GM is loudly touting the fact that their new Chevy Volt should get 230 miles per gallon in city driving. But how much electricity does it use?
Applying EPA’s methodology, GM expects the Volt to consume as little as 25 kilowatt hours per 100 miles in city driving. At the U.S. average cost of electricity (approximately 11 cents per kWh), a typical Volt driver would pay about $2.75 for electricity to travel 100 miles, or less than 3 cents per mile.
A typical car might burn five gallons of gas to go 100 miles. At $3 per gallon, that would come to $15.
The Volt looks like it will use 25 kWh in electricity and 0.43 gallons of gas, for roughly $2.75 plus $1.29, or $4.04 — so the cost of electricity is tiny, but it’s still more than the cost of gas.