Mark Phelan

Detroit Free Press Auto Critic

The Chevrolet Bolt electric car only seems to violate the laws of physics, I learned when a Ford Excursion rear-ended me as I drove through Eastern Market in Detroit.

Until then, the Bolt seemed almost magical, on track to cover about 200 miles despite bitterly cold temperatures that sapped its battery’s charge. It wasn’t till three tons of SUV punted the Bolt to the curb that I became certain the laws of mass, motion and energy applied to Chevy’s new EV.

I’d covered about 90 miles in the Bolt that day and had more than 100 left, according to a charge gauge that had proven a bit conservative as I drove from downtown Detroit to Ann Arbor and back, with a few detours thrown in.

►Related:GM to begin testing self-driving Chevy Bolts on streets of Detroit

The Bolt’s EPA-rated range of 238 miles and prices starting under $30,000 after tax credits, are the car’s claim to fame. They’re potentially revolutionary. A 200-mile range could erase the doubts that have kept many buyers from considering the clean and inexpensive — $550 for 15,000 miles a year, according to the EPA — energy source.

Until now, electric cars that could cover that much territory were reserved for the rich. The Bolt aims to make them mainstream, available to any family that might buy a well-equipped Honda Accord, Ford Explorer, Chrysler Pacifica or Toyota Camry.

The Bolt is also the auto industry’s riposte to years of disparagement by Tesla, the small electric car specialist that seized the technological and environmental high ground with $71,500 Model S 60 sedan, which the EPA rates at 210 miles on a charge. Tesla founder Elon Musk’s low regard for established automakers is as much a trademark as the Tesla X SUV’s gull-wing doors.

The silver Bolt Premium I tested checked those boxes and more during my abbreviated test drive.

The range meter — the EV equivalent of a fuel gauge — predicted 192 miles when I picked up the fully charged Bolt from General Motors HQ on the Detroit Riverfront. I was disappointed, but not surprised, given bitterly cold temperatures around 11 F and cutting winds blowing in uninterrupted from Manitoba. Cold temperatures are kryptonite to EVs, reducing range by as much as 25%.

In that context, seeing a predicted range less than 20% below the EPA figure was a pleasant surprise.

As I prepared to leave the Renaissance Center, I turned the seat and steering wheel heaters on and gave the front defrost a brief blast to clear defog the windscreen. I set the automatic climate control to 62 degrees and low fan, enough to keep the windows clean but not waste a lot of energy heating air in the cabin. Seat and steering wheel heaters are by far the best ways to stay warm in EVs, because heating your body directly is a more efficient use of energy than heating the air around you, and the empty space in the rear seat and cargo compartment.

I was comfortably warm the whole day. I increased the HVAC’s temperature setting occasionally to clear the windows and warm my toes, but the seat and steering wheel heaters worked so well that I turned them off a couple of times when I grew too warm.

I headed for Ann Arbor, 43 miles west on I-94.

Highway driving is the least efficient use of an electric car. The vehicles recapture energy from braking every time you slow down for a stop light or traffic.

I was concerned about how far I’d get on my daylong test when I got to the State Street exit, but I set the transmission in energy-harvesting low mode and headed into the perpetual crawl of driving in Ann Arbor.

The Bolt’s recapturing of energy skyrocketed, and my projected range went up with it. I stopped for coffee at Zingerman’s deli, then drove to Ypsilanti’s picturesque Depot Town for pictures of the advanced new car in front of the last Hudson car dealership, now the Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage museum. My projected range decreased less than four miles during the eight-mile drive, a tribute to the Bolt’s ability to recover energy.

Chevy engineered the Bolt’s seats for maximum comfort and minimum size. I was comfortable throughout my drive. The rear seat has plenty of knee room thanks to the innovative front seats and exceptional headroom, courtesy of the Bolt’s high roof line. The cargo capacity compares well to some small SUVs.

Low mode recovers so much energy that I almost never even touched the brake pedal during the drive. Bolt engineers call it “one-pedal driving.” It’s surprisingly easy to adjust to, and it increases range substantially.

The range gauge barely moved as I took US-12 from Ypsi past the historic Willow Run bomber factory site, through Dearborn and back to downtown Detroit.

By the time I got to Detroit’s 150-year-old farmer’s market in Eastern Market, I had covered 90 miles and had a projected 103 left.

My initial goal of wringing 200 miles from a single charge of the batteries seemed within reach, despite the battery-draining cold. I began to wonder if I’d have time to use the battery fully before I had to return the car to GM for another writer to test the next day.

“POW!” “Crunch!” “Tinkle” went the Bolt’s rear left corner, shredding the fender and shattering the taillights.

I’ll never know if I could have hit 200 miles on a charge, but I’ll always believe I could have.

Contact Mark Phelan: 313-222-6731 or mmphelan@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @mark_phelan.