[Mr. Wyndham]

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Originally Posted by Hylton

Sure the car's design may not have been great in the wind tunnel but that is no excuse to be parading the concept around to the general public saying it will look like this when in reality they switch it for a 4 door Civic and graft a Chevrolet front facia onto it. I call that bait and switch. GM's marketing spin doctors will do their thing that they have always done.
Saying it "wasn't great" in the wind tunnel is a gross understatment. It was so bad that Lutz was prompted to joke about how it might have been better if they put it in backwards...

And they never, ever, ever, ever said the Volt would look like the concept they showed. One of the very first things that they told us about the design, in fact, was that the front end would be significantly changed due to aerodynamics. They said they'd keep some concept cues (the edgy lights, the grille, etc) but that it would be significantly more fluid-looking. I have to admit, that I wasn't expecting THIS much change...but still, they did tell us it was coming.

I am surprised how many people (and GM) have this attitude that instead of staying true to the original look AND purpose of a concept (which I think they did with the 5th gen Camaro), they change it and accept that it is the same car. It's not.
I think so many have this 'attitude' because they realize WHY it was done...nobody's disputing the fact that the concept looks GREAT...But it simply was not suited to the Volts electric-car application. I have no doubt as electric drivetrains become more advanced, the designs of cars will start looking 'better'. But you've got to work with what you've got.

As far as meeting it's gas mileage goals, they could have tried to keep more of the original design and focus on technology to accomplish the results.
If they took this route, they'd probably have to dedicate half the Volt's power to overcome drag...then you get a range of 25-30 miles on electric only...

What's more important to this project:

The 'performance' of the car (range, etc)?
Or solely the way it looks?