Is The Volt The Car Of The Future?

(CBS)  To say General Motors has a lot riding on the Volt is both a bad pun and a big understatement.

GM says this electric car is designed to lead the company into the second century - if it is to have a second century.

But when GM invited reporters to experience the Volt, what they actually drove was the Volt technology stuck into a conventional car called the Chevy Cruze, reports CBS News correspondent Dean Reynolds. The real Volt is not yet ready.

The rush to showcase the technology was clearly designed to generate publicity for the car and public support for the federal money GM needs to stay afloat.

"What makes the technology so significant is actually what is under the skin," said Frank Weber, with GM.

What is under the skin is a 6-foot-long battery that you can recharge every night by plugging it into your garage socket.

Battery power takes the Volt 40 miles. Since most Americans drive less than 40 miles a day, GM says the Volt will use zero gasoline and produce zero emissions. When the charge wears off, an on-board gas tank can power the car and extend the trip 400 miles, addressing what's know in the trade as "range anxiety."

"The current Prius doesn't deliver that," said Brian Johnson, an industry analyst with Barclay's Capital. "The current Honda doesn't deliver that, so they are trying to leapfrog the competition in that respect."

"This is a livable vehicle," said Tony Posawatz, a vehicle line director with GM. "It's not a golf cart or whatever. This is something that people could buy in quantity … particularly if we can get the cost down."

Perhaps way down - because the sticker price will be about $40,000 - for what GM calls a spunky car that can go from zero to 60 in less than nine seconds.

The Volt is due in dealer showrooms by the end of next year, which is itself a show of optimism about GM's future. But there's a problem: sales of existing hybrids have been plummeting for months because the price of gasoline has dropped. If that consumer attitude holds, it could mean that GM will be bringing out the right car at the wrong time.

[Iaveabrain]

The British government have announced today an Electric car subsidy plan which will give consumers incentives of between £2,000 ($4,000) and £5,000 ($10,000) to buy an electric car from 2011.

[db5y]

I'm a former Detroiter and have relatives in and retired from the auto industry. If GM is pinning its survival on the Volt, it will fail miserably unless they get the price of this vehicle significantly under $30k. If they can't do that, they'd better hope that gas hits $10 / gallon, otherwise the ROI will take too long, and might never be realized during the lifetime of the vehicle.

As I see it, it's a boutique car for those wealthy folks who need to shed their environmental angst.

[maggiemoran]

It has taken two decades for GM to come up with a replacement for the EV1 it sabotaged and trashed. They could have lead the world in the production of the electric car but chose the status quo for no other reason than their desire to stick with the known money makers in the form of gas-guzzling trucks and suv's. No doubt their greedy partners in crime, the petroleum industry applied the right amount of pressure and/or incentive as well. It would be nice to get excited about this latest version but when profit is the only motive does it stand a chance?

[guest173]

I do hope chevy sticks with the volt, you can't give up so easily to bring change. perseverence will win out, if they can last that long and not just be greedy

[guest173]

I would not call Chevy anything "cars of the future." I owned a Chevy and it broke down and wore out way too much for me to appreciate it. I believe Chevy follows Japanese automakers, which are much better and more reliable. I also believe the japanese work ethic and longterm planning is much better and more efficient than american, no offense intended. I am half japanese and half american and that is just how I see things having lived in both countries and being both.

[geena5]

I am not taking public transportation as much as possible. It takes all day long just to get somewhere that will take you a 25 minute drive in a car, also you have to deal with the weather while waiting at bus stops (that could be in bad parts of town also). Life is too short to wait for the bus and million bus transfers.

[geena5]

the car industry needs to stop thinking about the quick buck and take seriously the long investment and the good of the environment. They should get some satisfaction that their product would be better for our air quality and not stop making them just because gas prices are down and people are buying the cheaper car. Are they just going to keep relying on Toyota to do that and then go get a government bailout when gas prices go up at Saudi Arabia's whim

[sjc_1]

We could do a lot to reduce oil imports by looking at the large consumers. Trucks, buses, taxis can all run CNG. Commuters can telecommute, car pool or live closer to work.

[TRX10]

forget the volt.

watch this video instead:
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/shai_agassi_on_electric_cars.html

[FlyingPie]

LOL @ "designed to lead the company into the second century". As this is the 21st century, it seems that GM has a lot of catching up to do. ;)

Seriously, I think the Volt is promising, but one issue we'd need to face with plug-in cars is that there are a lot of people who live somewhere where an electrical outlet is not available where they park their cars - For example, people who live in an apartment complex have to park their cars outside, using apartment-provided parking, where electrical outlets are not available. For these people to buy a plug-in car, apartment complexes would need to install electrical outlets for their residents.