Preproduction Chevy Volt Test Ride

[caseoane]

Germans have such an annoying accent!!! Other than that, a great video.

[ENJOYOURMATRIXX]

this car is such a hoax.. 40 miles on battery after gas generator fill the battery and here come the same old technology again

[GilgameshIV]

40 miles on a plugged-in battery charge.

After that, it's a series hybrid, genius.

The engine doesn't "fill the battery", it drives a generator which supplies electric power directly to the electric motor, with any extra power going to the battery.

During peak-power needs, which exceed what the generator can supply that second, the battery energy-buffer supplies power, similar to Toyota Prius operation.

Just a fraction of the battery is used in series-hybrid mode.

[Jedi2155]

Does anyone know if the displays are going to be touchscreen as it appears in the video it is controlled by a dial which would be a HORRIBLE decision if that makes it into the final design...

[GilgameshIV]

The center panel screen is a 7" touchscreen.

There are also lots of 'capacitive touch' controls that you just need to 'touch lightly', not push, on the central panel.

I think the other 7" display behind the steering wheel is *not* touchscreen, its just to display info, but they say it is a "driver configurable instrument display", so you can choose what you want to see, then leave it alone while driving.

google: likecool Chevy Volt Coupe Car

It has a 3:27 video of the Volt interior

[xBeAGoodPersonx]

GM has been building very dependable cars for a long time.

The Chevrolet Volt is a pioneer in the future of electric transportation.

[xxxxdarksidexxxx]

pioneer?  you must have never read the history of what a company like GM actually own.

in fact a good place to start would be the patienting licenses for battery technology.

if you have done your research you would understand that GM has had the capability to build something like this for over a decade and have owned copyrights to hybrid technology for generations. they just have never done anything about it because of profits.

they are a BUSINESS not a PIONEER lol

[emckane]

they didn't have li-ion batteries 10 years ago did they ?

[Jedi2155]

They did, they just were very very new, however the NiMH technologies 10 years ago were already quite advanced and capable of providing at least 20 miles of range in the same battery pack form factor is not more.

[GilgameshIV]

YouTube has the worst Comment system.

Frakkin' eats comments at random...

[wasjunk]

ther will be three others than the volt,not GMs

that will get alot more mpg,,,out in the next 90 days

just wait

[fortytons]

Q: What has GM considered from the perspective of the pedestrian as it pertains to such a quiet vehicle? Has the "sound safety" been addressed?

I guess what I suggest is that an EV should make a reasonable sound to warn pedestrians, while keeping noise pollution under consideration.

Other than that, nice job!

[studio7manga]

I plan on buying one when they finally come on the market. Would have bought an EV1 too if I could have.

[TranCendenZ]

studio7manga: GM CEO Bob Lutz recently stated on David Letterman (the video is on YouTube) that the EV1 would have cost the consumer over $100,000 per car. Would you seriously be willing to spend $100,000 for an EV1?

[studio7manga]

I don't buy that statement, GM hated the car from day one. Then there is the question of economies of scale and maturation of technology. Given that, as you are want to point out, the leaf is much less expensive than the 100k figure it seems logical that the EV1 would be in a similar ball park today.

Remember when you thumb down a comment that automatically makes you right.

[TranCendenZ]

chuckbarry75: You need to stop using that "road trip" scenario. The overwhelming majority of people don't go on road trips, and when they do, they rent large vehicles because riding in a car is very unpleasant.

They type of consumers who are interested in "eco" cars do not have $40K to spend on a Volt.

[studio7manga]

Except most people do drive out of town on occasion and most don't want a separate car just to get out of the city. The leaf is much more limited in what it can do and it's price reflects that.

[TranCendenZ]

studio7manga: Someone who does frequent road trips will not be interested in an all-electric car.

For $40K, you can buy any one of the hybrid cars and still have a lot of spending money left over.

The $40K Volt can't even compete with the $25K Prius. The consumer demographic who is interested in "eco" cars could not buy a $40K Volt if they wanted to.

