The Chevrolet Bolt is having its best sales year ever—right in time for it to get canceled. But General Motors is responding to the immense popularity of the pair of compact electric vehicles by releasing a heavily updated Bolt with more advanced hardware in 2025. And when it does, only the larger Bolt EUV will be on the menu.
GM officials confirmed to InsideEVs this week that the upcoming next-generation Bolt will be EUV-only, citing the overwhelming popularity of the crossover model over the smaller Bolt EV. “We are glad to see the enthusiasm surrounding the upcoming Chevrolet Bolt. We will share details as we get closer to its launch date," a GM spokesperson added. "We’re excited, as the new Bolt will build on the formula that has made it the success it is today."
Gallery: 2022 Chevrolet Bolt EUV: Review
That success is clearly pointing in the direction of the crossover model. Though GM doesn't break out the sales figures between the Bolt EV and the Bolt EUV, it's generally believed the latter is outselling the former about two-to-one.
Between January and September, Chevrolet sold 49,494 examples of both models combined, a staggering 125% increase from the same period in 2022. By an extremely wide margin, the Bolt twins have been GM's most popular EVs, especially as it has occasionally struggled to scale up production for next-generation EVs on the Ultium platform like the Cadillac Lyriq, Hummer EV and Silverado EV.
But this year, scores of buyers were drawn to the Bolt EV and Bolt EUV thanks to its low price tag being further cut by the new Inflation Reduction Act's electric tax credits. Between federal and state tax credits, as well as dealer discounts, many Bolt models were acquired in the $20,000 realm—not bad at all for an EV with a respectable 259- or 247-mile range, depending on size.
At the same time, the Bolt is getting old. The smaller one first debuted way back in 2016 and was joined by the compact EUV crossover in 2022. It is only capable of 55 kW DC fast charging, making it far less quick to add range than more modern rivals. Moreover, the Bolt's older battery setup was said to be long unprofitable, leading to its cancellation earlier this year.
But GM quickly reversed that decision, citing the car's popularity, and said the next Bolt would instead use the Ultium batteries and architecture underpinning other new EVs—thus allowing it to be scaled up profitably.
GM officials, including CEO Mary Barra, have said the next Bolt will not be a clean-sheet redesign but rather an updated version of the current car with lower-cost LFP batteries, faster charging, more advanced active safety features and other significant upgrades. But the plan is to keep the next-gen Bolt around the same level of pricing, which is good news, as high EV costs are continually seen as a major barrier to wider adoption.
In any case, given the Bolt EUV's success with crossover-crazy Americans, it's no wonder that GM would opt to go with that body style as the car's sole Ultium-based successor. If the automaker can hold true to that claim around the low price tag, it will almost certainly have another major hit on its hands.
