I just got word from the chevroletconnect.com web site that my Red Chevrolet Volt has been built, I even have the VIN number the last 3 digits of which are 593 making it the five hundred and ninty third saleable Volt to be produced. The first 300 Volts have already been shipped and a few lucky souls have taken delivery of their Volts, including the very first delivery which was in Denville NJ less then 10 miles from where I work. I had the crazy idea that ordering from a dealership closer to New York City would mean getting the Volt sooner, as at first they were only selling it in NYC later they said NYC Area, then it was some of New Jersey, turns out they ment anywhere in northern New Jersey. But I'll be getting mine soon enough.
So what now. Well it goes into Quality and Control, where they test it, including the battery, many of the first Volts were in QC for almost a month, but it sounds like they have it down to a week, I think they need that time to verify the batteries are charging and holding charge correctly. Then they ship the Volt, which could take anywhere from a couple days to a few weeks, depending on how they ship it.
The Volt Chevrolet Advisor I spoke to mentioned the 27th, though I'm not sure if thats the date the dealer can expect the car, or the date they ship it out. Either way I'll probably be getting my car the last week of the year or the first of the next.
Friday, December 17, 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
My Volt is on the Production line
chevroletconnects.com offers a great service that allow you to track the progress of your GM car orders. And I just found out my Chevrolet Volt is actually being built right now. Below is a summery of the status of my order over time, the key dates are:
07/28/10 the Dealership takes my order and requests a allocation from GM
11/12/10 the Dealership uses an allocation with GM to place the order (this one took too long in my view, other dealerships were much faster to this stage)
11/16/10 GM starts ordering parts and preparing to build my car
11/30/10 my car enters the production line
next step a notice that its built in a week or two and a VIN number, then shipping which can take weeks, I'll probably get the car in early January just short of the end of year mark I was hoping for to get the tax rebate back right away, but I can hope.
Here is the official report from cheveoletconnects.com
07/28/10 the Dealership takes my order and requests a allocation from GM
11/12/10 the Dealership uses an allocation with GM to place the order (this one took too long in my view, other dealerships were much faster to this stage)
11/16/10 GM starts ordering parts and preparing to build my car
11/30/10 my car enters the production line
next step a notice that its built in a week or two and a VIN number, then shipping which can take weeks, I'll probably get the car in early January just short of the end of year mark I was hoping for to get the tax rebate back right away, but I can hope.
Here is the official report from cheveoletconnects.com
07/28/2010 - (1100) Order Placed at Dealership Order passed GM edit tables but dealers has not received allocation to place order
07/28/2010 - (1102) Order Entered via Web
08/23/2010 - (2030) Order edited or modified
09/20/2010 - (2030) Order edited or modified
09/24/2010 - (2030) Order edited or modified
10/19/2010 - (2030) Order edited or modified
11/12/2010 - (2000) Order Accepted by GM Dealer used allocation to place order into production
11/16/2010 - (2500) Order Preferenced Order pulled to the production system
11/16/2010 - (3000) Order accepted by production control. Parts being ordered and production process is underway.
11/30/2010 - (1102) Order Entered via Web
11/30/2010 - (3100) Order available to sequence.
11/30/2010 - (3300) Order Scheduled for Production Order is scheduled into the plant build cycle
11/30/2010 - (3400) Order Broadcast (Internal Plant Paperwork Order Produced) Order is sent to various build & supplier areas to bring order together
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Sometimes I can be a pain
You know your in trouble, when your dealer's coworkers recognize your name.
I'd ordered my Volt from the dealer over the phone and had never actually been there, all my conversations had been by email or on the phone. As the start of Volt production has gotten closer and closer, I've heard from a few people that their orders had advanced in GM's tracking system, while mine had not. i'd also been unable to get a firm price from the dealer, and was convinced when the car did come in they would ask me for thousands over MSRP, which I was unwilling to accept. So I'd call the dealer trying to get any update in my status and the price, when that didnt work I tried contacting GM's social media representative, anything to push the order along.
