Chevrolet Volt
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When General Motors unveiled the Chevrolet Volt concept car at the Detroit Auto Show in January 2007, it rocked the green-car world. Its technology—still a lab experiment, then—instantly leapfrogged standard hybrids (like the Toyota Prius) and even hybrids that had been adapted to recharge their battery packs from the power grid, known as “plug-ins”.
Nearly two years later, the Volt is a small, five-door hatchback, roughly similar in shape and accommodation to the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight. Final production styling was unveiled at GM’s 100th birthday celebration in September 2008. The look of the production Volt differs quite a bit from the concept in order to offer the best possible packaging with extremely efficient aerodynamics to minimize battery draw.
GM calls the Volt an “extended-range electric vehicle” (or E-REV.) This underlines its crucial point of separation from other hybrids: It operates entirely as an electric car for its first 40 miles after a full charge. It burns no gasoline during those miles, drawing energy from a 400-pound lithium-ion battery pack containing 16 kilowatt-hours (kWh). Current from that pack powers a 150-hp electric motor that drives the Volt’s front wheels.
But a 40-mile range isn’t enough to make a car practical, so the Volt also carries a 1.4-liter flex-fuel engine. Crucially, that engine doesn’t drive the wheels—it only kicks in to power a generator that recharges the battery enough to give the car another 300 miles of range. And that only happens once the battery is exhausted.
Chevy Volt as Series Hybrid
This arrangement is called a “series” hybrid. It’s fundamentally different from a “parallel” hybrid, like the Prius, in which the car’s electronic control unit constantly switches between the engine and a much smaller battery pack (about 1 kWh). While the Volt is an electric car with an engine for backup, a Prius is mostly powered by its engine. The Prius battery stores regenerated braking energy, helps with acceleration, and provides a very small amount of low-speed electric functioning.
Assuming that the Volt goes on sale in November 2010—lately GM has spent less and less time qualifying that goal with, “If the batteries are ready”—it would be the first series hybrid sold in volume anywhere in the world.
Why 40 miles of electric range for the Volt? Because more than two-thirds of Americans drive less than 40 miles a day. If those people plugged in their car to recharge it every night, they might never use any gasoline. And depending on local electric rates, that 40-mile recharge might cost less than a dollar.
The Volt comes with an onboard battery charger that handles any type of household current—both standard 110-Volt, and the 220-Volt variety used for heavy appliances like refrigerators and washing machines. A full recharge takes up to 8 hours on 110V power, and about 3 hours using 220V.
The Volt is built around a set of components GM calls "E-Flex.” It is based on driving the wheels electrically; the only thing that powers the car is an electric motor. But many different types of range-extenders can supplement the battery: an engine running on gasoline, diesel, or biofuels, perhaps even a hydrogen fuel cell.
While the Volt is the first car to use this architecture, it won’t be the only one. GM plans to use a similar battery pack and motor combo to power vehicles from its Opel brand in Germany, and future Saturn and Chevrolet models.
Volt Plaudits, Plus Cynicism
On introduction, the Volt concept was hailed for its technology, not to mention the racy lines of the concept—known inside GM as “the electric Camaro." But it garnered quite a lot of cynicism too. With the movie “Who Killed the Electric Car?” still resonating in early 2007, commentators said the Volt was nothing more than “greenwashing,” that it was only a PR exercise, and that GM had no real interest in improving fuel economy.
One critic at the time was Dr. Walter McManus, an auto industry economist at the University of Michigan. “Now they have come up with another future magical technology that isn't quite ready yet,” he said at the time. “They will tell you they are doing everything they can to improve the internal combustion engine. I don't buy it."
Over time, skepticism has faded somewhat. That’s due in part to efforts by GM’s PR group to be unusually transparent about the Volt’s development, timetable, and technical challenges. The company has brought dozens of journalists into its development labs, letting them interview vehicle executives, visit testing facilities, and see in-process styling mockups. GM executives have repeatedly called the car “our most important project."
The most critical aspect of the Volt is its lithium-ion battery pack. Unlike the Tesla Roadster, which uses 6,831 commodity mobile-phone batteries in its pack, the Volt will use 250 larger cells, provided by one of two companies currently competing for the supplier contract: LG Chem or A123 Systems.
Both prospective cell-makers have partnered with other companies that have designed and supplied the actual battery pack that uses those cells: Compact Power Inc. and Continental AG, respectively. This means, however, that GM is relying on outside suppliers to provide the most crucial element of its most advanced vehicle.
If all goes well, GM says, production Volts will go on sale in November 2010. The price tag is a source of much debate, with recent estimates between $32,000 and $40,000—much of it due to the cost of the advanced batteries. GM is pushing for a Federal tax credit of up to $7,000 to offset some of that cost, but there’s no question that the Volt will be far pricier than conventionally powered vehicles of a similar size and capacity. Even with the tax credits, GM might lose money on each Volt it sells. The company plans to build 10,000 Volts the first year, and perhaps as many as 60,000 a year after that.
Questions Remain About Chevrolet Volt
Many questions remain: How long is General Motors willing to subsidize the Volt? How long before the lithium-ion batteries can be produced in volume? Will those cells be made in North America, or imported from Asia? And how long until we see the Chevy Volt at local dealerships throughout the country, and not just the handful of states and cities where it will first launch?
