# Chevrolet Bolt

40 Hacker News commenters recommended Chevrolet Bolt and 16 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 11 of 13 months; owners who said how long report a median of 3 years (5 owners). It meets the Hacker Approved badge rule.

**Verdict:** A practical, inexpensive electric car with decent range and cheap home charging, often bought used. Critics most often cite the touchscreen and on-screen climate controls.

## Why people recommend it

- Practical, reliable, normal car (5 comments): "I'm a huge fan of the Bolt, and I love my 2019. It's a very practical car, and has surprisingly decent range." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47489273)) "these days these growing pains are over and the Bolt is a reliable vehicle" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47064724)) "It feels pretty much like a normal, boring car, which is a great thing." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49702333))
- Cheap to buy and run (6 comments): "The US market has the Chevy Bolt and Nissan Leaf each selling for about $30k new and can be readily bought for half that with used inventory." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46688210)) "Cars like the Nissan Leaf and the Chevy Bolt are supremely inexpensive." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47419653)) "the latest model year Bolt and Leaf are both awesome and under 30K" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47457184))
- Decent range and fast charging (4 comments): "I'm a huge fan of the Bolt, and I love my 2019. It's a very practical car, and has surprisingly decent range." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47489273)) "It's a very practical car, and has surprisingly decent range." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47489438)) "had nearly twice the range and cost half as much" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47491476))
- Only affordable American EV (2 comments): "there's exactly one decent US-owned EV on the market, the Chevrolet Bolt" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48489900)) "the only adequate attempt at an affordable EV in the American market" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45801780))

## What people warn about

- Touchscreen and climate controls frustrating (5 comments): "The issues with my car are the rear cameras, which have stopped working, and the touch screen, which no longer responds to touch." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48051714)) "Sadly the rear cameras no longer work, even after replacing them, and the touch screen stopped working too" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48330716)) "The 2020 Bolt we just got leaves the climate controls on screen at all times, even when CarPlay is open." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48807600))
- Rear cameras stopped working (3 comments): "the rear cameras stopped working even after a full replacement" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48051753)) "The issues with my car are the rear cameras, which have stopped working, and the touch screen, which no longer responds to touch." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48051714)) "Sadly the rear cameras no longer work, even after replacing them, and the touch screen stopped working too" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48330716))
- Missing AWD or adaptive cruise (2 comments): "I have a 23 Chevy Bolt EUV which is the sweet spot for me right now, I just wish it had AWD for the winters where I live." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46283274)) "I really like my 2017 Chevy Bolt except that it doesn't have ACC" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46744084))
- Battery fire risk and recall (2 comments): "GM had to replace batteries in 142,000 Chevy Bolts & Volts due to fire risk" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46439267)) "the charging system which seemed designed to destroy them" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48792564))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Tesla vehicles](https://hackerapproved.com/p/tesla-vehicles.md): 209 recommend
- [BYD electric cars](https://hackerapproved.com/p/byd.md): 157 recommend
- [Ferrari Luce](https://hackerapproved.com/p/ferrari-luce.md): 140 recommend
- [Tesla Model 3](https://hackerapproved.com/p/tesla-model-3.md): 128 recommend
- [Rivian electric vehicle](https://hackerapproved.com/p/rivian.md): 73 recommend

## Where to get it

- [Visit the official site](https://www.chevrolet.com/)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Chevrolet Bolt", https://hackerapproved.com/p/chevrolet-bolt/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).