Less than three weeks ago, I wrote about the First Chevrolet Bolt EV about to be delivered in Canada. On Wednesday January 25 2017, Joe Winkfein announced on Canada Chevy Bolt EV Owners Facebook group that he was in the process of buying what could be the first 2017 Bolt EV in Canada.

Photo credit : Joe Winkfein

On Friday January 27 2017, Mr Joe Winkfein, became the 1st 2017 Bolt EV owner in Canada. Dean Myers Chevrolet Buick GMC Corvette in Toronto and Joe Stellato are the first dealership and product specialist in the country to deliver the 2017 Bolt EV.

Photo credit : Joe Winkfein

Document credit : Joe Winkfein

Here are Joe Winkfein’s comments as I interviewed him :

I bought a used 2014 Volt one year ago as my commuter car and as a baby step to move into the EV world. I fell in love with it right away. The drive is quiet, the regen breaking makes stop and go traffic a breeze. When I saw the Bolt unveiling last year, I realized this was the car for me and put a deposit down with Dean Myers Chevrolet Buick GMC Corvette in Toronto. They couldn’t put me in the system at the time, but would as soon as ordering opened. That happened towards the end of November, and my car was set to be built on the week of Dec 12th. That week came and went and it was pushed back over a month until the week of January 16th. Photo credit : Joe Winkfein

I checked in with GM on January 24th, and it had been built. The next day, surprisingly it was at my dealership and I got to see the car for the first time. We signed the paperwork on Friday 27th and as Dean Myers Chevrolet Buick GMC Corvette has given me an excellent deal on this car, I let them keep it for the weekend to show off to other prospective buyers.

In Ontario with our L3 charging growing this year being available at many locations – I see this car picking up a lot of traction. The interior is very spacious and the car is tall and easy to get into. The backseat is massive and because it’s so tall, it makes putting in a child seat a breeze and they won’t be able to kick the back of your chair!

Sean Hart, Canada Chevy Bolt EV Owners Facebook group administrator, organized a contest last July. The first group member to own or lease a 2017 Bolt EV would win two rewards : a Bolt EV die-cast model from the 2016 Detroit Auto Show and take over as owner/administrator of the Facebook group.

Photo credit : Sean Hart

Congratulations Joe Winkfein for becoming the first of many Bolt EV owners in Canada !