Chevy Volt Versus Prius Plug-In Versus Ford CMAX Energi

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Here’s another great post from “Volt Owner’s” Chevy Volt blog:

When considering what plug-in electric vehicle to purchase, its often difficult to make good comparisons.  Each manufacturer will generally only highlight what makes their particular model look best, and omit factors in which they don’t compare very well.  I’m going to help you in this quest to make some good comparisons, and even though I don’t compare every model out there, if you dig deep enough, you’ll be able to compare other offerings to this grouping.  I am NOT focusing on pure electrics today.  I will do that in another entry.

But first, let’s take a look at why you have to be careful using manufacturer websites to make good purchase decisions…

This is from the Prius Plug-in webpage:

From looking at this, who the hell wouldn’t want to own the Prius over the Volt?  I mean, its over $7,000 cheaper than the Volt?  Look at all that extra room!  
Examined a little more closely, the price difference between the Volt and Prius is only about $2,100 when you factor in that the Volt gets a $7,500 tax credit and the Prius only gets a $2,500 tax credit.  And with that extra $2,100, the Volt provides you with an EPA estimated electric range of 38 miles when the Prius only offers you 6-11 miles of electric range, depending on if you blend the EV mode with some gas or not (the Prius will burn gas above 62 MPH or if you accelerate too hard: the volt doesnt burn gas in either of those scenarios during your EV range).  But people purchasing electric cars don’t care about that stuff…  Its the legroom, right? ;)

I figure most people wanting to buy an electric car actually want some significant electric range, so that’s a pretty big important point to omit on your advertisement.  Many people are going to fully qualify for the tax credit, so looking at the pretax cost as a comparison is also a bit wonky.

So, let’s take a look at some comparisons, done ‘Voltowner’ style…  I am absolutely biased.  But I’ve done my best to show the differences between three cars in a similar price range, and highlight things that I believe will be important to people looking to buy electric cars.  I am making a comparison between the 2013 Chevy Volt, 2013 Prius Plug-in, and 2013 Ford CMAX Energi.  I have done my absolute level best to provide accurate information below.   If there are typos or technical inaccuracies, all you need to do is comment below and I will fix them.

I think you’ll find enormous value in the Volt, even though it’s slightly more expensive than the other 2 vehicles, but depending on your circumstances, picking one of the other two could be the best choice for you. I have colored a cell green if I deem that car to be the category winner.  The cost per mile metric is just for electric miles.  Obviously you get a lot more electric miles with a Volt than you do the competitors, so while the Volt may not be ‘as’ efficient on electricity (the difference in monetary terms in minimal), it is ‘efficient longer’ than the others that convert to burning gasoline much sooner.  I probably don’t have to tell you that gasoline is going to cost a lot more than 4 cents per mile.

PHEV comparison

* The Cost Per Mile of EV Capacity is a metric I came up with that should give you an idea of what you are paying for each mile of EV capacity.  It should be able to give you a value comparison of the ‘bang for your buck’ of EV range.

** Thermal Management Systems are important in extending the life of a high voltage battery.  The Volt wins as its thermal system is considered superior in laboratory tests for maintaining a constant temperature.

*** GM has established the gold standard of HV battery warrantees.  They actually warranty the battery for capacity loss, which is a huge protection.  The other manufacturers generally state that degradation in batteries is to be expected, but they don’t pin down an exact capacity loss which will result in a replaced battery.

Guest Contributor (291 Posts)


  • engnrng

    I created a spreadsheet model built around a daily commute, and 1 longer trip each month. Can look at sensitivity to daily commute, gas price, $/mi electric, etc. I used a 50 mpg Prius as baseline, looked at Volt, PiP, Ford using your helpful numbers. 25 mi 1 way but looking at savings charging round trip and charging both ways. I picked 25 miles because Volt uses very little gas if charging once a day. Charging once per leg means Volt uses no gas for commuting, Ford uses very little, PiP uses more, but better mpg. Interesting to play with the model. What is a good number to use for $/mi for electricity? I looked at $0.02/mi, $0.04/mi, $0.06/mi – of course this makes a large difference on annual savings vs the 50 mpg Prius. With $0.04/mi electric, and $4 gas, charging both ways, PiP saved $222 per year, Ford $363, Volt $445. Charging once per round trip, PiP saved $116 annually, Ford saved $95, Volt saved $249. Shows the trade-offs between electric range and gas mpg.

