GM gives poor people 18 months to buy the $30,000 Chevy Bolt before it’s killed again – Jalopnik

Chevrolet plays with the Bolt’s life the same way a cat plays with its prey: he teases him and gives him brief moments of hope before inevitably killing him as we all watch. The Bolt represented a rarity in the car market; it was a compact, affordable EV with a relatively long range that found homes in driveways across America, and Chevrolet first discontinued it in 2023. Chevy then raised hopes when it announced it would introduce a new Bolt for the 2027 model year, and that it would start under $30,000 and go well over 250 miles on a charge, but last week GM told Bloomberg that it would only produce new bolts for 18 measly months before being phased out again.

The heavily updated Bolt will be produced at GM’s Fairfax Assembly Plant in Kansas City, Kansas, but GM decided it wants to produce the gas-powered Buick Envision and Chevrolet Equinox at that plant to avoid President Trump’s tariffs on Mexican and Chinese vehicles and parts. Sorry Bolt fans, if you miss the 18-month production run of the 2027 Bolt, you’ll have to shell out more money for one of GM’s other EVs, like the Equinox EV or the Blazer EV.

President Trump’s tariffs and his decision to end the $7,500 federal EV incentive sent the US auto market into a tailspin that it is still trying to navigate. GM’s decision to move Chevrolet Equinox production from Mexico and Buick Envision production from China will likely generate more profits than continued production of the Bolt, so the Bolt is being scrapped.

This is especially unfortunate because the updated 2027 Chevrolet Bolt appears to be a great affordable EV option on paper, with its NACS charging port and upgraded batteries, motors and software. Chevy’s Equinox EV is still a fantastic choice for buyers looking for a larger vehicle, but the main problem is that it’s almost $7,000 more expensive than the $30,000 Bolt to start with.

Chevrolet

New cars are becoming increasingly expensive and automakers are selling more and more cheap small cars, while a record number of Americans are falling behind on their auto loans. That can only end well, right? Maybe the new Bolt will sell like hotcakes and Chevrolet will produce more, or maybe more Americans will no longer be poor, but for now the Bolt’s days are numbered, despite it not even hitting dealerships yet.