Sales of the Volt have been picking up lately with GM’s extended-range EV outselling one of its main rivals, the Nissan Leaf, for the very first time in October. Famous car nut Jay Leno, though, is an early adopter and he got his own Volt in December of 2010.
The host of “The Tonight Show” says he has covered more than 10,000 miles without ever visiting a gas station. Yes, you read that correctly: Leno is still driving on the same tank of fuel his Volt had 11 months ago.
“I like electricity when I need it and gas when I need to use it”, said Leno. “I travel 28 miles to the studio every day, then I go shopping, run errands, pull in the driveway; that’s 40 miles or so. Then I plug it in, but if I need to travel further the car is ready for that too.”
Leno isn’t the only Volt owner who has passed the 10,000-mile mark without visiting the gas station. “I’m an opportunistic charger”, says Edward Ellyatt whose daily commute is 41 miles. “I generally find a 120V plug in the parking lot and ask management if I can use it when shopping or dining. If I am at one location for an hour or two, I can expect to get enough EV range to get me home where I can plug back in.”
Leno, Ellyatt and other Volt owners that have a five-digit number on their car’s odometer will receive a “10,000 Electric Mile” badge.
Vice president of Global Chevrolet Marketing, Chris Perry, said: “The 10,000 Electric Mile badge not only recognizes their achievement, but gives another point to brag about with anyone interested in learning more about the Volt.”
A survey carried out by Chevrolet found out that the average Volt owner fills up the tank once a month and travels 900 miles between gas station visits.
Perry added, “Volt owners are an extremely passionate and enthusiastic group. They carry pictures of their car, refer to themselves by their VIN number and freely talk about their ownership experience with anyone who will ask.”
Anyone care to guess Leno’s VIN number?
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