Finally I decided I was just going to cancel my order and reorder from another dealership, I contacted a few and went to visit Englewood Auto Group, which was selling the Volt for MSRP. I had a very informative talk with them, turns out their initial allocation was all booked, but I could be first on a waiting list if anyone dropped out, but none of the cars where the color and options I most wanted. I did put a fully refundable deposit down though, and they could place a new order for a car with the options I want but not till January.
I also learned that most of their customer orders where at the same stage mine is, and this made me realize maybe my original dealership wasnt so bad.
There was only one way to find out, so we drove to Chevrolet of Jersey City, where Mike Rivera's co-worker recognized my name. At this point I was thinking maybe I'd been too hard on Mike, when I finally meet him, he assumed I was there for a refund of my deposit, and looked a bit sad to see me. I told I didnt want to cancel the order just yet, and he directed me to their Ordering Specialist John Sucato who showed me how their ordering system worked, and show me what he sees for my order, I also learned they have an allocation of 4 customer Volts for this quarter, plus their orders for the dealership, they cant even place the their first dealer until November 11th.
Afterwards John and Mike looked up the price for the options I ordered and wrote up a formal order with the price I'd be charged which was $530 over MSRP, which I'm ok with.
Mike and I were smiling as we shook hands, and I made a point of apologizing to him, he'd been getting the brunt of my anxiety over the ordering process.
I'm feeling much better about things, I wont be one of the very first people to get a Volt, but I will be getting it soon.
I'd ordered my Volt from the dealer over the phone and had never actually been there, all my conversations had been by email or on the phone. As the start of Volt production has gotten closer and closer, I've heard from a few people that their orders had advanced in GM's tracking system, while mine had not. i'd also been unable to get a firm price from the dealer, and was convinced when the car did come in they would ask me for thousands over MSRP, which I was unwilling to accept. So I'd call the dealer trying to get any update in my status and the price, when that didnt work I tried contacting GM's social media representative, anything to push the order along.
Finally I decided I was just going to cancel my order and reorder from another dealership, I contacted a few and went to visit Englewood Auto Group, which was selling the Volt for MSRP. I had a very informative talk with them, turns out their initial allocation was all booked, but I could be first on a waiting list if anyone dropped out, but none of the cars where the color and options I most wanted. I did put a fully refundable deposit down though, and they could place a new order for a car with the options I want but not till January.
I also learned that most of their customer orders where at the same stage mine is, and this made me realize maybe my original dealership wasnt so bad.
There was only one way to find out, so we drove to Chevrolet of Jersey City, where Mike Rivera's co-worker recognized my name. At this point I was thinking maybe I'd been too hard on Mike, when I finally meet him, he assumed I was there for a refund of my deposit, and looked a bit sad to see me. I told I didnt want to cancel the order just yet, and he directed me to their Ordering Specialist John Sucato who showed me how their ordering system worked, and show me what he sees for my order, I also learned they have an allocation of 4 customer Volts for this quarter, plus their orders for the dealership, they cant even place the their first dealer until November 11th.
Afterwards John and Mike looked up the price for the options I ordered and wrote up a formal order with the price I'd be charged which was $530 over MSRP, which I'm ok with.
Mike and I were smiling as we shook hands, and I made a point of apologizing to him, he'd been getting the brunt of my anxiety over the ordering process.
I'm feeling much better about things, I wont be one of the very first people to get a Volt, but I will be getting it soon.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Purchasing Frustrations
I've never ordered a new car through a dealership before and I'm finding the whole process frustrating.
Way way back when the Chevy Volt was first anounced a little web site http://gm-volt.com setup a Want List, for people who were interested in the Volt to sign up, the idea being that the list would be given to GM when they started taking orders, I was number 167 on that list, there are over 50000 names now, but GM never used this list for taking orders.
