Surprise, surprise, Volt not enough to save GM
Click above for a high res gallery of the 2011 Chevy Volt
In a remarkable statement of the obvious, the federal government has declared that the Chevy Volt is not going to be the savior of General Motors in the short to medium term. Given that everyone at GM has acknowledged that the Volt will be a money-loser at launch, it clearly won't contribute to the bottom line. The audit of the viability plans done by the Presidential task force has indicated that GM has spent too much time and money developing the Volt and its extended range EV technology. This comes as GM has slashed the development budgets of products in the lineup except the Volt. Instead, the auditors have said GM should be focusing on more salable cars. Of course, this comes at the same time that members of Congress are saying that GM should not get any money unless they develop plug-in cars like the Volt. Is it just me, or is there the usual disconnect between politics and reality going on here?
Gallery: 2011 Chevy Volt
[Source: Detroit News, Automotive News]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
oollyoumn 4:47PM (3/30/2009)
The Volt is too little and it will be much too late. 40 miles on electric is not enough and at nearly 2 years away I expect to see several electrics with more than 100 mile range by then. Besides I don't expect GM to stay out of bankruptcy that long.
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Isellbeachhomes 4:56PM (3/30/2009)
People are being TOO closed minded about this 40 mile electric charge. All of the other electric cars will have to be recharged with ELECTRICITY which means the grid will have to CHANGE. the Volt will allow you to fill up on gas and continue on your way. Would you be comfortable going cross country in a pure electric vechile that doesn't have a grid to support it? or a car that could fill up on gas and still get 100 mpg's and would not leave you out in the middle of the desert?
Yanquetino 5:36PM (3/30/2009)
Yousellbeachhomes:
I think you'd better do a bit of research before asserting that the grid would have to "change." It can more than handle an influx of EVs for many years to come until they number in the millions, since in the vast majority of instances they will charge overnight when rates and demand are at their lowest.
As to my being "comfortable"... I am not going cross-country: I am simply going to-and-from work everyday, with a few errands in between. Why would I want to haul an unnecessary ICE and gas tank with me everywhere I go, day in and day out?
When and if I really need to drive cross-country (one or two weeks per year, at most?), I'll use our old "workhorse" ICE that sits idle most of the time on the other side of our garage. Or I'll rent a car. Or I'll fly. Or I'll eventually purchase a long-range generator trailer (much better than hauling the ICE everywhere):
http://www.evnut.com/rav_longranger.htm
Of course, if I had a Tesla Model S, with its predicted 300-mile range and 4 hour recharge from a 220V outlet (45 minutes from a 480V high-speed charger), I WOULD feel comfortable driving it cross-country. Wanna bet that other EV manufacturers will likewise approximate such a range and recharge time by the time the deplorable Volt materializes? If so, it'll be dead-in-the-water.
oollyoumn 5:41PM (3/30/2009)
Some people are too closed minded! The electric grid can handle hundreds of thousands of total electric vehicles as it is. 95+% of my driving can be handled by an BEV. Battery mileage claims are like gas mileage claims, YMMV. But expect that variation will be larger. I expect 20 miles or less from a Volt on electric going highway speed using lights, radio and temperature control. The Volt on a cross country trip will likely deliver something near 40 MPG average, maybe less, the 100 MPG number was based on nearly all electric driving. So after about 20 miles you are totally on gas.
I plan to keep my van for those times when capacity needs will likely exceed a BEV or a Volt. I can't imagine anyone would want to take a long trip in a Volt sized car unless they travel alone.
From my experience with GM cars, don't count out being left in the middle of a desert.
Anth 7:39PM (3/30/2009)
The grid now can handle converting 43% of our current passenger car fleet to PHEVs like the Volt with a restricted 6p-6a recharge window. 73% if you allow 24/7 recharging and have some sort of system turn the recharging down (or off) during peak summer periods.
http://www.ferc.gov/about/com-mem/wellinghoff/5-24-07-technical-analy-wellinghoff.pdf
jpm100 4:47PM (3/30/2009)
The initial year, 1997 I think, the Prius was around 20,000 units and wasn't exactly paying its own way either.
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Mike B. 1:08PM (3/31/2009)
in the prius' first year toyota wasn't close to bankrupcy and wasn't building poor quality vehicles...
GM hasn't been investing enough on improving/ensuring the quality of their current line which will continue to be their mass sellers when the volt arrives...
What's ford's "savior"? the 2010 taurus that shows the best in their quality design, engineering and manufacturing... in a car the people can use NOW with the current infrastructure...