Any number of forces and circumstances could still derail the Chevy Volt. But at this point, it almost doesn't matter. Still two years away from delivering a single vehicle, GM has already scored a big victory by putting the company back into the national conversation about auto technology, energy policy, and the environment.
The Volt has also forced GM’s arch-rival Toyota to speed the pace of its own plug-in hybrid program. With energy security, the price of oil, and climate change all rising in public awareness, the timing for the Volt seems perfect. In fact, many of the growing legions of Volt fans now say simply: It can’t get here soon enough.
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n/a MPG n/a L/100km
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BODY TYPE:
Sedan
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TECHNOLOGY:
Plug-In Hybrid
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BASE MSRP:
$40,000
Chevrolet Volt Photos
I hope this isn\'t just idle rhetoric surrounding another concept car but the rhetoric sounds entirely too familiar.
I agree with \"ex-EV1 driver\" - I hope GM follows through. We need this technology to escape the chains of foreign oil, and the pollution it brings.
I wish GM would just SHUT UP about all this High-Tech stuff until they\'re ready to go into production. I\'m tired of all this hype over the years. All talk, No product.
While I hope GM continues with EV and hybrid technologies, I have to wonder if has GM had their head in the sand regarding lithium batteries. Altairnano is selling right now a 70KWh lithium battery pack, that can be charged/discharged over 15,000 (yes thousand) times. Just ask Phoenix Motorcars, or Tesla Motors about it.
I\'m mildly pleased by this news - at least they\'re willing to put something on show - they could have just done nothing. Let\'s hope they bring this to market in the next 4-5 years.
:roll
WHY IS IT THAT A PLUG-IN PRIUS CAN GET OVER 100 MILES ON A CHARGE AND GM CAN ONLY GET 40?? THIS IS AGGRAVATING. AGAIN GM FAILS TO IMPRESS AND IS BEHIND THE TIMES. THEY SHOULD SCRAP THIS PROGRAM LIKE THE EV1 THEN SCRAP THEMSELVES!
:(
Correct me if I\'m wrong, but I believe the plug-in Prius uses much of its limited trunk space, for the battery pack. :roll
Sounds totally insincere to me. I applaude the guy quoted in the article that said, \'Apparently GM\'s magic hydrogen fuel cell isn\'t working either, so now they have come up with another future magical technology that isn\'t quite ready yet. They will tell you they are doing everything they can to improve the internal combustion engine. I don\'t buy it.\'
Neither do I. Emerging companies such as Ecotality and others are fairly far along in demonstrating working hydrogen vehicles, which makes me think that if Detroit were serious, they could do it, too.
Lutz betrays the aim when he essentially admits that the goal is to have a nice-looking prototype to parade to the press and to the public to make us all think this will work someday. The truth is, they are going to miss the boat with energy the way they did with safety, when they said nobody wanted vehicles with safety belts and airbags, and the way they did with reliability, which is when the Japanese started eating their lunch.
Lisa Hart
It is popular right now to be discouraged, if not cynical, by or from disappointments. At age 67, I try to handle disappoint-ments, and plan prag-
matically. From that
perspective, I wel-come the prospect of
GM\'s Chevy Volt. Short time-frame per-
spectives may convince some that change is impossible or even worthless in an organization. That is not my view. I welcome GM\'s technology focus. Of course, it\'s overdue. But what problem does it solve to admire that proposition?
--David :grin
The major cost comes from lithium battery pack. As a short cut to bring this to market, GM could use lead acid batteries and reduce the battery only distance to 20 miles. The reduction is needed to reduce the battery weight as lead acid batteries do not have as good engery density. 20 mile gas free distance would be very significant step towards achieving our energy independence. Lead acid batteries are reliable and cheap. Besides, the Firefly Energy will come out with the new type of lead acid batteries this year. They would have great impact. :grin
It\'s one thing for the consumer to cry about the environment, it is quite another to do so behind the wheel of a big gas guzzling SUV (which they don\'t need). Companies like GM have very little incentive to build \"green\" vehicles. They are in the business of making money just like ALL business\'s, and gas guzzling vehicles sell very well and with huge profit margins.
I just saw the special on payperview about about a battery company who had a contract with GM before they canned the EV that made batteries with longevity. Is this true???
My only problem is that from what I can tell, the Volt is simply vaporware. There are a lot of inconsistencies in the reports which indicate to me that the volt is truly a concept in its infancy. It could be a decade or more before it actually hits the market - if ever.
If GM was serious about a plug-in, they\'d simply re-introduce their fantastic 1999 Gen2 EV1 again. If they believed the gasoline engine was critical, they could simply put a small generator in the huge trunk that the EV1 had.
plain series hybride
in its basic concept
can provide 30 %
more FE instantly.
Skip all hydro,
plugins and THD for
a few years and
investigate real solutions in Green & alternatives that will be a lasting solution for a world that is used to some kind of
endless energy.
They should bring back the EV1 as well as the geo metro 8) ;) :grin :) :p :roll :eek :sigh :cry :? :zzz
GM\'s going to kick major ass with the volt. You guys wouldn't have a Prius without the EV1. GM is partnering with the developer of the hybrid battery to make it come true. I\'m sure you\'ll all be lining up once it\'s released
Seems like more smoke from GM. You don\'t have to reinvent the wheel. The Prius has proven plug -in technology. GM should just copy Toyota and get plug ins to the market now if they want to help our economy,security, and environment.
GM could have already made a serious hybrid if only they wanted to. They could use NiMH batteries and a slightly bigger engine. Such a hybrid could be made NOW.But the reality is that GM only likes to make guzzlers. .