About a 6 months ago, GM announced that the Volt would nonly be sold in 3 initial markets when it first came out, California, Michigan and the DC area. I called up a few dealerships in DC and expressed an interest in the Volt, they didnt have any details but put me on their list. Then around July 1st GM announced that the NYC area would also be among the initial markets for the Volt with the rest of New Jersey recieving Volts in the Spring. So I sent emails to a number of dealerships in the NYC area, especially those in New Jersey but very close to the City, I figured they'd be the first to recieve Volts and I wouldnt have to deal with paying out of state sales tax. Chevrolet of Jersey City contacted me back right away saying they were taking orders with $500 down, that their price would be competitive ( the Volt pricing hadnt been anounced yet) and sent me a nice email emphasising that their purchase process was No Pressure, with no Surprises and no bait and switch etc... It all sounded good so on July 12th I put $500 down on the Chevy Volt.
A few weeks later GM announced the pricing and that they were taking orders, my Dealer at Chevrolet of Jersey City called to ask about what color choice and options I wanted, Red with black on black interior, leather heated seats, backup camera, and brushed aluminum wheels, the Volt doesnt really have that many options, tons of stuff are included standard. So The Dealership placed the order with GM saying I was #1 to recieve the Volt from them, and they should be getting the car in November. I had to call them a few times to but got the order number. They wouldnt give me a price, just that it would be competitive.
Since placing the order, there has been a lot of talk about some dealerships charging upto $20K over MSRP for the Volt, other dealerships have stated they will only charge MSRP, and fire dealers that try to charge more. so there is a fairly wide discrepancy in what dealerships are charging.
I've repeatedly called Chevrolet of Jersey City to get a firm answer on what price they will be charging me, with no luck. It seems like the Sales person I'm dealing with either doesnt know what the Dealership will be charging or doesnt have the athority to tell me, which has me VERY consirned. He try's to assure me that if I'm not happy I dont have to take the car, and they will refund my deposit, but then I'll have to start all over again with the order process, and many more people will be ahead of me at other dealerships.
I've called a number of dealerships, they were all charging MSRP to $1000 over, but none would expect delivery until March, if I placed an order now.
So my anxiaty level grows, should I keep my order with Chevelet of Jersey City, where I'm likely to get the Volt before the end of the year, but with an unknown mark up, or should I order with anouther dealership at MSRP, but have to wait even longer? I keep imagining my car will arrive, and they will ask for something outragous, just so they can turn arround and sell it to the highest bidder. I contacted a GM representative who said they would contact the dealership for me to get a fixed price, but havent heard anything back.
The next stage of the ordering process is when the Dealership hears from GM that they have X cars coming by Y, and the Dealership finalizes the actual order with GM. If I'm actually going to recieve one of the first Volts, this should happen within the next week or so. At which point I hope to get a firm answer on what they will be charging me, if not or if they dont place my order, I'll probably need to put a new order in with anouther dealer.
I really hate having to deal with Car Dealers, GM should allow people to order directly through them, and then pay the dealerships a fixed rate to handle the transfer, it would make the ordering process more fair, and would prevent outragous markups for people who ordered early, but allow dealerships to order a few cars on their own for which they could charge big markups to people who want to bypass GM's ordering process.
Way way back when the Chevy Volt was first anounced a little web site http://gm-volt.com setup a Want List, for people who were interested in the Volt to sign up, the idea being that the list would be given to GM when they started taking orders, I was number 167 on that list, there are over 50000 names now, but GM never used this list for taking orders.
About a 6 months ago, GM announced that the Volt would nonly be sold in 3 initial markets when it first came out, California, Michigan and the DC area. I called up a few dealerships in DC and expressed an interest in the Volt, they didnt have any details but put me on their list. Then around July 1st GM announced that the NYC area would also be among the initial markets for the Volt with the rest of New Jersey recieving Volts in the Spring. So I sent emails to a number of dealerships in the NYC area, especially those in New Jersey but very close to the City, I figured they'd be the first to recieve Volts and I wouldnt have to deal with paying out of state sales tax. Chevrolet of Jersey City contacted me back right away saying they were taking orders with $500 down, that their price would be competitive ( the Volt pricing hadnt been anounced yet) and sent me a nice email emphasising that their purchase process was No Pressure, with no Surprises and no bait and switch etc... It all sounded good so on July 12th I put $500 down on the Chevy Volt.