    • Bob_Wallace

      $/mi depends. If you’re trying to make a general statement then I’d suggest you use the US average price of electricity which is 11.47 cents per kWh for residential. And a general estimate of 0.3 kWh/mile.

      But you probably want to look at the cost to you so you should use what you would pay to charge. If you’re on a tiered rate system that could be a lot more expensive than if you have TOU (time of use) metering. And it can range from very cheap in a few states to quite expensive in some place like Hawaii.

      I’m surprised that you’re getting only $445 savings per year with the Volt. That seems a bit low to me. I’ll share my spreadsheet that I’ve used to compare mainly the LEAF against an econobox and the Prius.

      Perhaps we’ve made different assumptions. (Or I could have made a significant mistake. If you spot one please let me know.)

      https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Akc8l3C_MXzwdFBjNXNVU0F5SVJTQnFXMDZmUmIwTHc#gid=0

      • engnrng

        Thank you for the $ electric info. Looks like my $0.04/mi was right on. Be aware, though, that in California, electric prices have far exceeded the rate of reported inflation by about a factor of 2 over the last 15 years and many feel that it is accelerating. (Simple supply/demand economics. If supply declines and demand increases…) Helping to mitigate those increases are the smart meters that look at time-of-day consumption and compensate pricing at night.

        My analysis was energy costs – gas+ electric – only, Your spreadsheet looks at financing and other operational costs – much more comprehensive. I did not see on your sheet a resale value, though, to complete a cost of ownership calculation. For example, Consumer Reports in 2004 invented a flawed concept of “hybrid premium”, which they later retracted without fanfare. Their premise was that the Prius and the Corolla were equal cars and the moment they were both driven off the lot they were worth the same value, in other words the market value of the hybrid was $0 so that the initial price difference had to be paid for with fuel savings. In fact, 3 years later, the Prius had retained such a higher % of its initial purchase price compared to the Corolla that the hybrid feature was in fact “free” (except for the cost of financing) and the fuel savings were just lots of gravy. Is it possible that if one sold the Leaf vs selling the Versa at 5 years, the actual cost of ownership would greatly favor the Leaf? Also, your annual financing cost is actually a cash flow calculation, not cost. Nice job, though, and I like the 12 year assumption. Most hybrid and electric owners keep their cars far longer than conventional gas burners.

  • Steever

    We get about 12 miles electric only on our Prius plugin so I’m not sure how you got your data

    • http://zacharyshahan.com/ Zachary Shahan

      figures are from the EPA.

  • lapman

    Learn how to use your internet browser for zooming in (larger print). You have the power of a computer at your fingertips – use it!

    • http://zacharyshahan.com/ Zachary Shahan

      thanks. Unfortunately, very few people realize this. We actually had a note in our sidebar for a long time telling people how to do so.

  • EVowner

    I think the 2 most important rows on the chart above are the Thermal battery management system and the electric only range. Thermal management is very important because these batteries are very temperature sensitive. Just ask Nissan how their Leafs (air cooled batteries) are doing in Arizona. The electric only range is important because if the Ford is indeed blended as the PiP unfortunately is, then they are both just hybrids you can plug in. Until the Volt runs out of juice (as long as the outside temp is above 26F) it is an EV and drives like one. No gas until your battery is flat. Volt owners who only drive 35-40 miles between charges and live in a temperate climate would never have to burn a drop of gas (except for Engine Maintenance and Fuel Maintenance Modes of course). This is impossible for the PiP (not even 11) and by the look of it, the Ford as well. Not to mention neither of the 2 other vehicles are built as well as the Volt. Go and test drive all three and you’ll see what I mean. Good article.

  • tinkerer

    I appreciate these charts, but they are almost impossible to read. Can you consider uploading pdfs in the future?