A Next-Gen Bolt Is Coming To Fill The EV Price Gap In Chevrolet's Range

Three months after the company announced that it would be discontinuing production of the current Bolt EV and Bolt EUV models, General Motors (GM) has confirmed that it plans to launch a next-generation Chevrolet Bolt EV in the near future. The confirmation came from GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra during the company's quarterly earnings conference call on July 25, 2023.

While details of the upcoming Bolt EV remain scarce, chances are that it could be based on an entirely new chassis based on GM's Ultium battery platform, which also underpins the GMC Hummer EV and Cadillac Lyriq. This change could possibly allow GM to eke out more power and range compared to the current generation Chevy Bolt. Pricing is also unknown, but the new-gen Chevrolet Bolt will likely remain in a similarly affordable price point as the previous Bolt.

The all-new Bolt EV could release as early as 2024, though GM has not commented on a release window. This launch timeline would make sense for Chevrolet, given that the production of the current Chevrolet Bolt ends in 2023. 

The decision to develop an entirely new generation of Chevrolet Bolt makes a lot of marketing sense for GM. The outgoing Chevy Bolt platform suffered a 2021 battery fire recall that affected over 140,000 Bolt EVs. This recall also halted the car's production for several months. The fact that the next-gen Bolt EV will be based on a new different platform should be reassuring.

Introduced in 2017, the Chevrolet Bolt EV was one of the first affordable electric cars on the market. The Bolt quickly became a popular choice among consumers because of its long-range, affordable price, and overall driving experience. 

Chevrolet has also regularly updated the Bolt lineup, including a major addition with the launch of the Chevrolet Bolt EUV in 2021. The Bolt EUV is a larger and more spacious version of the Bolt EV, and also boasts an extended range because of its larger battery pack.

As a result of their popularity, the Bolt EV and Bolt EUV have sold over 100,000 units combined, while also helping increase awareness of electric vehicles among consumers. Even the widely reported battery fire incident did not cause a dent in the sales of the product, with GM confirming that 2022 sales figures for the lineup was the best sales year ever.

While the upcoming next-generation Bolt will build upon the success of its predecessors, recent reports indicate that not all is rosy with the company when it comes to scaling up the production of vehicles based on the Ultium platform. It remains to be seen if GM's troubles with scaling up production will have an impact on the next-generation Bolt as well.