I have my Bronco so need to sell my car; advice on where to privately sale it!

[Techun]

this was one of the main issues with the Volt. Chevrolet was ahead of its time and people did not understand it's powertrain as it is not a hybrid like other vehicles. It is 100% EV and the gasoline engine is only a generator. This is the same powertrain design used in huge Tonka dump trucks for mining that have wheels bigger than a full grown man.

The only other cars that i know which used this design were the BMW I3

Again this is not 100% true.

The voltec system is different and more complicated than a pure series hybrid like the i3. You could get the i3 with or without the little generator. The i3 generator was also sized very small and you may have to pull over if you're out of charge and need to use the generator.

https://www.gm-volt.com/threads/chevrolet-volt-electric-drive-propulsion-system-unveiled.336470/

https://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/hybrid-electric/a6179/chevy-volt-hybrid-drive-system/

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[Panzer948]

this was one of the main issues with the Volt. Chevrolet was ahead of its time and people did not understand it's powertrain as it is not a hybrid like other vehicles. It is 100% EV and the gasoline engine is only a generator. This is the same powertrain design used in huge Tonka dump trucks for mining that have wheels bigger than a full grown man.

The only other cars that i know which used this design were the BMW I3 and the Cadillac ELR that was effectively a 2 door volt.

Now as far as selling...If you want an easy sell go with one of the online folks. I know with my father in laws Tacoma I got wildly varying offers but I could still sell it privately for way more money. His truck was selling for almost double the highest quote on BAT (bring a trailer) but it's a rare configuration with low miles and in showroom condition.

As stated you have a unique vehicle but how do you find that volt enthusiast that is willing to pay top dollar for a higher mileage car and are you wanting to go to that trouble.

Thanks so much for jumping in and providing your feedback. You are 100% spot on with the vehicle's engine only being used as a generator (at least in the 2011's ). Yes, I recall looking at those ELRs and couldn't believe how much more they were than the standard Volt (knowing they were the same car underneath). ELR didn't last very long either. I also recall when BMW's I3 came out, which was a year or 2 later than the Volt. I just laughed as I felt the Volt had it still beat in almost every category but the name. Never understood why anyone would buy the I3 over the Volt...

So today I am getting a ton of offers but they are more than 50% of the Kelly BB private sell estimate so I will likely just use FB Marketplace or Craigslist. Ridiculous how low some of them are. I think I have wasted more time dealing with them; although most came from running the Kelly BBB option on there webpage which brought the texts and calls from several local dealerships. I have the advantage over most in that I am in no hurry and don't need the $$ to buy or trade for another car.... so will take my time.

 

[Panzer948]

Again this is not 100% true.

The voltec system is different and more complicated than a pure series hybrid like the i3. You could get the i3 with or without the little generator. The i3 generator was also sized very small and you may have to pull over if you're out of charge and need to use the generator.

https://www.gm-volt.com/threads/chevrolet-volt-electric-drive-propulsion-system-unveiled.336470/

https://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/hybrid-electric/a6179/chevy-volt-hybrid-drive-system/

oops your outnumbered....

 

[Panzer948]

Again this is not 100% true.

The voltec system is different and more complicated than a pure series hybrid like the i3. You could get the i3 with or without the little generator. The i3 generator was also sized very small and you may have to pull over if you're out of charge and need to use the generator.

https://www.gm-volt.com/threads/chevrolet-volt-electric-drive-propulsion-system-unveiled.336470/

https://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/hybrid-electric/a6179/chevy-volt-hybrid-drive-system/

Okay, I don't have alot of time to spend on this since I would rather base my 11 years of real world driving experience and will go with that over the two articles you posted. Especially after seeing they are 12 years old. But I took the liberty to scan them. But the age of those articles is important since that means they came out before the first car hit the market. Just think about all the stuff Ford put out about the Bronco before the first car hit the showroom. That should be proof you have to take some of this with a grain of salt.

I will also say that we are defining some aspects of the engine operation a bit differently than intended. I will admit there are a lot of complicated things going on under the hood of the Volt, I will give you that. But my story all along has been that the engine does not come on when going over a certain speed. Maybe part of the engine starts to rotate with the drivetrain, which sounds like the article could be alluding to. But please believe me from a real world user that I would know if my engine came on while cruising or accelerating down the highway, not only thru indicator lights and graphics but also from the noise and vibration it makes over the smooth EV motor. Maybe part of that motor rotates with the drivetrain but that is not the same thing as being fully engaged and burning fuel. Again, this is true for my 2011. Heck maybe it was a dud! Not sure why you keep on insting an owner of the vehicle is wrong about this. You of all people sound like you know the difference between how an EV feels and a gas engine... That is not mistakeable.

 

[Techun]

Okay, I don't have alot of time to spend on this since I would rather base my 11 years of real world driving experience and will go with that over the two articles you posted. Especially after seeing they are 12 years old. But I took the liberty to scan them. But the age of those articles is important since that means they came out before the first car hit the market. Just think about all the stuff Ford put out about the Bronco before the first car hit the showroom. That should be proof you have to take some of this with a grain of salt.