[studio7manga]

Except it's only going to be $32.5K with tax incentives.

The hybrids are a different beast entirely as they are basically gas vehicles with electric assist.

I disagree, I can afford it.

[fortytons]

I would submit that as the technology matures and production increases, prices will drop. Remember the $800 Sony Betamax?

[GilgameshIV]

It was determined during development that the Volt would need many specialized and custom components including an expensive drivetrain, microprocessor controllers, and electrified AC compressor and brakes. Parts like these were not easy to find or cheap in the supplier market. But as production scales up, price will come down. 

And the batteries are warrantied for 10 years/150,000 miles. If failure rate is much lower than conservatively planned, cost comes way down in the future.

[solrak1945]

why the media cant drive this trial unit, there's a close circuit...no problem...or yes??

[eunicron]

Very cool.

[tweetersweet]

<-- Is totally jealous you got to ride in this car. I love the center console, I cant wait to find out all it does. I am so excited for the car and GM! I am keeping my cavalier till this one comes out! Hurry I dont want to wait much longer!

[TranCendenZ]

Nissan announced yesterday that the Nissan Leaf will get an equivalent of 367 mpg (using GM's formula), and it will only cost around $25K.

The Volt is $40K.

[chuckbarry75]

The Nissan will go just under 100 miles on a charge... and take 16 hours to charge. The Volt will be able to go as far as you need it to go, with the gas/E85 engine there as a generator to keep you going...

[studio7manga]

In addition to what chuckbarry said you also get a 7,500 tax credit as well. Making it $32.5K.

[TranCendenZ]

studio7manga: If you are taking $7,500 from the taxpayers, then you are NOT "part of the solution"--you are "part of the problem". A successful car doesn't need a government handout to make it sell.

It's not fair that environmentally-conscious people who take public transportation and ride their bicycles to work don't receive any credit, but they will be forced to pay extra taxes to subsidize the Volt.

[studio7manga]

Proof that the market doesn't factor in all the costs associated with production, like pollution.

[javixm]

That's because the government has to also incentive solar power plants. In California they're forcing the utilities to have 20% of their total output come from renewable sources by the end of 2010.

[studio7manga]

So? This is a democratic society, the citizenry can choose where it get's it's electricity, and such programs are popular in California. Personally I'd make my own rather than buy it from Saudi Arabia, it creates jobs and increases energy security as well as reduces trade imbalances (most of which is from oil, not China).

[Jedi2155]

I think people need to take into account that they're not just trying to subsidize the car, but the technology platform it is based on. By providing a government incentive, they are providing about 20% of the R&D costs to develop such a vehicle, and if it is a hit, then it would catch on and hopefully economies of scale would kick in and remove the need for such tax credit.

As it is right now, no advanced technology vehicle could come close to compete with typical fossil fuel vehicles.

[javixm]

The 7,500 dollar bonus from the government is in order to quickly make the shift and try to get rid of gasoline powered cars as fast as possible. As with any new technology, the first and "new" stuff are the most expensive. Blu-ray players used to be 1,000 dollars a few years ago, but now they're close to 200 dollars. Technology only gets cheaper and cheaper, gasoline only gets more expensive.

[TranCendenZ]

javixm: Why don't I get I $7,500 bonus if I take public transportation, walk, ride a bicycle, use an electric scooter, light-rail system, work from home, car pool with a large group, or choose to live in the same city that I work in?

[javixm]

Because by doing so you're not helping to jump-start the EV industry, which needs to get going now and fast if we want to at least halt the yearly increase in oil consumption.

New technologies don't get cheap until they're mass produced on a large scale. If you ride your bike you're not helping the EV cars get cheaper.

[TranCendenZ]

javixm: Why don't I get a bonus from the government for buying an electric scooter? A small scooter is far more efficient than a gigantic electric car. Do you have any idea how much waste is generated from both building and eventually destroying a large electric car?

