Fun-to-Sit?

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While doing laundry, I read on the back of a box of Bounce fabric softener sheets that I was “holding a little box of happy.”

I thought I was holding something that was going to stop fabric cling and make the laundry smell better.

“Happy”?

A favorite metric of auto reviewers is “fun-to-drive.” If that descriptor can be applied to a car or crossover or truck, then it is at some level of acceptable.

If not, then turn the page.

A Google search brings up 18,4-million results for the term.

Admittedly, there are times when it may be fun to drive.

Many people find it exhilarating to be slamming along in a Jeep Wrangler in Poison Spider in Moab. Or driving a Corvette through the twists and turns of Mulholland Highway.

But pretty much, driving is like the fabric softener.

According to the 2015 Urban Mobility Scorecard produced by INRIX and the Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI), the average commuter—and let’s be clear here, most of the time you’re driving you are doing so for a purpose that has little to do with “fun”—spends 42 hours per year sitting in rush hour traffic.

Want a reason why Silicon Valley is so keen on autonomous vehicles? How about the findings that the gridlock in San Francisco accounts for 78 hours per annum and it is 67 in San Jose.

“Fun-to-drive.”

Sure.

In the real world, it ought to be “comfortable-to-sit-in.”

Bolt(ed)

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At CES this past week, GM chairman and CEO described the production model of the Chevy Bolt, the all-electric vehicle, not to be confused with the Volt, which is a sometimes electric vehicle, by saying:

“We see the Bolt EV as more than just a car. It’s an upgradeable platform for new technologies.”

That whole platform thing makes it sound, well, cooler, doesn’t it? But how many drive cars because they are platforms?

Chevrolet Unveils 2017 Bolt EV at CES

(photo by Steve Fecht for Chevrolet)

Barra went on to say, “Now for the real kicker: this isn’t some science project, or a concept that is years away. The Bolt EV will be in production this year.”

Now certainly at a price of ~$30K after tax rebates, incentives and whatnot, the Bolt is quite a deal.  With a range of some 200 miles, it is dwarfed in distance only by the Tesla Model S, which also has a price tag that isn’t tiny.  (E.g., you might be able to get a two-car garage full of Bolts for the price of one Tesla.)

But we shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that there are other cars–albeit with lesser range–available, including the BMW i3, VW eGolf, Fiat 500e, and Nissan LEAF, so it’s not like General Motors is the only alternative here.

Still, credit must be given to the company that seems to more fully understand that it needs to get faster and different in order to maintain relevance.