GM's? a not so mainstream sports car in the camaro, and an electric vehicle that's too expensive for people to even consider...
honeslty i can't believe GM didn't see this coming... glad wagoner's gone...
where as Ford basis how much to invest based on how much return they'll make and how soon... GM clearly hasn't been doing the same... and that screws them over...
kevinm 4:58PM (3/30/2009)
Here's the deal. Consumers want an affordable car (e.g sub $20k) and the Volt's price obviously makes it more of a rich pseudo environmentalist ride. Most importantly, the Volt isn't even on the market yet! GM needs to make money now and not risk it on a car that's 2 years away.
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Matt 5:01PM (3/30/2009)
Please suggest how they might do that when nobody is buying cars?
John Rowell 5:02PM (3/30/2009)
No, it's not just you. Too bad politics does not rhyme with idiocy. For once, I'm actually slightly sympathetic toward GM.
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UH2L 5:22PM (3/30/2009)
The Volt is not going to single-handedly save GM, but this type of innovative product is needed for their future viability and to improve their PR. To people that say it's not enough, should GM not do it? Then what would you say?
Thanks for chiming in Isellbeachhomes. The 40 mile range is electric only and it covers the needs of (I believe) 70+% of people's daily driving without relying on any additional infrastructure. Sure it will be expensive, but the greenies will buy them until the costs come down and prices can be lowered.
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Brn 6:46PM (3/30/2009)
You beat me to it. The people that were arguing for or against the Volt being the savior of GM were oversimplifying things.
No one else is bringing to production a vehicle like the Volt. It's not supposed to save GM, but it is a major achievement.
RSR 11:37AM (3/31/2009)
Agreed. People and politicians alike blast GM for not making cars like Prius, from which Toyota hasn't made money. Yet, when GM tries to make something that has a potential to upset Prius, the same government tells them that it was a mistake. To what tune should GM dance?
Max 5:24PM (3/30/2009)
@isellbeachomes
You just made that up about the power grid didn't you? Since when are you qualified to determine that?
The power grid will barely feel plug-in cars, as they are expected to add only 0.3% load on it.
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Isellbeachhomes 5:31PM (3/30/2009)
I am talking about the grid at the gas stations. Not the electrical grid. The fact about the gas station grid is NOT made up. How many electrical powering stations do you see across the U.S? I know I WILL NOT be interested in an electric car until we have at least a 1 to 3 ratio of electric charging stations. I WOULD be interested in an extended range car like the volt. regardless, people say they want cheap electric cars, well let me tell you something, that isn't going to happen for sometime because of the cost of batteries and at THAT time, the Volt will be CHEAPER to produce. All things have to be factored in here. get logical people.
Matt 5:49PM (3/30/2009)
@ Isellbeachhomes
You do know you can charge the Volt at home, right... or, you can charge it anywhere that you can plug in your laptop. You don't have to "go fill up", you just plug it in. If you want the quick charge that will require the quick charger (wall mounted thing at your house), but my understanding is that all you'll NEED is a special extension cord that comes with the car.
Chris M 5:30PM (3/30/2009)
It is the US that need plug-ins, what GM needs is sales. Too bad that the Volt will take so long and cost a bit too much to be a major seller. The Cruze and the Beat have the potential to be big sellers, but they are also delayed.
So, what happens if GM goes bankrupt before the Volt launch? I suspect that somebody, perhaps Toyota or Honda or VW, will buy up the intellectual property and maybe some production facilities, then introduce their own plug-ins based on the Volt. They might even use the "Volt" name.
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fnc 5:30PM (3/30/2009)
Ah, bureaucracy.
If I'd trust anyone to throw all the money GM has put into the Volt so far down the drain and let a company in another country refine the plug hybrid so that it becomes a viable and marketable technology, it would be the U.S. government.
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Speqtre 5:46PM (3/30/2009)
Here's what doesn't make sense: Unless there actually is a conspiracy to keep the electric car from the mass market, how come GM wasn't able to build the equivalent of the Tesla S sedan? They're a huge multi-national who up until recently had boatloads of money and a massive engineering/manufacturing base. Not to mention they actually did build an EV once upon a time and killed it.
Speaking of the volt and other gas PHVs, why on earth would you need a network of charging stations for these outside your own home - you wouldn't!
As for true EVs, if they don't meet your range needs, don't buy one. And if you do buy one, plug it in at home at night - the grid is woefully underused after business hours, and unless they sell a million of them in one day, it will scale as the cars come online.
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Shamdiddly 6:56AM (3/31/2009)
"Here's what doesn't make sense: Unless there actually is a conspiracy to keep the electric car from the mass market, how come GM wasn't able to build the equivalent of the Tesla S sedan?"
It's easier to navigate a pleasure craft than a cargo freighter. :( A company as small as Tesla doesn't have the roadblocks, er, validation criteria, that any large auto manufacturer does. If you build lots of product and have many different people responsible for each part, it takes time for everybody to do their work, go to meetings, present to management, blah, blah, blah.