I\'m excited about the volt, but I pray that Toyota switches their batteries, to the latest lithium ion and offers a plugin kit for my Prius.
Of course I don,t see this particular car going into production, however, if GM really want this car to go into production, the technology probably isn\'t that far away. What GM needs to do is network with companies who are researching this technology and with other car companies to perfect the technology. They would also need to research ways to keep vehicle cost at a reasonable level to the consumer while still making a profit, which, could be the toughest part of the whole project.
GM should ask the public what it wants in the way of an electric car. I would like a small station wagon with 17Cu.ft. storage, 60 mpg and the quietness of a Lexus. Maybe the new LiS battery technology is the answer. By the way, spare tires are passe.
I watched this documentary. GM leased the EV1s then took them all back. If GM SELLS the Volt, I\'d buy the Volt today, but if they try that \"First we\'re going to lease them and see how it goes\" crap, I wouldn\'t give GM a dime.
I agree with EV1 Supporter. As owner of a '03 Prius, would like to support U.S. car industry...
Volt better have higher quality than the last Chevy I owned! (99 Suburban) :( 8)
talk is cheap...american car companies do plenty of it. proof is what the japanese seem to focus on. i\'d get something like a volt in a heartbeat if it was reality but american cars are not reliable anyway. i refuse to buy another car until honda or toyota get a plug in electric with flex fuel back up like a volt.
We are purchasing Toyota hybrid Prias\'s and highlanders one after another that work increadibly well. Its too bad GM crushed all the EV1\'s 10-20 years ago, after LA abandoned its law that a prercent of the vehicles had to be elecric. GM has all the technology it needs. Maybe GM should go the smithsonian and backwards engineer it the EV that is on display. Its too bad Toyota has had record sales and become the largest car manufacturer while GM sits on their hands. GM could produce and already had produced EV vehicles years ago. GM simply does not want to produce an electric vehicle. I would rather buy a GM product, but I have to buy a Toyota. Given the choice after driving an hybrid or EV, I would never go back to a gas engine.
Has anyone seen \"Who Killed the Electric Car\" movie on dvd? GM had a workable electric car that they eventually confiscated from leasees and destroyed. They have no interest in producing a vehicle that does not depend on gasoline because they are afraid of big oil. Watch the movie and you will see for yourself/ the hybrid talk is all talk because green is in.
I always have the same question. We can explore outer space, send back pictures from millions of miles and yet we cannot develop a car to get 100 MPG!Why can the Japanese do things we cannot? They are killing us economically but we still buy their cars and American car companies are down the tube. Dosen\'t make any sense!
The plug-in Prius' truck will not necessarily be affected by the plug in addition. There is no need to increase the batteries becasue the plug-in thechnology only adds electrons to the system, not size. The plug-in system allows the batteries to start the day with a full charge, as opposed to getting a charge from regenerative breaking. Don't be so negative about things you don't know.
The only full hybrid patents on the roads are taken, Ford has 350+ on the Escape filed with 22 blueprints borrowed from Toyota, while Toyota has racked up over 650 patent on the Prius...
What hybrid patents are left to corner???
Maybe that\'s why the battery is never ready and the plug is always changing...
Buckminster fuller built a car in 1936 that got great mileage. Why can\\\'t GM and Ford?
8) The chevy volt is great on gas plus it gets 40 miles to the charge its not as good as the prius but it is way better looking and not as girly!
I just saw that documentary , who killed the electric car.. talk about a smack in the face to GM.. You folks should check out the Tesla Roadster .This is a high end sports car. Base model $92,000 0-60 in 4 seconds, tpsd of 135 mph, range of 250 miles on single charge.. ready to ship to customers this year... www.teslamotors.com. they are currently developing a more affordable 4 dr sedan . They are using the fund to dump into R&d to make cheaper and affordable units for the average buyer..
There is a new solid carbon material that will revolutionize hydrogen fuel cells and electric cars. www.cleantechnano.com
I am an engineer that designs battery/electric motor systems. There is no reason that this can't be done now.
Just look at the past. Back in the day I had a 1982 VW jetta diesel that got 57MPG (that's right). The problem today is the American need for power and size.
If you had an EV that could go just 40 miles on the electricity, and added 60 miles running on an engine of equivalent efficiency, you would have a car that got about 143 miles/gal. In addition to this, it would be even easier to do this with today's engine technology.
It is a shame that more people don't call these people to the table. Even my 1977 Honda accord got 42MPG on the freeway.
It is all about perception.
I want one!!!!
I have been watching technology make huge leaps forward since the 70's (I was too young to notice before that) Americans are known to be very innovative and hardworking but why are we following "modern" trends 10-20 years behind the Japanese and Europeans? I will refer to the debit card, atm, Sony walkman and watchman, nintendo, and yes the electric and hybrid cars.
We should be blazing trails not waiting to see if someone else might succeed before we chance our first step.
I always liked to believe the "concept" car was just around the corner for me, the consumer, not something that would stay in the R&D vault, never to be seen again after the car show is over.
Don't give us new tail lights and headlights each year and try to convince us that it is a "new" car. The automakers are way behind and they know it. Finally, the general public is waking up and wants more. Will the foreign car companies beat the US automakers to it, again?
check out up to the minute news and videos: Chevy Volt Concept Car
http://www.chevy-volt.net
pathetic micro-step...... even the EV1 had an almost 100 mile range. Too bad politics didnt allow a purely electric vehicle. Now they think appeasing us with a gas powered semi-electric car with half the range of the 1998 model EV1. Typical, what else do you expect form the american market?
if it was on the market right know i'd buy one today!!!!!
