The new 2020 Chevy Bolt EV gets a battery pack upgraded which will increase the overall capacity to 66 kWh, thus increasing the EPA range to 259 miles per charge. That equates to a 21 mile increase over the previous 60 kWh battery pack. The additional good news is that the price will remain the same, starting at an MSRP of $37,495.
According to Chevrolet, the change is related to the chemistry makeup of the battery.
Chevrolet’s battery engineering team improved the energy of the cell electrodes by making small but impactful changes to the cell chemistry. This innovative thinking allowed the team to implement the range increase without needing to change the physical battery pack and the way it is integrated into the vehicle structure.
In addition to the battery pack change, Chevrolet lists other minor changes. 2 colors have been removed, and 2 have been added – the new Oasis Blue exterior color (no extra charge) and the new Cayenne Orange Metallic exterior color that is available for an extra charge.
Here are the other 5, barely significant, changes for the 2020 Bolt EV model year:
- Keyless Open on front doors replaces (ATH) Keyless Open on all 4 doors
- HD Rear Vision Camera replaces (UVC) Rear Vision Camera
- HD Surround Vision replaces (UVH) Surround Vision
- High gloss Black grille replaces (TUR) Dark Silver grille and (TUS) Black grille
- Low-Speed Forward Automatic Braking is now called Automatic Emergency Braking
Some of the Bolt EV changes that would’ve been accepted with cheers from the EV community would’ve been higher power DC fast charging, more over-the-air updates to the software, and a better grade interior (ie: the seats).
All of these updates could be called mid-cycle changes as Chevrolet has said in the past that the next generation Bolt EV is coming in 2025.
I strongly disagree with the reference: “increased range among other unimpressive changes”. It means that the increased range is one of the ‘unimpressives’ That’s BS. It is a welcome improvement. The Chevy Bolt is a worthy EV with a solid mileage performance. Mine is (238) usually in the 300 club. I imagine the upgraded battery will perform at 320+ routinely. Congratulations to Chevy engineers!
Thanks for the comment! Correct, and that’s not what I was implying – the range increase is great, the rest are unimpressive. I’ll change the title
The original battery is rated @ 60 Kw not 63.
You are right – I’ve correct it. Thanks!
My 2017 Bolt LT EV is also at the 300+ club. This is a wonderful EV car with accessible price and discount. Improvements are always welcome by keeping price stable or lower.