Rarity of Chevrolet Volt

5176 Views 29 Replies 15 Participants Last post by Derekosb, Aug 28, 2014

semach.the.monkey

Discussion Starter · Jul 18, 2014

I noticed on the How Many Left website that there are 129 Volts registered in the UK
http://www.howmanyleft.co.uk/vehicle/chevrolet_volt_e-rev1_cvt

And now the Chevrolet website is stating that the Volt is no longer available in the UK
https://www.chevrolet.co.uk/cars/volt/

I knew when I bought my Volt that it wasn't a common car, even compared to my PT Cruiser I was driving before. But I didn't realise that it was quite as scarce as it is, and now that they're no longer being sold, I guess they're just going to get even more rare. Even amongst a specialist minority group of EV drivers it's a pretty rare beast.

How many forum members are UK Volt owners? How do you feel about being in the 0.0000045% of car owners driving one? Do you think the limited availability will keep the resale value high, or will it fall because nobody knows what one is? Does the overlap and similarities with the Ampera detract from it's uniqueness or reassure you that it's still going to be possible to maintain and buy accessories for?

Personally, I love driving something so unique, but I'm curious about what others think

1 - 20 of 30 Posts

Richard Gledhill

· #2 · Jul 18, 2014

Given that Chevrolet is now being phased out of the UK (and I think Europe), the Volt is finished here - I expect existing owners will be told to get their car serviced at Vauxhall Ampera dealers instead.

Duncan

· #3 · Jul 18, 2014

I think resale will be difficult but at least for those of us in the South Central area the Volt dealer (Bellinger) is also an Ampera dealer so it shouldn't affect servicing.

Parax

· #4 · Jul 18, 2014

Didn't @aminorjourney get told by vauxhall that they were not qualified for the volt?

Seems GM need to issue all Ampera certified technicians with Volt certification too...

MickH

· #5 · Jul 18, 2014

I received a letter from Chevrolet telling me they were pulling out of the UK but would still continue to provide servicing at my approved centre where I purchased the car from in Edinburgh. I've just had the first service done and they no longer sell chevys although they are one of the approved dealerships for the Camero which along with the Corvette are still going to be available in the UK.(Never produced a right hand drive in those). It would actually be better for me if Vauxhall took over the servicing as my local Ampera dealer is in Inverness, 110 miles away as opposed to Edinburgh which is 265 miles away.
Trade in values are already down, while I had mine serviced I got a trade in price for a new PHEV.

Olivier

· #6 · Jul 18, 2014

Richard Gledhill said:
Given that Chevrolet is now being phased out of the UK (and I think Europe), the Volt is finished here - I expect existing owners will be told to get their car serviced at Vauxhall Ampera dealers instead.

Seems it's already happening. There was a Volt being serviced at the Vauxhall dealership where I tried an Ampera.

Richard Gledhill

· #7 · Jul 18, 2014

Out of interest Mick, what did they offer you for your car? And how many miles, how old is it? Useful background info...

Hugh T

· #8 · Jul 18, 2014

My local Ampera dealer is 1 mile from my house, but for a warranty repair I've been told that I have to take it to the 'local' Volt specialist, 50 miles away. I took this up with Chevrolet, as surely the warranty is provided by GM for both cars, and they are after all identical cars, but I didn't get a sensible response. Hopefully soon GM will say that Ampera specialists are authorised Volt specialists, too, but maybe the 129 don't carry much weight???

Buzby

· #9 · Jul 18, 2014

I've noticed that not all dealerships are EV capable, so the primary goal is to find one with an EV tech first, then worry about the marque second!

Hugh T

· #10 · Jul 18, 2014

the Vauxhall and Chevvy websites are fairly clear on which dealers are authorised Ampera/Volt respectively....

Brooktop

· #11 · Jul 18, 2014

The Fully Charged video says there are quite a few differences between the two....except the Voltec system. Don't know if that matters.

AndyG

· #12 · Jul 18, 2014 (Edited)

My local dealer in Cambridge has told me that they will continue to service my Volt. If that becomes a problem my local Ampera dealer about 12 miles away has told me they can carry out all works but that they won't offer the pick up etc service that the Ampera owner's get. The only problem I have is one of the main reasons that I went for the Volt was that Vauxhall knew less about the Ampera than I did and really could not be bother with the hassle

. Chevy on the other hand could not have been any better, knew what they were talking about and actually wanted to sell me the car of my choice not theirs.

Reactions: 1

Hugh T

· #13 · Jul 18, 2014

Having driven both I couldn't tell any differences apart from cosmetic, but happy if others know any different.

Hugh T

· #14 · Jul 18, 2014

Cheers AndyG, but will the local Ampera dealer carry out Warranty Repairs on a Volt??

AndyG

· #15 · Jul 18, 2014

Hugh T said:
Cheers AndyG, but will the local Ampera dealer carry out Warranty Repairs on a Volt??

Hugh……….
Where abouts are you based?

Hugh T

· #16 · Jul 18, 2014

Milton Keynes. The Cambridge dealer delivered the car, but won't offer pick up for services/repairs. Local MK Ampera specialist flatly refused to do warranty work.

AndyG

· #17 · Jul 18, 2014

Hugh T said:
Milton Keynes. The Cambridge dealer delivered the car, but won't offer pick up for services/repairs. Local MK Ampera specialist flatly refused to do warranty work.

Thats where we got ours.

Their service so far has been second to none, they really seem to care about the car and have said they are not going anywhere, just changing there main dealership to Subaru. They will continue to do all service and warranty work.

Reactions: 1

MickH

· #18 · Jul 19, 2014

Richard Gledhill said:
Out of interest Mick, what did they offer you for your car? And how many miles, how old is it? Useful background info...

A very disappointing £17.5k (Auction price) for a 1 year old 3000 mile vehicle with sat nav and polished alloys, especially when they are selling for between £21- 23k on Auto Trader. That was against a Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV GX4h with optional paint and 3 years servicing. Thankfully the PHEV did nothing for me, the Volt is a far better car for my usage.

Richard Gledhill

· #19 · Jul 19, 2014

Sounds about right, £17.5k so they can mark it up and sell it for £20k at best - remember other dealers are selling Amperas for £23k brand new...

Lee Dalton

· #20 · Jul 19, 2014

One of My local vauxhall dealers has there 2012 Ampera demonstrator on the forecourt at £20k ! I thought that was a bit rich considering you can buy a new one for only 10% more .....

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