I will also say that we are defining some aspects of the engine operation a bit differently than intended. I will admit there are a lot of complicated things going on under the hood of the Volt, I will give you that. But my story all along has been that the engine does not come on when going over a certain speed. Maybe part of the engine starts to rotate with the drivetrain, which sounds like the article could be alluding to. But please believe me from a real world user that I would know if my engine came on while cruising or accelerating down the highway, not only thru indicator lights and graphics but also from the noise and vibration it makes over the smooth EV motor. Maybe part of that motor rotates with the drivetrain but that is not the same thing as being fully engaged and burning fuel. Again, this is true for my 2011. Heck maybe it was a dud! Not sure why you keep on insting an owner of the vehicle is wrong about this. You of all people sound like you know the difference between how an EV feels and a gas engine... That is not mistakeable.

I've led you to water but I can't make you drink. Unfortunately I'm at home on paternity leave so I have way too much time and I can't just ignore this thread.

I found a short, very well-written article that summarizes EVERYTHING. The key takeaway "So there you have it. The Volt is not just an EV, or a series hybrid, or a parallel hybrid; it’s all three in one."
https://www.wheels.ca/news/gmaes-voltec-system-explained/

Some facts we can not debate:

1: The voltec architecture has nothing in common with a Tesla or BMW i3 or Chevy bolt. It is much more like a Prius or Maverick or c-max. There is a gas engine and two electric motors, one of those primarily acting as a generator. The wikipedia article summarizes it well. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/GM_Voltec_powertrain

2: The first gen voltec system propels itself in four different operating modes. They are described in the articles I sent before.

3: One of those modes involves the gasoline engine burning fuel, to directly provide power to the wheels. In this mode the voltec system is a parallel hybrid like a Prius/cmax/Maverick.

Again those three points are facts and not up for debate. I think you are confused and believe your volt is like a Tesla with a generator strapped onto it. It is not, it is much more sophisticated/complicated than that. I have no idea why GM spent so much money on the voltec system and didn't put it into more vehicles.

 

[N8Mash]

Loved this car when it first came, even more so after driving in at the Raleigh Auto show in 2011(?).

Two useless contributions:

-

I remember the description of the engine powering the wheels being a very convoluted answer back in the early aught's, it seemed like GM engineers didn't want to overshare?

I appreciated the technical readings posted - maybe the compromise is OP and Techun are right?

Taken from the article, my emphasis added:

Over 70 AND extended range mode.

Neat car, I was disappointed GM let it fall to the wayside. (Maybe they wanted it to fail though, I thought I read somewhere they were losing money on each one)

I don't have a garage right now to take advantage of the plug-in technology, but I'm in Charleston and I'd give ya tree-fiddy

Or just keep it to offset the abysmal Bronco fuel consumption?

 

[Panzer948]

Loved this car when it first came, even more so after driving in at the Raleigh Auto show in 2011(?).

Two useless contributions:

-

I remember the description of the engine powering the wheels being a very convoluted answer back in the early aught's, it seemed like GM engineers didn't want to overshare?

I appreciated the technical readings posted - maybe the compromise is OP and Techun are right?

Taken from the article, my emphasis added:

Over 70 AND extended range mode.

Neat car, I was disappointed GM let it fall to the wayside. (Maybe they wanted it to fail though, I thought I read somewhere they were losing money on each one)

I don't have a garage right now to take advantage of the plug-in technology, but I'm in Charleston and I'd give ya tree-fiddy

Or just keep it to offset the abysmal Bronco fuel consumption?

Hey, thanks for your middle of the ground post! You allowed me to slow down for a bit here. After rereading I think I know where the confusion lies. You are right, we were both right and were both wrong. Where I went wrong was not paying attention to the definition meant by "extended range". Maybe Techun was too (but not speaking for him). Correct me if I am wrong but extended range is the mode that the Volt enters AFTER the battery is depleted. In that sense, the electric motor and generator/gas engine do work together to get the most performance and range out of the car. I should have responded with that in mind instead of just focusing on the battery mode only, which is the fight I was use to fighting. So let me backup... as long as the Volt is in battery mode (i.e., has battery range left on the battery), it will 100% use electric motor (minus the cold weather operation and mtn mode I described earlier). However, in extended range, which kicks in when battery goes to 0, all bets are off and they do indeed work together as Techun explained.

Techun, I was only trying to describe earlier when the Volt was in full battery mode about engine not engaging at 70 mph, et al. The range of the full battery is between 30 and 40 miles for first gen. Everything after that is extended range. I hope that clarifies and settles this. I do appreciate everyone's enthusiasm for the tech and just wish more backed it 10 years ago. If so, we might have a few next generation versions of the tech to choose from now that would easily cater to anyone still nervous about a full blown EV. That is where GM went wrong...

 

[jtim47Bronco]

Thanks for the advice as I hadn't even thought of them. The process sounds similar to Carvana. Will give it a go.

also Autonations.com
They will buy your car, You don't have to buy one from them. I have delt with them for more than 8 years and 3 cars. last one being my 2022 for Bronco Badlands.
they have always been several thousand $$ over anywhere else.

I just sold them my 2015 F-150 Platinum. 60,000 miles. got $35,026 almost what i paid for it new.

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