A few weeks later GM announced the pricing and that they were taking orders, my Dealer at Chevrolet of Jersey City called to ask about what color choice and options I wanted, Red with black on black interior, leather heated seats, backup camera, and brushed aluminum wheels, the Volt doesnt really have that many options, tons of stuff are included standard. So The Dealership placed the order with GM saying I was #1 to recieve the Volt from them, and they should be getting the car in November. I had to call them a few times to but got the order number. They wouldnt give me a price, just that it would be competitive.
Since placing the order, there has been a lot of talk about some dealerships charging upto $20K over MSRP for the Volt, other dealerships have stated they will only charge MSRP, and fire dealers that try to charge more. so there is a fairly wide discrepancy in what dealerships are charging.
I've repeatedly called Chevrolet of Jersey City to get a firm answer on what price they will be charging me, with no luck. It seems like the Sales person I'm dealing with either doesnt know what the Dealership will be charging or doesnt have the athority to tell me, which has me VERY consirned. He try's to assure me that if I'm not happy I dont have to take the car, and they will refund my deposit, but then I'll have to start all over again with the order process, and many more people will be ahead of me at other dealerships.
I've called a number of dealerships, they were all charging MSRP to $1000 over, but none would expect delivery until March, if I placed an order now.
So my anxiaty level grows, should I keep my order with Chevelet of Jersey City, where I'm likely to get the Volt before the end of the year, but with an unknown mark up, or should I order with anouther dealership at MSRP, but have to wait even longer? I keep imagining my car will arrive, and they will ask for something outragous, just so they can turn arround and sell it to the highest bidder. I contacted a GM representative who said they would contact the dealership for me to get a fixed price, but havent heard anything back.
The next stage of the ordering process is when the Dealership hears from GM that they have X cars coming by Y, and the Dealership finalizes the actual order with GM. If I'm actually going to recieve one of the first Volts, this should happen within the next week or so. At which point I hope to get a firm answer on what they will be charging me, if not or if they dont place my order, I'll probably need to put a new order in with anouther dealer.
I really hate having to deal with Car Dealers, GM should allow people to order directly through them, and then pay the dealerships a fixed rate to handle the transfer, it would make the ordering process more fair, and would prevent outragous markups for people who ordered early, but allow dealerships to order a few cars on their own for which they could charge big markups to people who want to bypass GM's ordering process.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Which came first the Chicken or the Egg?
Which came first the chicken or the egg? A riddle that has special significance when talking about Electric Vehicles. For a long time people have argued you cant have electric vehicles until there is a charging infrustructure, and you cant build a charging infrustructure without Electric Vehicles to use it.
I've had my own experiance with this, in trying to get the company I work for to install charging stations at work, I've been told we cant install them if there's no cars to use them, among other excuses.
But in a few months I will be getting a Chevy Volt, and hopefully buying a new house which will be 40 to 50 miles from where I work. While at first I'll only be able to drive to work on electric power, and will have to drive home using gas, I hope I'll be able to convince my company to install charging stations or at least install 120v outlets in the parking lot, but that may take some time.
If I'd kept my MINI E, I'd probably be able to commute with it without charging at work, at least on good days, as long as I was careful with my speed, but not in the winter because the range is reduced too much.
But with the Volt I can continue to drive to work year round, no matter how far away my new home is, while I work at convincing the powers that be of the advantages of installing Electric car charging stations.
Some day I hope all my driving will be on electricity generated by Solar Panels but until I can get an electric car with a 150 mile range in all weather, or my company installs charging stations where I work, its the Volt for me.