I'll buy it over a Toyota any day.
I am trying to figure out a way to tell Toyota that they should make a small truck like the old nineties pick ups in a hybrid. Does anyone have any ins with Toyota to tell them to do this? I won't be buying a new vehicle until there is a small pickup prius!
GM Volt
By Paul on 2007-01-10 02:16:06
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Seems like more smoke from GM. You don't have to reinvent the wheel. The Prius has proven plug -in technology. GM should just copy Toyota and get plug ins to the market now if they want to help our economy,security, and environment.
"Has Toyota ever thought about how their buyers are going to get id of the bad batteries once they are toasted? Have you thought about it? All these lemings in love with Toyota should wake up. They are no more green than any other company. Their trucks and SUV's get worse mileage than any GM products. They get a free pass because of the Prius and all those that follow it. Where do you think that Toyota makes its money in order to spew out the Prius at a loss? This will not continue forever. Plus, the Prius does not live up to the MPG rating on the sticker. Also, if you are going up hill in the ice and snow, did you know that if the Prius senses too much slippage, the traction control will shut off the vehicle? Toyota puts out boring product after boring product and their quality is not very good anymore. Yet, consumers that have no clue continue to buy their lame garbage because they think Toyota is "green". Let's face it, the people that denounce GM or Ford or whoever over and over on this site are either Toyota employees or anti-American in their purchases. Yeah, that's what it is.
Lets get the Chevy Volt in production as soon as possible.
Lets not make this another EV1!!!!
Just another mock up from the kings of bullshit. GM and Lutz have no interest in electric / hybrid vehicles. Get a clue people . . . . .
Ocean acidity has risen %30 due to carbon emissions. If we do not change energy sources and deforestation practices, vast amounts of life will go extinct in most of our lifetimes. Oil companies crave profit and have no other motivation. They are very powerful and influence auto design. The change needs to come from people demanding their governments set limits on fuel type and use. How about a carbon tax on non-commercial four wheel drives? Is that difficult to do? How about mandating again EV vehicles? It worked before.
Hi Rick Wagoner
I'm ready to buy your new Chevrolet Volt put it into production.
I was looking for a new car over the past couple of days. The first place I went to was a GM Saturn Dealer than To a Chevy Dealer it's sad to say that I won't be buying from GM becuase all I can find is gas guzzling cars & Suv's. Yes for the first time in my life I guess I'll have to let the money go to a foreign company. I guess I'll buy the Toyota prius becuase of the MPG issue's. I have three young son's hopefully I can help save the enviorment for them.
I wish all of our american company's could get on board and get these new vehicles out their. It's really sad I think the oil companies from the middle east bought you guys out or paid you off. Well it's to bad and so sad you just lost 10 sale's from my family and freinds.
One year later, much of the fog has lifted from this project. Instead of costing under $30,000, it is now forecast to cost under $40,000. Instead of a 40 mile AER, the real world number appears to be closer to 25 miles. Two versions of the battery pack were received from LG for bench testing in late 2007, and the A123/Conti battery pack is expected to be shipped to the GM lab early in 2008, perhaps by the end of January. The car will seat 4 people and should go on sale to the public in 2011. It will have a Cd (coefficient of drag) similar to the Prius Cd of .26. In June, 2008 "mules" (Malibu with Volt battery and electric drive) should be available for members of the information media to drive and evaluate. Wouldn't it be nice if most of this turns out to be true?
I did two things this year that I never have done in my (50 year) life. I purchased a foreign car, and a hybrid. (Nissan Altima) As I speak with co-workers I see the concerns are the same w/regard to fuel efficiency and going green. As I speak, one co-worker is lining up to purchase either the TCH or the Altima. Perhaps I'm being naive or overly optimistic, but I see a trend in the buying public. Which really is the first step toward waking up the manufacturers. We can point fingers all we want, but we (the buying public) has always had control over the market.
It's obvious you did zero research, or went to dealers not interested in selling cars.
GM currently offers 5 hybrids: Saturn Vue, Chevy Tahoe, GMC Yukon, Saturn Aura, Chevy Malibu
And several vehicles that get over 30mpg highway:
Cobalt, Malibu (non-hybrid), Pontiac G5, Pontiac G6, Pontiac Vibe, Saturn AURA
And from Green Car magazine: "...Tahoe’s 21 mpg city fuel efficiency rating is the same as that of the city EPA rating for the four-cylinder Toyota Camry sedan."
So I say, let GM research the Volt, and get it right, I'll be waiting.
I do not give a crap about the environment like Al Gore. I believe in saving the environment, but I am not a right wing evironmentalist like Gore. What I really care about is the independence from foreign oil. Opec has us over a barrel of Oil.
Imagine how much gasoline and money we could save while helping reduce emissions, with just a vehicle capable of running on electricity, gasoline fuels and biodiesel. Chevy volt has this capability with much more innovative rechargeable electric drive system. Plus, this four- to five-passenger sport sedan still maintains the passenger and cargo capacities of a production car, driver and front passenger air bags equipped with modified chevy equinox mudflaps features. What more?? And a StabiliTrak Stability Control System.
