VIDEO: Quick Ride: Chevrolet Volt IVER prototype
Chevrolet Volt pre-production IVER prototype - click above for a high-res image gallery
While visiting GM's product technology showcase this week, we had the opportunity to take a tour through the pre-production operations area where the IVER – integration vehicle engineering release – Volts are coming together and then later go for a ride in one with chief engineer Frank Weber. GM started building these integration prototypes in late May and is currently finishing them at the rate of 10 per week. By the time the whole fleet is done later this summer, 80 Volts will be running through a battery of tests to evaluate all aspects of the car. There are currently about 20 IVERs running at Milford, Warren and elsewhere.
After the tour we went over to Milford and Weber brought out the newest Volt to take journalists for quick rides around the loop on "Black Lake", the vehicle dynamics area. Unfortunatel,y only Weber was allowed to pilot the Volt and, since it arrived with a full charge, we didn't get an opportunity to experience the charge sustaining mode. Read on after the jump.
Gallery: Quck Ride: Pre-production Chevy Volt
Photos Copyright ©2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.
We can make a few preliminary comments on the car though. Since we weren't allowed to drive, I decided to hop in the back seat. The Volt is considered a compact, but in spite of the sloping roof-line, it still felt surprisingly roomy. Both leg and headroom were more than adequate for my long-torsoed 5'10" frame. While most small cars are outfitted with three rear seatbelts, the reality is that none are actually wide enough for more than two adults. Thus, the four-seat configuration mandated by the center tunnel-mounted battery is not a problem for all practical purposes.
Behind the seats there was plenty of room for cargo under the tall rear deck and storage cubbies and cup-holders molded into the console covering the battery will prove handy for rear passengers. When Weber took off around the loop, the Volt accelerated with authority even with four adults on board. The relatively low profile and concentrated battery mass down low meant body roll felt minimized around corners. From the back seat at least, the two LCD screens appeared to be relatively resistant to glare. Hopefully, we'll soon have a chance to get behind the wheel and experience the charge sustaining mode as well.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
RowFive 12:02PM (8/13/2009)
Shame about the limitation to 2 seats in the back. And considering how much I really like the rear styling of this car, I wish the front weren't so Chevy-typical. I'm really tired of the horizontal-bar grille and requisite tacky gold bowtie-- I was hoping for something a bit more revolutionary for such a groundbreaking vehicle.
Reply
Matt 12:45PM (8/13/2009)
What's with the visible fuel door on the front fender? Is that going to replace this? http://green.autoblog.com/gallery/2011-chevy-volt-3/med/#12 And if so, that would be very unfortunate.
Epyx 1:54PM (8/13/2009)
Are you guys seriously complaining about a fuel door and the gold bow tie?
The Aptera gets a pass for looking like an Airplane (some people like it) but the Volt is ripped for being a Chevy.
Chevy has a huge marketing hurdle to overcome. I think petty considerations like this are usually not an issue with other makers. Its GMs fault for destroying the brand over the years but it will be a tough marketing road ahead.
Chibi Chaingun - blackhivemedia.com 3:25PM (8/13/2009)
I agree about the front in that it doesn't look as good as the back.. But it's still pretty techy, neat looking.
RowFive 8:07AM (8/14/2009)
My specific complaint is paying over 40 large for a sedan that seats only 4, not 5. I may prize gas mileage, but I can't leave the kids at home. And if that premium price gives me essentially the same "destroyed-brand" (your terms, not mine Epyx) face that has graced every sub-par Chevrolet from the past two decades, then I see that as an aesthetic knock against it. With a model this important, Chevrolet could have reinvented its styling language into something much more modern and appealing, then spread it to the rest of the lineup after the halo took hold on the Volt. They are just so damned intent on the world knowing it's a Chevrolet, they made it look like one. That said, I still think the rear is damned cool.
I'm actually quite excited about the Volt, but I'm not going to blindly patronize Chevrolet simply because it's an "American" company. They've been far behind the leading edge for as long as I can remember, and they need to establish a consistent track record before I become a fan. And I'm no less critical of every other car maker out there.
oldraven 12:44PM (8/14/2009)
Actually, the cross-bar grille has only recently made its way back into the Chevy mainstream. Yes, the trucks have been using it, but you can't say Chevrolet cars have had the cross-bar any time in the last 20-30 years, before the reborn Impala, and even then, the NEW Malibu was the first to wear this new corporate snout.
