The sheet metal might be familiar, but there are significant changes underneath. The 2027 Chevrolet Bolt has been revamped with a new electric motor and improved charging capabilities, making it a contender in the electric vehicle market.
Amid the electrification boom in 2023, the Chevrolet Bolt and Bolt EUV were the two least expensive electric vehicles in the marketplace. Then one day, they were gone. General Motors had a whole legion of flashy new battery-powered SUVs and trucks waiting in the wings, leaving little room for the company's lowest-hanging fruit, so the Bolt's Michigan-based assembly line was packed up and shoved to the side.
However, underneath that familiar shape, now bookended by new front and rear fascias and lighting elements, lie new electrical systems and a new electric motor, both of which give the Bolt a new lease on life. The 2027 model packs a new lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery with cells that are a smidge heavier and have a lower energy density.
View Price on AmazonThe LFP pack is cheaper to build, it stores the same amount of electrons (65 kWh), and, most important, it charges quicker. Chevy says the LFP battery accepts up to 150 kilowatts of juice through the Bolt's NACS (a.k.a. Tesla) port. In our fast-charge test, we observed a peak of 148 kilowatts and charged from 10 to 90 percent in 38 minutes, averaging 94 kilowatts along the way.
The battery feeds a smaller, more efficient motor pilfered from the Equinox EV. In the Bolt, it's good for 210 horsepower, an improvement of 10 ponies over the previous-gen model. Torque, however, is down a whopping 97 pound-feet to just 169. To liven things up, Chevy upped the final-drive ratio to 11.6:1 from 7.1:1.
Our 75-mph highway range test ended at 230 miles, 40 more than the former Bolt EUV and just 20 miles off the Nissan Leaf Platinum+ with its larger 75-kWh battery.
Source: caranddriver.com