So to answer the question which comes first the electric car or the charging station? The answer is the Volt.
I've had my own experiance with this, in trying to get the company I work for to install charging stations at work, I've been told we cant install them if there's no cars to use them, among other excuses.
But in a few months I will be getting a Chevy Volt, and hopefully buying a new house which will be 40 to 50 miles from where I work. While at first I'll only be able to drive to work on electric power, and will have to drive home using gas, I hope I'll be able to convince my company to install charging stations or at least install 120v outlets in the parking lot, but that may take some time.
If I'd kept my MINI E, I'd probably be able to commute with it without charging at work, at least on good days, as long as I was careful with my speed, but not in the winter because the range is reduced too much.
But with the Volt I can continue to drive to work year round, no matter how far away my new home is, while I work at convincing the powers that be of the advantages of installing Electric car charging stations.
Some day I hope all my driving will be on electricity generated by Solar Panels but until I can get an electric car with a 150 mile range in all weather, or my company installs charging stations where I work, its the Volt for me.
So to answer the question which comes first the electric car or the charging station? The answer is the Volt.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Volt
I've been interested in the Chevy Volt for a long time, since well before I even heard of the MINI E. It's an Electric car with a battery and motor, but it also has a Gas Engine for long drives, the first 40 miles it is powered completely by electricity, after that the Gas motor kicks in giving it a total range of 340 miles.
The idea being that 78% of Americans drive less then 40 miles a day, so for most of your daily driving you never even need to burn a drop of Gas, but if you want to drive further the Volt will keep going in Gas mode, you dont need to have two cars a Gas and an Electric.
It's been developed by General Motors and while many people tend to look down on Americian Cars, I've done a good bit of research and have come to believe that the quality of GM and Ford cars is now on par with their foreign rivals.
During the development process of the Volt GM has been very open allowing the public a rare glimpse in to all thats involved in bringing a new Car with a completely unique powertrain to market. The Volt may be the most tested car every produced.
About a month ago I put down a deposit on a Red Volt, I am number one on the dealers list, and hope he will be one of the first dealerships to recieve the Volt this November. GM called me last week to verify that my order is in their system, but no word yet on when it will go into production.
I am really looking forward to driving an Electric car again, I miss my MINI E, it was fun to drive, very smooth, and quiet.
The idea being that 78% of Americans drive less then 40 miles a day, so for most of your daily driving you never even need to burn a drop of Gas, but if you want to drive further the Volt will keep going in Gas mode, you dont need to have two cars a Gas and an Electric.
It's been developed by General Motors and while many people tend to look down on Americian Cars, I've done a good bit of research and have come to believe that the quality of GM and Ford cars is now on par with their foreign rivals.
During the development process of the Volt GM has been very open allowing the public a rare glimpse in to all thats involved in bringing a new Car with a completely unique powertrain to market. The Volt may be the most tested car every produced.
About a month ago I put down a deposit on a Red Volt, I am number one on the dealers list, and hope he will be one of the first dealerships to recieve the Volt this November. GM called me last week to verify that my order is in their system, but no word yet on when it will go into production.
I am really looking forward to driving an Electric car again, I miss my MINI E, it was fun to drive, very smooth, and quiet.
Monday, August 9, 2010
New Blog Site
Welcome to my new blog site http://drive-electric.blogspot.com
While My old blog http://mini-e.blogspot.com focused on my MINI E experiances during the past year, I decided I wanted to keep on blogging even though I no longer have the MINI E. So I created this new blog site focusing on all things related to Driving Electric.
I've also copied over all my old blog entries from my great days with the MINI E
While My old blog http://mini-e.blogspot.com focused on my MINI E experiances during the past year, I decided I wanted to keep on blogging even though I no longer have the MINI E. So I created this new blog site focusing on all things related to Driving Electric.
I've also copied over all my old blog entries from my great days with the MINI E
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