Why does nobody ever mention that 20 years ago Geo had a Metro that got 50 mpg ( I owned one with auto tranny that got 47), GM bought them out and re-introduced the Metro that got 40 mpg (had one with manaul that occasionally got 42) and now the best car they can market only gets 30?
You are showing an unnecessary degree of generosity to GM's endless policiy of deceit and pusilanamy which commenced with the recall of the EV1!
Wagoner and his cohorts represent JUST that bastardized concept of enterpreneurship which has brought our country to it's present "knees".. In a more perceptive focus we should also add on the roll of our present Bush and the "scowling" VP who scandalously sold out our nation's best interest mandating the corn/ethanol caper which has now blownup exponentially - world wide - by creating food scarcities, tremendous inlationary pressures...All, JUST to be get a few extra votes and provide added wealth to their already wealthy agrofriends!!
It is beyond belief that the automotive, petroleum interests and the political structure in Washington are continuing a constant ferment of misleading arguments, backtracks, half/full lies just to simulate a scenario AWAY from the overwhelming advantages of plugin vehicle technology.
And it is not at all any tribute to our so called democratic traditions which project such a brainless apathetic response to the national catastrophe which faces us!
An equanamous response would be to impeach that bastion of perverted politicians and thereafter retire them where they can avoid damaging our lives although I would hesitate to any thoughts of having them righteously in self recognition each drinking a cup of hemlock.
GM is moving in the right direction with hybrids and new technology. I jsut hope that they do more research to produce a better performing battery than the battery that the EV1 used. GM, Toyota, Ford, and Honda are producing more fuel efficient vehicles than ever before. The Chevy Malibu Hybrid, the Volt, the new Focus gets about 40 EPA city mpg, and obviously the Prius and the Civic hybrid. I hope automobile manufacturers continue to devote technology and research to better fuel efficiency. Within our lifetimes we could witness the end of the internal combustion engine (about 32% efficient) and the emergence of the lithium ion battery (60-64% efficient).
-a future hybid vehicle owner
Great point Bill. I have been researching and I would love to get behind the wheel of that car but you are right talk is cheap...put up or shut up.
Put the car out all ready!!! We have the technolgy to do it. Did you forget the EV1. Batteries were good enough in 1999 with the nickel metal hydrade (pardon my spelling) and now we have li-on Batteries. Is it the oil companies that are holding you back? The oil companies (exxon by it self) is worth more than ALL THE AUTO MAKERS OF THE WORLD COMBINED. How much profit does exxon need brfore auto companies pull their heads out of thier ass? Isn't $4.50 per gallon for diesel a bit over board!!! I drive a toyota prius and thats not enough! SOMBODY PLEASE MAKE AN AFORDABLE ELECTRIC PLUG IN HYBRID, or a all electric car before big oil bankrupts us!!!
check out aptera.com for answers to some of your prayers.
This is true. You can see details for yourself by renting/netflixing the documentary "Who Killed the Electric Car". Prepare to be angered to no end... Basically, GM bought out the company Ovionics who have a nickle-metalhydride (NiMh) battery that powered the EV1 and other EVs in Ccalifornia. They then sold the company to, I believe, ExxonMobil. The license for this battery will no allow it to be produced for electric vehicle purposes, except in quantities so large that no one can actually use it. They've effectively shelved a battery that could have been used for electric-only and plug-in hybrid vehicles. This has delayed the whole EV industry while alternative battery technology is reearched, tested, etc..
Nice article, BUT, the statement "The battery pack will consist of 250 individual cells, wired in series, so that if any one of them fails, the whole pack will be dead" is very likely in error.
While such statements are true of Christmas tree lights, it is inconceivable that GM would not have good enough electrical engineers to implement electronic circuits to bypass bad cells. We even have this on our University's solar car battery pack (which also runs batteries in series).
Hybrid cars are a proven technology. I just hope that GM can catch up to and pass the performance of Toyota's Camry Hybrid. This Volt car seems like a winner to me :-)
I, too, would gladly get behind the wheel of one of these....if only GM would finally make it. Also, I heard the projected price is now up to $35,000. Pricey, but well worth it...oh well, you can dream, can't you?
Even if it does work, it's not practical for families or businesses. We need an electric mini van and small pickup that can go at least a hundred miles on a charge at up to 70 mph. Most of these early prototypes look like race cars - not that I wouldn't want to have one. But I need something to take trash to the dump, go camping, transport buiding materials, etc. This doesn't work for me.
So now I wonder which is the more benevolent:
TV Cable companies
"Big Old Phone company"
General Motors
'big oil'
If automobiles all of a sudden(yeah right!)switched to electric power what would 'big oil' do with all that petroleum ? Well if they could not put it back into the ground profitably (letting it accumulate till price went back up) I do believe it would be useful as generator fuel, ship fuel, jet engine fuel, and even lawn mower fuel so they would not have to shut down any refineries---just slow down a bit and maybe even produce a better product ? They have become acclimated to a captive audience for too long ! Their strangle hold on fuel needs to be broken. The additive cost of fuel price increases is cripling the economy especially those near the bottom of the scale whose percentage of gross income spent on gas is much higher than the upper economic tiers.
This is sad to hear about the doubt of the Volt that GM has led the public to belive that would be out in a few years. I can see that BIG OIL has got to them and stoped any chance of saving our way of life. Cant everyone see what the big oil companies are trying to do to our country?
