cured you of the opinion that the prius phv was the most fun to drive, and that the other automakers bribed the magazines. I know it wasn't your opinion, but it was the opinion that I replied to in this thread.

I sense that you prefering the pip, had a lot to do with it doing what you expected, and very little to do with superior acceleration or handling.

When a poster accuses popular mechanics of bias, its likely true. There bias just happens to be more mainstream, while this board is biased in favor of how the prius does it.

 

It lies in the author as I pointed out.

Again, driving 38 EV miles before running on gas does not result in 98 MPGe. Driving 98 miles with 33.7kWh of electricity would.

That is one of the lowest electric propulsion efficiency of all plugin cars.

 

Again, reading comprehension 101, or maybe you think there should be more sentences to spell it out.

For the first 38 miles on a full charge the epa rates the volt at 98 mpge.

Getting a higher mpge for less miles, doesn't result in higher fuel economy if you need to burn gas for the rest.

Both numbers are important.

The sierra club did not miss this information. They just did not spoon feed it to you in small enough chunks for you to understand.

Say if you are going 29 miles and you get 95mpge for 10 miles on electricity, then 50 mpge on E10 gasoline then you would get 29/(10/95 + 19/50) = 60 mpge on electricity plug E10.

While if you get 98 mpge on electricity for all 29 miles, you get 98 mpge for the trip on electricity.

98 mpge > 60 mpge.

These are epa efficiency numbers, and nissan estimates of the average american day. YMMV.

You need all three numbers and the trip distance to determine mpge for the trip, and the sierra club was correct in including the two numbers for electric range. Only if you want to be intellectially dishonest would you want to judge a phev only by electrical efficiency, and ignore its speed and range.

 

They make more money on the Prius so prefer to stick to selling the PiP in CARB states. Some people will claim major markets, but with Texas turning young, tech and blue, I can't see any other justification for not selling it there.

 

...I may have hijacked this thread by interjecting PM ratings, but there were no replies after several days so I decided to chime in.

 

I've owned both and I agree with them (you) and every reviewer of the two cars. The Volt is a lot nicer (and fun) to drive.

 

Shhhh.... people may be listening.

 

*ducks for cover*

 

Prius plug-in gets a 3/5...?