I think it's a great car, and when you think about it, it's a much better fit for the majority of people's lifestyles. My commute is short enough so that I rarely need to use gas. One tank has lasted me 3 months so far and I haven't even used half the tank yet. However, it's great knowing that I can use it when needed, and thus I never get "range anxiety".
Also, since the electric range on my Volt is 40 miles, I didn't need to install any special electrical equipment. I just charge it on a normal 110 volt outlet (I set the charging to 12 amps which is fine on this outlet because it's the only thing on it) and it easily charges overnight.
I really do think the Volt merges the best of both worlds, and while I do think that all-electric is the future, for the time-being a plug-in hybrid is really a better option for most people IMO.
All of the plug-in hybrids run maintenance cycles every month or so to ensure that the motor turns over and some fuel goes through the injectors.
This is something that post-apocalypse fiction usually gets wrong. After a year you would probably not be able to grab any random abandoned car and drive it (even if the battery held charge)
https://www.goldeagle.com/product/sta-bil-fuel-stabilizer/ (no affiliation, I just have old cars in storage)
I finally got a 40 watt charger installed in my garage and will sometimes fully recharge 3 times in a day.
Didn’t realize there was a Volt RC car — I’m sure the kids love playing with it!
Not necessarily. I own a Leaf and can make it to and from work (50 miles) with range to spare. I usually charge up at work, at cost, just to have that extra mileage for incidental need after work since I don't have L2 at home. It costs about $30 a month for me to do that which is less than 1/4 what I use to pay in gas.
I work in downtown Atlanta and many work places offer free charging stations. There are plenty of DC Fast Chargers around the metro area in convenient places like grocery stores where you spent 15+ minutes or more shopping.
With a higher range EV, like a Tesla, I think it would be pretty easy to get by without ever charging at home.
They have a 5k mile checkup between the 10k, but that's mostly to straighten your floor mats and make sure they're locked in place. (Toyota had an unintended acceleration lawsuit years ago, partly due to the floor mat blocking the brake pedal.)
I'm pretty sure the Model 3 car charger is tax deductible as well.
The only real caveat is that you need to own a house and most likely a garage, though I know there are many EV owners who have outdoor consumer chargers.