Come on GM...my guess is that you will perform on this car just like you perform on MOST of your NEW offerings - A DAY LATE AND A DOLLAR OVER PRICED. You will TALK up a big deal then somewhere in the future (after EVERY OTHER JAP CAR MFGR IS IN THE MARKETPLACE) you will present your offering that will not quite compete with them and you will offer it at a much HIGHER PRICE.
OH WELL WE HAVE LEARNED OVER THE YEARS HOW YOU OPERATE AND THIS IS WHY YOU ARE NOW NUMBER 2 AND WILL GO DOWN FROM THERE!!!
I would love to be off imported oil but we, the US , have oil here we just can not drill because of big goverment. Why is China drilling off of FLA but the US can not? As for the new tech. green vechiles. In the early 90s you could have bought a large BMW 7 and had it converted to run on hydrogen at BMW. This had a 20 grand cost, but BMW stated that if all the cars were hydrogen powered it would not cost more. This BMW would use the same engine that came in the car, no fuel cells or way out stuff. The car only produced water vapor from the exhuast and had more power. Now it also used more "fuel" to get around, but if it is cheap hydrogen who cares. What happened to this car and this tech.?.....oil companies!
GM is talking like these "green" vehicles are witch craft, but other companies have done it in the past, better than what GM is tell you that is coming in 2, 3, 4 years if ever.
I am a proud owner of five GM cars. Three new and two classic cars. Their is no one on this planet that can appreciate the sound and performance of a big block chevrolet any more than I. But even I know GM's days are numbered. With gas over four dollars a gallon GM is offering no real solutions. The chevy volt sounds promising and my wife and I would really like to buy one if it ever becomes a reality. GM offers other so- called hybrids now, but in my opinion they are a joke. GM still has the ability right now to lead every auto maker into the future and away from fossil fuels.(like it did with the EV-1.).But that time is running out.We need this technology back now, not years from now!In busines the old saying is you lead, follow or get out of the way.I'm afraid in GM's case it will be get out of the way. Please don't let this happen!
My next car is going to be a plug hybrid, and my wifes next car is going to be a hybrid. As the gas price were i live are 14 kroner a liter simular to 2,8 dollars a liter and app 11,2 dollar pr gallon.
If I can buy a car replacing my milage (25.000 gasoling) app 2500 liter with electrical driving for 20.000 km forth and back from work and a bit more, my savings are 28.000 kroner a year i dollars 5.600.
I can buy a car for 420.000 kroner and get a profit of 7,5% compaired with gas.
So i can buy a car for 84.000 dollars and still make a profit og 7,5% a year with no risk. or I can borrow 84.000 dollars at a rate of 7,5% and still my economy will be as before.
In the U.S. you can divide 84.000 by three (4 dollars a gallon) = 28.000 dollars at a rate of 7,5%, and at 5% 42.000 dollars and your economy is still as before.
I dont think it is enything wrong with my calculations. The electricity cost is only 1000 kroner in a year so it is low.
But if this gets to be coummon knowlage everybody will wait to buy hybrids.
If the thecnology is solid over half of the cars in norway are hybrids before 2018.
This will increase the electricity consumtion with 3 to 5%.
Stig
I would like to see GM bring this to market, but I honestly just don't see it happening. If by some miracle they do, it will be nothing like the original concept idea, it will probably turn out to be a regular Prius-like hybrid. But even a bigger issue for me is this is not a forward enough leap from what we can already buy.
I am saving my money for the Think City battery electric car, no gas engine at all. I already have an '04 Hyundai Accent and '93 Ford explorer that are paid for, I'll just hang on to one of those if I need to do some hauling or drive more than 100 miles in a day. But virtually all my daily driving will be on the first battery electric car that comes to market.
Come on Think City!!! Hurry up and start selling these in the US!
Stew.
40 miles on nothing but electricity is good. Recovering electricity when you break is better. Good excelleration and top speed of 120 MPH is great. If I had the money and it was available, I'd buy it now...maybe... I need two more things in this car that I have not heard much about. One is climate control (A/C and heat). The A/C doesn't have to be a typical compressor. For generations, the military used technology based on the "venturi effect" to cool air in their armored vehicles (not saying they still use it or not). The vehicle is moving...that alone produces air that can be restricted and its force used to cool air flowing through a liquid. Number two, I live in Florida and the Sun is free. Why isn't the hood, trunk lid and roof of the car covered in photo-voltaic solar panels? Why can't the car charge while driving? Why can't it charge all day in the parking lot at work? If my electric company is still using coal, gas or other natural resources to produce electricity, what good is this going to do when gas is $12 a gallon? I'm right back where I started from now with 30-40 MPG at $4 a gallon.
I also have nothing against fuel cell technology, but the weight of a hydrogen tank or the equipment needed to generate hydrogen is the worst of all these solutions in a car. Fuel cells are good for land and space, not cars (unless you can create a storage tank and hydrogen generation equipment that weighs less than the entire car did before you started) And ofcourse, all of the stations operated by the big 3 oil company sells hydrogen if you don't have the onboard generation equipment...right!
GM, you need to do better than this. I need my A/C and I should be able to drive all day or at least most of a sunny day using solar power to recharge the batteries as I drive or park.
