So it’s not really an apples-to-apples comparison ? The Volt is a electric car that can be driven between 25 and 50 miles between recharging depending on conditions, and can be driven an unlimited distance if you want to put gas in it every few hundred miles. So it is really two cars in one, and nobody seems to want to acknowledge that.
It is not a $30K Leaf that can be driven 80 miles and then is disabled while waiting for an 8-hour recharge. It is not a $25K Prius or Sonata that can’t drive anywhere without putting gas in it first.
The Volt deserves more respect than it is getting. It still isn’t worth $40K, but it is a better value than the $30K Leaf.
Except that the Volt is a Chevy Cruze, their current Chevette, albeit with an electric motor in addition to a gasoline engine. The Hyundai Sonata is not their starter model, rather it is right in the middle of their model line, their Taurus or Camry, as it were.