Why don't we encourage citizens to be more like Taiwan, the scooter capital of the world?

[javixm]

Because it is inconvenient for the person that already has a car and needs one (like in Miami, for example) to sell the car and get a scooter.

It is easier to promote a new technology that doesn't change people's lifestyles than to try and change the lifestyle.

Can't drive your 3 kids to work in a scooter.

Painful to drive cross-country in a scooter.

More likely to have a fatal accident in a scooter than in an car

You get wet when it rains.

You're likely to crash when it rains.

Inconvenient

[TranCendenZ]

javixm: It's a great idea for people to have scooters or motorcycles as "secondary" vehicles.

Just because you're riding a scooter or motorcycle doesn't mean that you're living a horrible lifestyle. *rolls eyes* I live in a trendy loft district that was designed to attract "professionals," and there are many people riding around on scooters. Some people even received free scooters with the purchase of their lofts.

[javixm]

Scooters as secondary vehicles. I totally agree.

Cars are primary.

[javixm]

There's also another important factor.

I'm in law school, and I highly doubt I'd get more clients if they saw me drive a scooter instead of a Mercedes.

[sportsfreak800]

@TranCendenZ Who do you think pays for public transportation? Or the roads you ride a bike on? Much of those are funded by tax-payer dollars. I agree with your premise, but we need to focus on eliminating subsidies for things like coal (yes those exist) and policies promoting sprawl.

[GameandWatch19]

@TranCendenZ Public transportation already receives tremendous subsidies from the government. Without the billions and billions required to keep all of our buses and trains running, you'd be SOL without a private vehicle. So it's unfair and in fact ridiculous to criticize giving a measly $7,500 subsidy to the Volt.

Yes there is already incentive for riding your bike to work. You save on gas and pollution, and it's easier to park than a car.

[GameandWatch19]

@GameandWatch19 There's a major difference between purchasing a bike vs a $40,000 automobile. People NEED that tax credit to make the vehicle more affordable, and as an incentive to purchase something cleaner and more energy efficient. Besides it's not like you can always just use a bike instead of a car. A bike cannot go 75 mph on a freeway and get you to your desired destination in a reasonable amount of time, nor can it carry adequate amounts of luggage.

[TranCendenZ]

@GameandWatch19 Public transportation systems receive nowhere near $7,500 per commuter. The Volt owner has private ownership of his vehicle, and he can sell it and keep all of the money.

The incentives to ride a bicycle don't cost us taxpayers anything.

A motor scooter is more environmentally friendly than the Volt, but it receives no subsidies.

A better idea would be to increase taxes on fuel so people choose to drive fuel-efficient cars and live close to work.

[GameandWatch19]

@TranCendenZ "Public transportation systems receive nowhere near $7,500 per commuter." Yes but sadly far more people ride public transportation than we'll ever see driving electric cars in the near future. So if you add up the TOTAL mount of money that will be spent on EV subsidies vs the amount spent on public transportation, I'm pretty sure the total public transportation subsidies will be far higher.

[GameandWatch19]

@TranCendenZ You're being inconsistent with your statements in general when you discuss the issue of subsidies. You can't have it both ways. Either you want tax-funded subsidies, or you don't. So could you please make it more clear on exactly where you stand on that issue?

Bicycles and scooters don't get subsidies because they don't need them. They're already mass-produced and sold on a large scale and are already affordable to the average person compared to the capital cost of electric cars.

[GameandWatch19]

@TranCendenZ And finally, yes, I absolutely agree that taxes on fossil fuels should be higher, but in addition to, not instead of, subsidies for electric vehicles. Note: The $7,500 subsidy applies to ANY electric car, not just the Volt and the Leaf. (And I think it might even apply to hybrids as well, but I'm not sure.)

[GilgameshIV]

The Nissan Leaf does not include the cost of the *battery* in that $25K figure. The huge lithium-ion battery costs about $15K, and Nissan has no idea how long theirs will last, since they are not testing it 24/7 for a few years, like GM is.

