Month: November 2022

Enlarge (credit: Getty Images)

Electric vehicles have never been more popular. Just about every automaker is in the midst of an electrification effort, spurred on by impending government regulations around the world aimed at reducing our dependency on fossil fuels. But is the movement having an effect? Here in the US, plug-in vehicles are selling better than ever, despite supply chain shortages and frequent hefty dealership markups.

According to Argonne National Lab, between 2010 and the end of 2021, the US had bought more than 2.1 million plug-in vehicles, including 1.3 million battery EVs. That sounds like a very impressive number, but bear in mind that's out of a total national vehicle pool of nearly 276 million cars and trucks. Argonne estimates that despite all these plug-ins, national gasoline consumption was reduced by just 0.54 percent in 2021.

In total, Argonne calculates that US plug-in vehicles have driven nearly 70 billion miles since 2010, consuming 22 TWh of energy in the process. That's displaced the use of more than 2.5 billion gallons of gasoline and 19 million tons of greenhouse gases, Argonne reports, although for context, the US consumed about 369 million gallons of gasoline a day in 2021. For 2021 specifically, plug-in vehicles saved about 690 million gallons of gasoline—about two days of consumption—and reduced CO₂ emissions by 5.4 million metric tons, consuming 6.1 TWh in the process.

Enlarge / Chevrolet gave the Bolt a facelift in 2021 and added a stretched variant called the Bolt EUV. (credit: Jonathan Gitlin)

The Chevrolet Bolt doesn't get enough respect. After early experiments like the hand-built EV1 and the limited-run Spark EV, the Bolt was General Motors' first mass-produced battery electric vehicle, beating Tesla's Model 3 to the market and boasting a sub-$40,000 price tag when it launched in 2017. In 2021, the car got a (COVID-delayed) facelift, a price cut, and a second variant, called the Bolt EUV, which had a longer wheelbase and more interior room, plus the option of GM's Super Cruise hands-free driver assist.

We've finally gotten some time behind the wheel of a Bolt EUV, just in time for another price cut in June that sees the price of this is-it-a-hatchback, is-it-a-crossover start at $27,200, making it the second-cheapest EV on sale (after the $25,600 Bolt EV). And other than the fact that its fast-charging ability is not particularly fast, I'm struggling to find reasons to avoid this competent EV.

The original Bolt EV turned out to be a hoot to drive—fit one with slightly grippier tires and it will embarrass a Golf GTI—but it got a bad rap thanks to front seats that some found uncomfortable. More recently, there was a massive recall affecting battery packs built by LG until 2022. Those issues are now behind the Bolt; GM and LG set about replacing the battery in every affected car, giving older-Bolt owners a nice energy storage bump in the process.

Enlarge / Hurricane Ian, as seen from the International Space Station. (credit: NASA)

The Atlantic hurricane season officially ends on Wednesday, bringing to a close the six-month period when the vast majority of tropical activity occurs in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea.

Prior to the season, forecasters generally expected a busier-than-normal season. However, six months later, overall activity this year has come in slightly below normal. One of the more scientifically rigorous measurements of seasonal activity—based on the length and intensity of storms—is Accumulated Cyclone Energy. This year's value, 95, is about three-quarters of the normal value of 126.

That bland statistic belies the fact that this was an odd season. After three weak early-season storms, the Atlantic basin produced zero named storms between July 3 and August 31. This was the first time since 1941 that the Atlantic had no named storm activity during this period. Then, a light came on. Four hurricanes formed in September, along with three more in November. This brought seasonal activity to near-normal levels.