News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:The Chevy Bolt Is the Ugly Car of the Near Future by burger_moon on Monday December 19, 2016 @06:45PM (#13216053)
Well dealer distribution is one point. You don't have to go far to find mechanics that can service your Chevy. If you live outside a major city it's a pia to get your tesla serviced.

Additionally Chevy allows people to buy parts for their cars and you can service it yourself or at an independent shop.

Re:The Chevy Bolt Is the Ugly Car of the Near Future by nickpeterson on Monday December 19, 2016 @06:56PM (#13216125)
Be careful though, the dealership might be able to order and sell it, but if they don't sell many in your area, I can guarantee they won't be good at fixing issues.
Re:The Chevy Bolt Is the Ugly Car of the Near Future by gozur88 on Monday December 19, 2016 @07:03PM (#13216162)
I have to believe when there are millions of Teslas on the road you'll be able to find Tesla mechanics locally. The danger is the Model 3 flops and you're forever stuck going to the closest Tesla service station.
Re:The Chevy Bolt Is the Ugly Car of the Near Future by Spooky23 on Monday December 19, 2016 @07:20PM (#13216262)
Doubt it. You can only get a service manual if you live in a right to repair state.
Re:The Chevy Bolt Is the Ugly Car of the Near Future by jwatte on Monday December 19, 2016 @09:07PM (#13216808)
Yes, and those totally do not get resold on eBay... ;-)

Electric AC induction motors have very few breaking parts. The things that can break are more along the inverter/controller (capacitors, FET avalanche wear, etc) and auxiliary systems (A/C, etc.)

One great thing about electric cars is that you don't need oil changes, belt replacements, or spark plug tune ups!

Re:The Chevy Bolt Is the Ugly Car of the Near Future by Spooky23 on Monday December 19, 2016 @09:53PM (#13217043)
In my experience, post-2000 engines are pretty reliable too. I have a 03 Honda Pilot with 225k miles and an 05 Odyessy with 130k.

No real issues with engines other than maintenance. I think I had a bad EGR valve on the Pilot 10 years ago. Know what breaks? Electronic crap. Doorlock servos ($400), side door motors and rails ($800), various little modules, AC sensors, airbag crap not covered by recall, defective key cylinders, etc.

Re:The Chevy Bolt Is the Ugly Car of the Near Future by mikestew on Tuesday December 20, 2016 @12:36PM (#13221966)
One great thing about electric cars is that you don't need oil changes, belt replacements, or spark plug tune ups!

Name two of those three things I haven't done to our Scion (Toyota) xB in 12 years and 80K miles.

Happy Leaf owner here, but the reality is that, other than oil changes, modern cars are just as maintenance-free as an electric. Okay, I take that back, I did have to do a pads/rotors/calipers brake job on the Scion, whereas I expect the pads on the Leaf to last the life of our ownership (or maybe I'll have to do the same job due to minimal use).