Chevy Volt's first pre-production model now on the road, in testing
By Ross Miller 
posted June 26th 2009 12:38AM
posted June 26th 2009 12:38AM
posted June 26th 2009 12:38AM
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That is all they had to do. And they should have marketed a 'cheap' version with a electric only powertrain. It could have been made by Saturn within a year. It might have temperature limits and other 'issues', but if it is marketed as a safe, but experimental vehicle, people would still buy it.
That and an old S10 style electric pickup truck. I wouldn't have to convert my own then. Even though I am using better parts (stainless steel, aluminum, carbon fiber, LED lights), GM would have done a more professional job.
Finally Finally Finally . An American car company is putting a little thought into a car design before mass producing it for the ignorant masses who'll buy any gas guzzling SUV to hit the dealerships. I would love to see GM, as a publicity stunt, mount some missile launchers to the front of a Volt and have it blow up a Hummer.
Kinda looks like the love child of an insight and a prius with a little bit of Pontiac G6 in there, but it's a great start. Let's get this show started GM! My VW Rabbit is paid in 2012 and I wanna see what you bring to the table. :D
looks like a stretched hatchback to me. eww
I have a super-cheap solution for Chevy and Ford - find old Chevy Metro and Fiesta blueprints, dust them off, manufacture. Before anyone says "they wouldn't meet safety standards now!" I submit that the human race survived Metros once and can do it again.
Metros got 50 MPG over 20 years ago... Fiestas were uglier but they were efficient too. Last summer I ran into a guy selling firewood who had just sold a decent-condition 1992 Metro for $2500... talk about "greenwashing" but hey, it proves worth.
As I like to say "the alternative fuel of the future is less metal", but of course people want power everything, 10 sunroofs, airbags everywhere and then they wonder why fuel economy hasn't advanced.
Yeah, this is ugly. As a stake holder in GM (against my will), I must say its no surprise those clowns can't stay in business.
That is soooo much more ugly than I thought it was. Looks like I will not be buying. It's like a Prius S or something.
The Chevy Volt is now cruising the streets of paradise. Take it down to add it to your garage!
I doubt that car or any other street legal car goes fast enough to require a spoiler. People are willing to pay extra for the spoiler. Some people even buy their own spoiler if the one provided isn't big enough.
GM - good luck with the car, but I won't be buying one.
I'll never forgive for what they did to the EV1.
I was on the waiting list for an EV1, still have a copy of my
deposit refund check on the wall.
I have owned two priuses since, and plan on going with a
Tesla S or plug-in prius as soon as available.
That is one of the ugliest cars I have seen in a while...GM, you might want to fix that...soon
I see two possibilities, GM doesn't care about design. GM is intentionally trying to sabotage this product.
*BAU*
I'd like to see all of the main auto makers really start to push the envelop as far as designing a car for the 21st century. Stop trying to live in the past!
I believe the high pricetag is thanks to the A123 cells (lithium-ion phosphate cells that don't spark when punctured). It's a good idea (all electric with gas generator recharge), but most consumers aren't going to fork over that sort of money for an economical car, especially the idea of it probably costing $20k to replace the batteries when they die in a few years. I think most people will go "ooh, $40k huh? That prius over there for half the cost is lookin pretty sweet actually".
Why doesn't GM hire someone like dean kamen who is likely going to accomplish his goal of creating a much more efficient and affordable version of this, and will probably sell his technology to Toyota.
Wow. Cars get so ugly when not edited.
Guess the same applies to humans so I can't be too judgmental.
I was hoping it would look more like the 2010 Camaro.
You guys comparing this to a hybrid Ie Prius, insight, are idiots. IT IS NOT A HYBRID. This is an pure electric car with a gas engine that only powers a generator that keeps the battery going if you cannot charge it. IT ALWAYS runs off the batteries. IT IS NOT A HYBRID.... Where I live I will never have to get gas driving around town. EVER.
An excess of Ghey-Lussuc and a minimum of Gay-Lussac.
Ugly and far too expensive. At least Toyota, Honda and Tesla can make attractive vehicles. Why do American taxpayers have to own a car company that sucks so bad?
After reviewing numerous documents regarding the upcoming 2011 Chevy Volt being designed by GM I perceive the following problems:
BACKGROUND: the car Is being designed to be used only for short trips of about 40 miles powered by a 400 pound Lithium Ion battery and a 149hp electric motor which provides about 4 miles of driving per kilowatt hour of electricity. In other words the battery holds a 10kwh charge which will power the Volt for about 40 miles. It has been estimated that this will serve the daily needs of most users going to and from work. The car is then to be plugged into a standard AC electric outlet and recharged during the night and be ready in the morning for another daily 40 mile trip. Learning from their previous electric car disaster the EV1, GM is also including a 100hp gasoline engine with 7gal gas tank that will drive a large generator that will power the electric motor if/when the battery can no longer do so. This is take place primarily if the driver continues to operate the vehicle after driving it for 40mi and not recharging it. The gas powered generator is not allowed to recharge the battery under any circumstances.
PROBLEM 1: is purchase price. I do not know many people who are ready, willing and able to pay $40,000 for a small car to drive back and forth to work on a daily basis. Sure there are a few that will buy it but not nearly enough to make this product profitable. And all of the current “hype” that it gets 230mpg is all smoke and mirrors as new measurement standards are being developed by the EPA.
PROBLEM 2: is operating costs. Most areas of the country have “tiered” electrical rates based upon the amount of usage. In my neck of the woods (CA) electricity costs $.26 per kwh at the tier 3 level which is easily reached during the summer due to AC. In other words recharging their Volt on a daily basis is at the highest rate that they are paying for all other utilities which is greater than the baseline rate quoted which was estimated to be about $.11 per kwh or $.03 per mile cost. Realistically it is more likely to average $.05 per mile which “equates” to about 60mpg and would be as high as $.0625 per mile equating to 48mpg at the tier 3 rate. Additionally, today’s gasoline prices are going down and electric rates going up putting a damper on the long term outlook. When driven more than 40 miles the volt is no better than most hybrids on the market today that cost a whole lot less and deliver about 50mpg.
PROBLEM 3: when everything is running according to plan the gasoline engine, tank and generator are “excess baggage and costs” used only for an emergency. I think that it would be a lot smarter to eliminate them and have warning lights indicating when the battery is getting low and will need recharging. The EV1 was too limited in mileage for this to be effective.
PROBLEM 4: if the driver wishes to use this car for much longer trips or on vacation the battery becomes 400lbs of excess weight and there is no easy way to temporarily remove it for this usage. I think that GM should include a switch that will allow the driver to recharge the battery while driving more than the 40 mile limit making it more like all of the hybrid vehicles that are now available.
PROBLEM 5. most people are not going to like having to plug in their car every night to recharge it especially in the winter or when it is raining. Additionally many drivers do not have easy access to an AC outlet, especially those who live in apartments and some condominiums.
PROBLEM 6: we have all been using Lithium Ion batteries for the last 10 years in our cell phones and laptop computers and have not experienced one to last more than 3 years with good functionality. And we do not subject these devices to outdoor summers of Arizona or winters of North Dakota. The battery in the Volt costs about $8,000 and will have to be replaced about every 3 years regardless of what the warrantee states. GM will not be able to continue to support or sell additional Volts until this problem is solved which will require a totally new design which is being partially funded by our government at this time.
PROBLEM 7: is depreciation. With technology changing so rapidly the value of a 2011 Volt will decrease rapidly. What else is new?