As for the bowtie, what badge do you expect Chevrolet to put on their cars? You can't fault Ford for using a blue oval, or Toyota for their ringed 'T', how can you do the same for Chevy? The Volt isn't a brand, it's a model. It should be instantly recognisable as a Chevrolet, since Chevrolet deserves to boast about this new direction. If it were your company, you would market this car as a Chevy, not make it an obvious point of covering up the embarrassment that it was made by you.
Anyone who complains that the Volt looks like a Chevy simply doesn't like Chevy, and wouldn't buy the car anyway. GM shouldn't care much about their opinions.
Tim 1:32PM (8/13/2009)
looks like a great car!
Reply
Mike!!ekiM 8:49PM (8/13/2009)
I have to agree, the interior is very slick.
Ray 1:43PM (8/13/2009)
Hey, there building these now at the same rate they built the EV1, ten per week.
Why is there a tunnel in this at all, (no drive shaft) the Leaf does not have a tunnel, all of it's batteries fit underneath the car without a tunnel. (24 Kwh versus 16 Kwh pack) Oh, oh yea they had to have room to put the ICE in, how could I forget that.
Reply
Matt Nelson 1:51PM (8/13/2009)
The tunnel is the t-shaped battery compartment.
http://www.autoincar.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/chevrolet-volt-battery-2-re.jpg
jpm100 1:54PM (8/13/2009)
And when your leaf stops of home because you took a couple unexpected detours, I'm sure you'll remember the ICE again.
Epyx 1:55PM (8/13/2009)
Or when the breaker trips during the night and you cant get to work.
Ray 2:25PM (8/13/2009)
Jpm100 and Epyx,
I have put 6,700 miles on my EV from mid January to the end of June and have not experieced either one of the problems you refer to.
Epyx 2:43PM (8/13/2009)
maybe so but you are limited to the range of your EV ... 150 200 miles? The volt can be driven across the country non-stop if one wanted to do it. Sure the MPG would be about the same as a Prius but it could do it. Plus it can do the normal duties of around town, day to day, as a EV. Best of both worlds, cake and eat it too.
I see it as EV+, I like the safety net of the ICE.
Epyx 2:45PM (8/13/2009)
non-stop except for fuel every 300 miles. Sorry.
Ernie 3:39PM (8/13/2009)
http://renewamericaroadtrip.com/
I wish the anti-EVers would shut up about road trips. Their arguments are assinine.
Chibi Chaingun - blackhivemedia.com 3:34PM (8/13/2009)
@Ray: You already own an electric car. Do you think you're any kind of usable sample for average Americans and their daily lives. Even more importantly, just because you haven't experienced a power outage *ever* since owning your EV, you think no one will? Just because you didn't get an unexpected phone call saying your son is in the hospital in a nearby city and you need to get there asap that no one else will? What about a business meeting? What about you stayed the night at a significant other's house and didn't think to "plug-in" (pun not intended). You think just because it didn't happen to you, it won't happen to anyone?
The answer is: Nope.
Ray 3:36PM (8/13/2009)
Some of us need a safety net and some of us like to live dangerously. Though I am not sure which one of us that is as your mode of transpertation will still require the military to secure oil which can be very dangerous indeed.
Chibi Chaingun - blackhivemedia.com 4:00PM (8/13/2009)
Do you forget the Volt has an electric motor for its main drive source? O _ o
I'd rather have options than to put all my eggs in one basket anyways. Electricity + E85/Petrol for back-up > than depending on my city's energy grid to never have a hiccup.
I think you'll have a better chance experiencing a city blackout than not finding the tiny bit of oil to keep in the reserve tank of the Volt.
Ray 4:01PM (8/13/2009)
Ernie,
Good reverse psychology, I like this part.
Road trips are a favorite pass time of Americans, raising memories of hungry kids and "are we there yets?" but still capturing our spirit of pioneering and adventure - just what our country needs in this time of economic downturn and despair.