Back in February we took a look at the performance of the 2012 Chevrolet Volt (that blog can be found here). With the 2013 Chevrolet Volt for sale in Oklahoma today at David Stanley Chevrolet, many car buyers are wondering what has changed over one year of advancing hybrid technology.

The short answer is that not a whole lot has changed. However, there are some new features that add value to an already great and reasonably priced hybrid sedan. Let’s take a look at the new and slightly improved hybrid in this 2013 Chevrolet Volt Review.

2013 Chevrolet Volt Review: Technology Improvements

There are a couple of new tech options with the 2013 Chevy Volt that keep it extremely competitive not only with other hybrids, but also with other sedans in general. One of these is a new collision avoidance alert as well as an alarm when the vehicle is leaving its lane.

Standard on all 2013 Chevrolet Volt’s is the new “EV Hold Mode,” a system designed to burn gas to hold battery energy for later. This allows the driver to manage battery use to maximize performance. For instance, since electric power would perform more poorly on a highway, the driver can engage the EV hold to save the battery for inner city use where it is more suited.

2013 Chevrolet Volt Review: Battery Capacity Improvements

The engineers at Chevrolet have been working to improve the overall electric range. The result of that attempt is a .5 kWh increase in the Volt’s battery capacity. If you think that this sounds like a small change, you’re right. However, even this small change in battery capacity will impact the amount of money Chevy Volt drivers will save on fuel.

With a .5 kWh improvement, the Volt can go 3 more miles solely on electricity. Again, this sounds small. Yet when you consider how those three miles add up in any given week, it’s an improvement that Chevrolet reports will save you nearly $7,000 dollars in fuel costs over 5 years.

2013 Chevrolet Volt Review: Interior Changes

You may notice some minor new addition to the 2013 Chevrolet Volt’s interior. A new addition to the dashboard gives you an indication of the Volt’s power performance, and an arm rest is now available between the rear seats.

One of the more slightly controversial changes that will be featured on the new Volt is the change made to the roof and rear. While the original volts could be recognized by the black roof and lift gate, the 2013 model will have colors that match the body paint.

Get the 2013 Chevrolet Volt at David Stanley Chevrolet

If you’re considering taking the leap from gas to hybrid, come down to the lot at David Stanley Chevrolet and test drive the 2013 Chevy Volt. You can also visit the Chevrolet Volt page in our New Cars section to get a peek at what the new Volt looks like as well as price information.