Nissan plans to *lease* the batteries, and replace them when they die early (because they do not keep a State of Charge between 80% and 30%, like GM, which makes the batteries last much longer).

Have fun paying another $4K a year to *lease* the battery.

[TranCendenZ]

GilgameshIV: We don't know the exact specifications of the Leaf yet, but Nissan said that the Leaf would be priced competitively with vehicles in the same category.

The consumer demographic that is interested in "eco" cars couldn't come up with $40,000+ for a Chevy Volt if they wanted one. The only way that GM can sell one single Volt is if the government (us taxpayers) subsidizes it.

[GilgameshIV]

For the specs, google "heres-the-nissan-leaf edmonds greencaradvisor"

A 24kWh li-ion battery BEV does not yet *have* 'vehicles in the same category'. I'd be surprised if the battery supplier could make the battery for $10k - they haven't announced battery leasing prices yet.

There is already a waiting list of 100,000 for the Volt. People want them because of Peak Oil, not 'eco' reasons. Think $10/gallon gasoline in 10 years.  Some people plan ahead.

[TranCendenZ]

GilgameshIV: You and I both know that the Chevy Volt waiting list is just a publicity stunt. The waiting list is "unofficial" and doesn't even require a down payment. "Real" waiting lists require you to put some money down on the car.

The waiting list started back when the it was a cool looking concept car and price wasn't announced. Much of the public lost interest when the Volt's edges were rounded off and it started looking like any other boring car on the road. $40K+ was also a turnoff.

[GilgameshIV]

True, the waiting list is not an official GM list, and no deposits were taken: it is just an indication of interest. I myself am very interested in the Volt for 2011 or 2012 - and I'm NOT on that waiting list, so who knows what the sales will be ? The Prius was misunderestimated too.

Yeah, aerodynamics is boring.

I heard of a company that can put 'golf ball dimples' on your cars surface, this cuts drag by about 20% they say.

[GilgameshIV]

They will only produce 10,000 Volts in 2011. I'm sure these will sell - early adopters won't care about a $32.5K price much.

After that, they expect to produce 60,000 a year for a few years: that's just 5000/month. They also have plans for similar cars, like the Cadillac Converj: this will be part of the 60,000.

As they get more familiar with the battery lifetime and get economies of scale on this and other parts, prices will come way down for non-early-adopters.

[Jedi2155]

I am trying my best to be able to afford a Volt when it is released but I will be primarily comparing it to a Third gen Prius so we'll see when it is released exactly how well it compares.

[TranCendenZ]

GilgameshIV: Your "golf ball dimples" comment sounded interesting, so I looked it up.

That golf ball wrap that you can put on your car is called the "Fastskinz MPG-Plus". It is a vinyl vehicle-wrap system. Popular Mechanics tested it on a Ford Flex, and it unfortunately does NOT give any fuel savings.

Though, Popular Mechanics did say that it would work on the front of some motorcycles since the shape of the motorcycle's nose is closer to that of a golf ball.

[GilgameshIV]

Huh, you're right.

I hadn't checked into it, but it did sound interesting.

Google popularmechanics 4316702

My wife would hate 'golf balling' our car, unless it really did return 20% mpg improvement.

Have you seen the Aptera 3-wheeler ? It looks like an airplane without wings, and is definitely not 'vanilla' looking aerodynamics. It is deemed a 'motorcycle' in California.

[studio7manga]

It depends on the Reynolds number, the dimples effect the turbulence of flow around the body, this can be good or bad depending how fast the object is going, among other things. I don't remember if cars fall in that category or not, nor do I care to do the calculations to find out.

[studio7manga]

Actually I'm pretty sure that cars wouldn't benefit from the dimples, due to the fact that the flow is already turbulent at the back of the car. The reason why it works on golf balls is because they are so short that the flow remains laminar with a smooth ball causing more drag on the back side of the ball.