AutoBlogGreen has an extensive article about the first vehicle in GM's new E-Flex platform, the Chevy Volt. The Volt (as yet a prototype) can run on electricity, gasoline, E85 or biodiesel. The electric battery allows a range of 40 miles on a 6 hour charge from a standard 110 V outlet. When the 12 gallon tank is filled, the range is 640 miles!
For a customer driving about 40 miles a day or about 15,000 miles a year, compared to a 30 mpg car, the Volt would save about 500 gallons of gasoline per year. If the car is charged every night, the driver should be able to achieve that mileage using virtually no gasoline. That same example would also save 4.4 metric tonnes of CO2 every year from each car ... GM's goal was to create an electric car that would not force users to plan their travel around the next charging session, while still providing all the capabilities of a standard four door, standard compact car and produce it in quantities of 100,000+ per year.
Read the rest of Detroit Auto Show: It's here. GM's plug-in hybrid is the Chevy Volt Concept from AutoBlogGreen (includes a great photo gallery!) and learn more about the Volt from Chevrolet.
Kidding - this is a great...
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It's great to see a major automaker finally moving forward on what small companies have been proving possible for several years (see Energy CS, CalCars and HyMotion). But while the announcement is exciting, GM still isn't giving any solid timeline on WHEN we can see these cars on the road or HOW MANY cars are actually going to be produced - at best they say 3-4 years if the battery technology is available. There is a demand for plug-in hybrids NOW - there are hundreds of cities, counties, utility districts and fleets already placing "soft orders" for such vehicles. Such early-adopters of these vehicles would provide test markets for GM to refine the technology and build public confidence and interest in these cars.
I have to admit I'm a little concerned that they will use the announcement of these concept cars more to clean up their image than clean up their product line. There is a lot GM can do between now and when we may see these concept vehicles actually on the road.
We all know increasing fuel efficiency is the direction automakers need to head – so let’s get past the hype of a handful of concept vehicles and look at what they are doing with the rest of their fleet. Overall average fuel economy from the Big 6 is worse today that it was 10 years ago and GM is still heavily dependent on its gas guzzling truck lines. In addition to that they are still fighting tooth-and-nail against increasing fuel economy regulations, suing states that try to limit greenhouse gas emissions, and in December argued before the Supreme Court that carbon from tailpipe emissions was not even a pollutant. GM is still planning to expand their Hummer line to become 25% of their overall sales. Consumers still have limited options to find fuel-efficient cars that are affordable, well-built, and fun to drive. There are plenty of things automakers can do today to increase fuel economy – and I'm tired of being shown distracting concept cars that we won't see for 3-4 years if ever.
I've been working with the Freedom From Oil Campaign to make automakers honestly prioritize fuel economy and move beyond oil – check out what we do at http://www.FreedomFromOil.org
We will just trade one problem for another. There doesn't seem to be a solid plan in place for recycling the batteries needed to run the car. Usually such vehicles have a lot more batteries and capacity than your average sedan, and a new technology may mean that their batteries are a more of a noxious product than already exist. The electric car may be only a part of the solution. A coast-to-coast public transportation system is one thing that is sadly neglected, but may have to be reimplemented in the future.
I looked and looked for the answer. Didn't find it but in the course of looking, I did find some cool stuff about the Big Three's green concepts that you might enjoy.
I have been so taken with the Volt, I created a comprehensive Chevy Volt concept car site. Featuring videos, forums, news, specs, photos, and more of the Chevy Volt hybrid.
VIDEO:
http://www.archive.org/details.....anuary2008
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