2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV

"On some nights I still believe that a car with the gas needle on empty can run about fifty more miles if you have the right music very loud on the radio."
The words of Hunter S. Thompson go through our heads as we drop 279 feet below sea level into Badwater, California, one of the lowest towns in the Western Hemisphere. We are looking for the bottom of Death Valley to begin an unorthodox range test of the 2020 Chevrolet Bolt.

Aside from a new grille, the Bolt looks pretty much the same as before. The big changes are under the skin, where there's an updated DC fast charger for quicker charging and a revised battery pack. The liquid-cooled lithium-ion battery still has 288 cells, but the chemistry of those cells has been altered to store more energy. The changes take the storage from 60.0 kilowatt-hours to 66.0, bumping the EPA-estimated range up 21 miles, to 259.

To test that, we decided to see if the Bolt could climb to Whitney Portal, 134 miles away and 8653 feet up, and then make it back to where we began. If we failed—or, more accurately, if the Bolt failed—we'd likely be stranded and without cell service. Please address all questions about how we got into this mess to print director Tony Quiroga. Unlike me at this moment, he has Wi-Fi. Anyhow, back to Badwater.

With temperatures outside hovering near 90, the Bolt heats up quickly under the solar load. As saunalike as the little cabin becomes, running the air conditioning isn't a good idea. It will drain juice quicker than a slot machine drains your checking account. Just drop the windows, you say? Nope. The aerodynamic penalty could take its toll on the range and leave us oh so high and dry.

About 51 miles in, we arrive at the first major climb, near the town of Stovepipe Wells. Over 17 miles, we rise gradually to Towne Pass at 4956 feet. Driving an EV to maximize its charge has us seeing speed limits in a new way. Usually, we consider them a starting point for negotiations, but when hypermiling, the speed limit is a reminder that most everyone else on the road will be going a lot faster. We creep along at RV speeds.

The Bolt's 200 horsepower and 266 pound-feet of torque are great when there's somewhere to plug in, but there'll be no flooring the accelerator to experience the punchiness of the Bolt's 6.7-second run to 60 mph. No, instead of having fun, we're concentrating on maintaining momentum and precise control of that pedal. A shoe comes off to better feel the articulation. Also, it's a little cooler with the shoe off.

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