CarDomain Blog » Chris Bicknell

Driving the Chevrolet Volt

Chris Bicknell — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 16:19:58 +0000

Jen and I met Rob and Griot’s Garage in Tacoma Washington on Saturday morning as GM kicked off the Volt Unplugged tour–a 3400 mile cross-country road trip providing the American public its first chance to get hands-on with the Volt. Although the production Volt looks almost nothing like the concept, it was immediately clear that pictures do not do this car justice. The closer you get to the Volt, the more you realize that this car has a lot to offer. Follow the jump for more pictures and test drive review of GM’s first Extended-Range Electric Vehicle (EREV).

Like most plug-in electrics, the Volt can charge from any standard wall outlet with an optional 240v charging station that sells for $490 and reduces total charge time from 10 hours down to 4. The Volt uses the same J1772 plug that GM proposed last year and is now the standard across all electric vehicle manufacturers. This uniform standard was an incredible leap forward in EV development, assuring buyers that they’d be able to charge up anywhere regardless of vehicle brand. Field tests are now showing that the Volt’s batteries when fully charged provide 25 to 50 miles depending on your driving style before the gas engine kicks in to recharge the batteries.

A few distinct features of the Volt’s interior definitely grab your attention. Rob mentioned liking the gear shifter and center console and I couldn’t agree more. I’m kind of a sucker for new technology so I was impressed by the touchpad-like features of the entire main console and lack of gauge cluster. Like any new electronic gizmo these days, you’ll spend some time with your owner’s manual before you’re able to navigate the display screens proficiently. That being said, I easily activated the nav system on our way back to Griot’s and was greeted with a familiar voice and nicely updated but intuitive functions that reminded me of my Corvette.

It’s obvious that Chevrolet worked hard to make driving the Volt feel familiar and intuitive. Steering and acceleration feel no different than the cars we’re used to and the brake pedal still gets softer when you turn on the car. I wouldn’t quite call the Volt sporty, but it’s quick off the line and provided seamless, smooth acceleration when you want it to. Overall the driving experience was satisfying and enjoyable.

The Volt is definitely not your neighbor’s hybrid. In light of the the recent overblown controversy over whether the gasoline engine ever mechanically contributes power to the wheels, it’s clear that there are some aspects of its complex powertrain technology that are confusing to the buying public and even to the media. GM took a lot of chances on this car, but after seeing the final product I have high hopes for the Volt. I guess only time will tell if it gains traction with consumers.

Drift Office On My Birthday

Chris Bicknell — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 18:44:48 +0000

Tuesday was my big 3-0, and the guys at Drift Office in Auburn were kind enough to get me in in the morning for a few happy-birthday dyno pulls in my Corvette. As always, Drift Office had a ton of cool projects in the works, including a 350Z that they don’t know what they’re going to do with yet, and the front half of a JDM Lexus they had shipped in from Japan as a parts donor. As for the ‘Vette, it didn’t do all that great, having actually lost a few horsepower as a result the reduced back-pressure provided by my new Flowmasters. It looks like it’s time to call in Corvette expert Vince from Trifecta Performance for a refresh tune to help get the car all sorted out again. I’ll keep you posted.

What Did You Do This Weekend?

Chris Bicknell — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 10:31:57 +0000

I decided to spend my weekend in the driveway. It started Friday after work when I installed new axle-back exhaust with Flowmaster American Thunder mufflers on the Corvette. On Saturday, the Impala got a new starter and battery–two of the few wear parts not replaced last year. Back to the Corvette on Sunday, I changed the oil then removed all four wheels so I could clean the wheel wells and insides of the wheels. And the new exhaust sounds sweet–not bad for 340 bucks shipped, plus $0 for installation!

How about you? What did you do this weekend?

Overheating Problem: Solved!

Chris Bicknell — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 10:15:07 +0000

With its oversized radiator and hand-cut air-intake slot, I’m sure that this Honda Civic is now running nice and cool. But at what cost? The obviously psycho aesthetic touches, like the later-model bumper slapped on with external fasteners and the weird hand-painted dinosaur teeth and lightning-bolt detail around the trim, identify this almost certainly as a tweaker car. See more pics after the jump.

GM’s Other Hot Rod

Chris Bicknell — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 10:03:46 +0000

Plenty of automakers have had a hand in manufacturing non-car-related products, but I had no idea that back in the day General Motors made residential furnaces. This beastly 1954 GM Delco-Heat converted oil furnace came out of a buddy of mine’s house this weekend. Weird!

Radar Detectors: Do You Use One?