I totally agree with JD. Lets get a Hybrid that has PV cells in the roof. The heck with keeping the outside the same color. There's plenty of room for at least one big panel which could be made to contour with the rest of the car and parking the car in a lot for 8 hours or more would really help with some charging. In my job I park my car in a lot for 36 to 48 hours and could get a great charge out of that time. Where's the innovators that should have incorporated these into the current hybrids already??? C'mon people, get with it!!! Also, more plug in hybrids, too!!
On CNBC I saw the show "Saving GM" and they was talk about the volt. On the show they stated that the price would be in the 40 to 45 grand range and maybe more by the time the car hit the dealers. IF that is the case this car will not sell to the masses and GM will say that the public was not ready for it..
this is a poor showing. the ev1 had twice the mileage on a charge. until GM actually gets serious, or one of the other of the big 3 we're not going to have a commitment to break away from big oil.
the big 3 are in the back pockets of the oil tycoons, why would they sever their ties.
unless...
you have a quarter where you lose 250billion in a quarter and your oil friend makes 11 billion in a quarter. hello. clue phone.
The whole "wait for a lithium-ion breakthrough" problem is a red herring. NiMH is here today (admittedly with increased weight / reduced performance). Toyota is designing the plug-in Prius to allow for either NiMH OR L-Ion. That's the way to go if you are serious about building a plug-in soon.
I own two hybrids and am ready to trade in my 2002 Prius for the first practical plug-in that comes along.
I still haven't heard anything about an option for a gas-free Volt. Shouldn't GM consider this as well? With all the buzz around the Tesla, doesn't it makes sense for GM to offer a simple option to replace the range extender with a larger battery or a second battery?
I wonder what kind of mileage the Volt would get without its range extender, maybe 60 miles? So if the range extender (1.4L 72hp 4-cyl engine) weighs 150 lbs and the normal battery weighs 400 lbs, then a 550 lb larger battery could be the replacement, and would give a range of maybe 85 miiles? Ok, that's terrible for an EV... anyone have more realistic numbers for this hypothetical Volt?
(battery specs - http://www.autobloggreen.com/2008/04/03/gms-chevy-volt-update-all-system...)
An 85 mile range for a gas-free Volt would bad, but it's an option to sell more Volts, especially considering the current meager selection of EVs to choose from. If I'm willing to spend $3000 on a convenience package, then I wouldn't mind shelling out a few thousand more for a battery upgrade/electric-only package. I look at the range extender as a drag on the 40 miles of gas-free driving I would try to do everyday, and a waste for the 600 miles of daily driving I would rarely, if ever do - plus I already have a regular car for distance driving if need be.
So with a simple option package, the Volt could be the first mass-produced, mid-priced, mid-sized EV!! Hmmm.
This article contains an error. A Prius is not a parallel hybrid. It's a series/parallel hybrid. The Honda Civic hybrid is a parallel hybrid. The difference is that in a parallel hybrid, both the gas engine and the electric motor always provide power to the wheels. In a series/parallel hybrid, only the electric motor provides power to the wheels, until the gas engine kicks in to provide power to the wheels as well, when higher speeds are needed (or to recharge the battery or power electrical components).
The thing about the Volt that doesn't make sense to me is that series hybrids are very efficient in stop-and-go driving, but not as much so in constant high-speed driving. Parallel hybrids are very efficient in constant high-speed driving, but not as much in stop-and-go driving. The Prius combines both of these techniques to achieve maximum efficiency. Why doesn't the Volt utilize a parallel drivetrain when it's efficient, and a series drivetrain after the battery-only range has been exhausted, instead of using the parallel drivetrain at all times?
Everyone needs to check out the Aptera. It gets incredible gas millage and is not a smoke and mirrors trick.
www.aptera.com
I can't wait until they go onsale.
The Aperta, "The Wingless Bird", is awesome in its potential, but remember this vehicle is not in the same class as a car and does not need to go through the same safety standards. Because it is a three wheel vehicle, it is in the class of a motorcycle and can get away with many saftey standards that cars manufactures can't.
With the Hybrid incentives just passed a person will be eligible for a $7.5k tax credit on the future Volt. This should bring the price down in the low $30k's. Read the latest news at www.gm-volt.com
Hmmm sounds like the EV-1 (anyone watch who killed the electric car). I have found a way to make the millage almost unlimited. I am just not sure who to release it to. I know I would be in danger if I did release it and also that someone in the big companies would steal it from me. I have tested the theory and it seems to work.
Does anyone know how this car will drive after the battery is exhausted and is being charged by a small gasoline engine?
They claim that it will run the same. The car will never run on the engine. If the bats are low the engine will run a generator to charge them. The car will then be powered by the elec. motors. The "little" engine you say, the last I heard, was enlarged to a 2.0 that is bigger then what in a my toyota and most smaller cars.
wow! No doubt there are folks from GM posting in here to stain Toyota. More sleazy GM bulls.
THIS is how you build a hybrid.
http://www.motorauthority.com/80mpg-hybrid-mini-with-640bhp.html
Can't wait for my Volt. Counting down the days here. : )
IF GM has money to build it..I heard some talk that it MAY be pushed back.
my understanding is the battery once depleted will remain so until plugged-in for a recharge (or you would be using the generator to recharge when you should be using the grid). The generator is still currently 1.4L engine, not a 2L as posted above.
yea, it is a 1.4l
40,000 dollars! Screw that. Half of all americans barely make 50K per/yr and you expect someone to pay 4 grand for a vehicle with a range of only 40 miles between charging. Maybe if the united states and the us automakers pulled their heads out of their arses and thought long term rather than just for next week then you could engineer a vhehicle that was more earth friendly and cost effective. Lets start with auditing gm, the us treasury, the usg and opec. You people have lost it.