Chris Bicknell — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 10:15:34 +0000

Until recently, the thought of owning a radar detector had never crossed my mind. But shortly after receiving a $358 speeding ticket in my Corvette, a fellow CarDomain member suggested a laser-shifting and radar-detecting system that I later purchased and had installed by the guys at Corvettes of Auburn. Now I don’t condone reckless driving or excessive speeding but I will tell you that Jen and I made ridiculously good time on our trip from Seattle to L.A. last weekend, and being virtually invisible helped to avoid any attention from the local highway patrol or aerial speed enforcement. My Escort Passport–complete with three laser shifters, one large frame-mounted radar detector, central processor and cabin control module–appears to work extremely well both for detecting conventional radar in time to avoid being tagged, and scrambling those laser guns the cops like to point at fast-looking cars. How about you? How do you feel about radar detectors?

Summer Road Trip: It’s About Time!

Chris Bicknell — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 19:07:16 +0000

Now that summer is in full swing, many of us are hitting the road to enjoy the fantastic array of open highways that North America has to offer. One of the most amazing stretches of road in the world is the system of highways that wind and twist their way along the West Coast of Washington, Oregon and California. Jen and I are packing up the Corvette and leaving tonight for 10 days of Pacific Coast cruising, junkyard tourism, and SoCal beach bumming. How about you? Any road trip plans still ahead at this point in the summer?

Was it Cool Then? Is it Cool Now?

Chris Bicknell — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 10:22:25 +0000

Thinking back, most of us have a particular car that was the starting point for becoming a gearhead in the first place. For me, there were actually several–but it definitely started with my grandparents’ ’66 Impala convertible that they bought used in the early ’80′s, and that proudly sits in my garage today. My grandfather also had a blue 4-door 396 big-block Caprice with a white vinyl top, and a gold 2-door ’69 Caprice with a 427, not to mention the several full-sized Pontiac wagons that he used for work. I also spent countless road trips up and down the West coast in the back seat of my great aunt’s 1971 4-door Caprice, and later remember my dad busting his knuckles on its small block 400 in the driveway after he bought the car in the late 80′s. With such exposure to late ’60′s and early ’70′s GMs in my childhood, it’s no surprise that today my garage is home to an ’05 Corvette, a ’66 Impala and a ’96 Blazer. My family bought these cars not because they were stylish or particularly desirable at the time–they were just reliable, inexpensive used cars. Like the convertible Impala: Grandma liked it because it was yellow and Grandpa liked it because of the price. It would be like if I were to go buy a reasonably well maintained early ’90′s Cavalier convertible today. It’s only been in the years since they regularly ran those cars that this era of GMs have become sought-after, so I guess you could say that my chosen cars are cooler now than they were when they first got me into the hobby. How about you? What car or cars caught your eye at a young age and how old were you? Were these cars cool then? Are they cool now?

Antonio’s 1968 Project Pro-Touring Caprice

This Should Be Interesting: Volt to Come With 8 Year, 100,000 Mile Battery Warranty

Chris Bicknell — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 10:09:41 +0000

Chevrolet announced yesterday that the Volt will come standard with an 8 year/100,000 mile battery warranty, giving it the longest battery warranty of any electric vehicle. The Volt’s battery cells, modules and packs have endured more than one million miles and four million hours of testing since 2007 and now GM engineers are willing to stand behind their product with confidence. Read more at chevroletvoltage.com, via Chevrolet Volt’s facebook page.

Save the Wave!

Chris Bicknell — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 10:42:05 +0000

Waving is a traditionally enjoyed means for many of us automotive enthusiasts to briefly share recognition with other drivers on the road who exhibit similar automotive interests. The Save the Wave site is specifically dedicated to Corvette owners, with a simple mission of preserving the time-honored tradition of waving to other passing Corvettes. Whether riding my motorcycle or driving any one of the enthusiast cars I’ve owned, I’ve always waved to passersby driving similar rides. I’ve even caught myself wanting to wave to a motorcycle or Corvette while driving one of my other cars as if they somehow know what’s in my garage at home. Now obviously, no one make or model owns waving–it’s a topic of conversation across diverse automotive forums, and I found this article reminding Jeep owners to wave at passing Jeeps. How one waves can vary greatly as well. I enjoy the subtle “cool-guy” wave–two to four fingers while keeping my hand on the steering wheel. But sometimes I can’t resist the urge to just toss my hand high in the air and wave wildly from side to side. Read more…

As silly as it my sound, I’ve even passed judgment about drivers who don’t return the wave deciding they must be jerks who don’t appreciate the car they’re driving and yes, I know they probably just didn’t see me. I’ve often speculated about why many sport bike owners won’t wave to cruisers or why a Z06 owner won’t wave to me in my Z51. Do they think their toy is cooler than mine? Is a C5 owner spiteful since their ‘Vette isn’t the latest and greatest anymore? When driving my ’66 Impala convertible I’ve always waved to other classic Chevys, but lately I’ve found myself being less discriminate: waving to any other vintage American muscle car, waving to a 2010 Camaro when driving my C6 Corvette. No matter what I’m driving I’ll be saving-the-wave for a long time to come. Do you already wave to other enthusiasts with whom you share more than just the roadway? Do they wave back? And what, if anything, does this simple gesture mean to you?