I'm going to build a car that runs on air and sell it for 10 grand with a 3 year warranty bumper to bumper. It will have a 100 mile range and cost almost nothing to fill it. Then you idiots can spend billions bailing each others balls out all day long while the american public laughs at you.
I look forward to your start-up company.
There was talk from GM that they were not going to put in the 1.4 turbo and going with the larger 2.0 engine to run the gen. Who knows what it will be when and IF the car is ever built..
originally it was actually speculated as a 1L turbo. It has sense been announced by GM that it will be a non-turbo direct injected 1.4L four cylinder.
the chevy volt is so cool i just want to hot wire one and steal it
"They are in the business of making money just like ALL business\'s, and gas guzzling vehicles sell very well and with huge profit margins."
Do you think they should be in the business of loosing money, you moron. Do you think you would have a job if your employer took the same perspective ?
Post (GRD) great republican depression, the remaining working population of America will drive Buick LeSabres and Cavalier-like cars made in China. These cars are a current-day reality on the streets of China, and await export to the U.S. on the docks of Shanghai as we speak! The elitist uber-rich shareholders of GM had GM-America teach GM-China how to build these cars using 85 cent and hour, Chinese peasant women, the supply of which is unending and self-regenerating in China. The Uber rich chose these women over the North American car builders for quite apparent economic reasons! The current “bail-out bullshit” is a smoke-screen devised by the Uber-rich bastards, to foist liability for the large number of unemployed they intend to create, from the private sector, over to the public sector to relieve themselves of any undue expenses, before they collapse expensive North American operations in favor of highly profitable Chinese and Asian operations. Remember, they now own both, are dumping the American white elephant, and the workers, and the old factories, liabilities, environmental cleanups, and all, for more profitable Asian production centers, so that they can be truly competitive with Honda, Hyundai, Toyota and the like! It is a good, sound business strategy for the uber-rich shareholders, and by selling American stock and buying Asian stock, they slide away to new fields of immense profits, liability free as they collapse American corporations, and Yankee doodle gets it up the brown spot, hard and firm, once again, and is left, smarting and holding the bag! Any truly innovative and advanced ideas will be incorporated into the new Chinese built, highly “profitable for shareholders” cars. The “Volt” is a 1969 chevelle body, complete with sheet metal and hydraulic support, engine removed, battery pack added, a nightmare of 1930’s greasepit engineering - no servo’s, no drive by wire, no plastics, no carbon fiber, no magnesium parts, no aluminum, no advanced polymer composites - Hell, even Hyundai is trying to make better, lighter bodies from recycled soda bottles, and Henry Ford did a number with Soy-plastics way back when! There is no way in Hell, that a major corporation in the country that put a man on the moon can be so backwards, unless they have other motivations, they just are not that stupid!
Doesn't the positive tone of this article date it?
Shouldn't it be revamped and updated to reflect GM's current disparate situation, that of facing bankruptcy?
I've already put down money on a 2010 Prius. I'm not waiting for GM any longer!
I've purchased a 2010 Prius as well. It comes late May/early June. I can't believe this thread has been yakking on the volt so long.
It just shows how pathetic GM really is.
I've purchased a 2010 Prius as well. It comes late May/early June. I can't believe this thread has been yakking on the volt so long.
It just shows how pathetic GM really is.
dngdndlfd
Hi just a question.. must you really "plug-in" to charge the Chevy Volt? what if you're staying in a high-rise building.. how are you going to charge it?
The small 4-cly gas engine charges the batteries, as needed. Regenerative braking also
charges the batteries. So, no, the car doesn't have to be plugged in. But without that option you'd get much less impressive MPG.
This looks very interesting and can't wait to test drive it!
GM talks to much they're always talking about the products but ware is it? THEY'RE NOT SHOWING ANYTHING BUT PICTURES!!!!!
hi!
GM talks to much they're always talking about the products but ware is it? THEY'RE NOT SHOWING ANYTHING BUT PICTURES!!!!!
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Check out the pre-production cars that are already built; they are being tested and tweaked before the Nov 2010 release date:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZDOdvl5DSk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlVAMt_xLz0
Pictures ... Videos ... Live chats with GM execs ... it's on:
www.chevroletvoltage.com
This is GM's official Chevy volt website!
it looks a very beutiful in its shape but something is missing on it
If parking meters also provided charging, the incremental cost of a plug-in hybrid could be cut in half. All this would require is for one or two cities (e.g. NYC or D.C.) to reserve 2-3% of parking spots for plug-in hybrids and provide curbside charging.
Given the demand for parking, this would give hybrid manufacturers an essentially guarranteed market. Nothing drives innovation more than the prospect of profits.
The avg. person NOT if LA or DC will not see one. Chevy is nutz to think that they are going to sell a Cobolt based, thats the platform, for 40 grand plus dealer mark up so what 45 or 50 grand. This car would sell faster than GM could build it for 27, a bit more than a hybrid. This car will be just as had to find in middle america as F40 or a Enzo..
To manage such a human life is nozt enough, the life expectancy of members of elite families on average - years.
I am from Emirates and now study English, give please true I wrote the following sentence: "Need the trend plan on the year of the hood cover with the porsche counter.This car begins then through the businessman and receives chassis through the equipment."
Best regards :p, Mitch.
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