Volt pricing announced. Starts at $41,000*

[All-Or-Nothing]

Originally Posted by Dragoneye

The Volt is a series hybrid with constantly electrically driven wheels, or an Extended-Range Electric Vehicle. We can disagree...but not deny the company's designation.

Doesn't GM call it a E-REV.

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by All-Or-Nothing

Doesn't GM call it a E-REV.

Yes.

[Supermans]

Originally Posted by Dragoneye

Just remember the prius lost money for toyota for a few model years before they recouped the loss. Currently, there is no other vehicle like the Volt on the market -- and if leasing, it's at very competitive price. Couple that to the fact they are slowly going to increase production year over year to keep interest and sales strong...I think it will be a huge success for the company.

Work has already begun on the next Volt, and if I recall correctly, one of the major goals of that project is to get the price down.

I am optimistic for its chances. It will not take over 50% of cars on the road, but it's no dud and will do what it was designed to from both a consumer and business standpoint.



It'll also provide a quick and easy way to jump into the next Volt, too. I have a feeling that, like smartphones...once you drive a Volt, you'll never want another car for a daily driver.

I agree. Once you start saving the money on gas and with a low leasing cost, it will appeal to many and perhaps pave the way once prices drop for those same folks to want to buy one down the road..

[grip750]

$7,500 Tax Credit (that is BS) That comes out of what you paid in taxes. So if you pay $6,000 in income taxes for the year and got back $3,000 after filing your 1040, that means you can only get what is left after that. In that case your credit then would be $3,000.
It is all a numbers game. 47% of Americans last year had no tax liability (meaning the government kept some of the money you sent in). That means only 53% of Americans can get any kind of credit. So a guy making $40,000 a year and having $100 a week being taken out of his paycheck for Fed Income Tax, paid in $5,200 for the year. He then gets back an average of about $2,200. Leaving $3,000 for the tax credit for the Volt. I will stick to my Camaro.....

[DGthe3]

Originally Posted by All-Or-Nothing

Doesn't GM call it a E-REV.

EREV= Extended Range Electric Vehicle

[Captain Awesome]

Originally Posted by Number 3

Rush Limbaugh made a big stink too.

Keep in mind, the Volt isn't the best EV in all cases. If you have electric charging infrastructure at home AND at work AND live in a temperate climate AND have no hills to climb on your commute AND you never want to take your car on a weekend "up North" or drive on vacation, the Leaf may be a better choice. But if want an EV with a lot more flexibilty, the Volt will absolutely be the better choice. So it will be hard to say the Volt is a better EV, but for many people it will be a far more practical choice.

Clinic results continue to show that range anxiety is the Number 1 reason people fear pure EVs. I'm sure you'll see this played up in upcoming advertising.

I don't listen to Rush, but I imagine he's been made aware that GM's highest valuation ever was $52 billion in 2000 and so far the taxpayers have given them a total of $70 billion, so a lot of this "repayment" talk is smoke and mirrors because there's no way the company could pay back 150% of it's peak value ever achieved in 18 months.

Regarding the Volt, I think you guys have done it right and came up with the right answer for the problem. Pure EVs suck in almost every application. There's so many flaws with them it's hilarious. I see the Volt is being marketed in fairly northern states with cold weather that will probably never see a leaf because you can't really heat an EV that runs of batteries.

The issue is that people are still being brainwashed by what they see and hear and the "pure EV" idea is the main failing of the leaf which they are actually killing you with because "pure EV" is being spun into a benefit of the leaf. They are actually pushing this as a more eco friendly car and a more advanced car and that the Volt actually is not as good because it can't run as far on batteries and needs a "crutch" (gasoline engine) to get you anywhere without running out of energy.

You guys need to stop complaining about people like Rush and embrace them instead. You need people to go around to the news programs and morning shows and take a Volt there and TEACH the masses the technical reasons that pure EV sucks. The TEACHING about the Volt and it's genius is missing from the narrative.

Sure, there will always be crackpots who will try and say you're spinning this gas engine as a benefit when it's really just bad design, but guys like Rush love to debunk clueless crackpots like that who are copmnstantly spinning liabilities into positives and positives into liabilities. If you go talk to him and those like him you may find that they will grasp the sound logic in the volt and promote it for you.

[HeHasReturned]

Originally Posted by Captain Awesome

If you go talk to him and those like him you may find that they will grasp the sound logic in the volt and promote it for you.

Rush? Grasp sound logic? Sorry, that just made me laugh

[Hesh]

The reason the Volt is not classified as a hybrid is because the combustion motor is not running any of the drive train. It is all run by an electric motor. The combustion motor is a generator that recharges the batteries once they become to low. That is why its being labeled a E-REV.

[305pride]

Rush Limbaugh? pfft. lol

[tooslow]

Originally Posted by Hesh

The reason the Volt is not classified as a hybrid is because the combustion motor is not running any of the drive train. It is all run by an electric motor. The combustion motor is a generator that recharges the batteries once they become to low. That is why its being labeled a E-REV.

I think we're all aware of how what drives the Volt drivetrain, but the arrangement you have described is the exact definition of a series hybrid. GM can choose to call it whatever they want for marketing purposes, but in engineering circles, it will be considered a series hybrid.

I really don't get what the big deal is with the Volt anyway. The engineering priniciples are not new in design or application. I think its more about GM trying to market itself as a relevant 21st century car company by offering an electric-powered vehicle.

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by HeHasReturned

Rush? Grasp sound logic? Sorry, that just made me laugh

[DGthe3]

Originally Posted by tooslow

I think we're all aware of how what drives the Volt drivetrain, but the arrangement you have described is the exact definition of a series hybrid. GM can choose to call it whatever they want for marketing purposes, but in engineering circles, it will be considered a series hybrid.

I really don't get what the big deal is with the Volt anyway. The engineering priniciples are not new in design or application. I think its more about GM trying to market itself as a relevant 21st century car company by offering an electric-powered vehicle.

It is a new application though, to my knowledge there haven't been any cars with this type of hybrid system. There has been diesel-electrics in earth moving equipment and locomotives, but nearly all of them just use inductors and capacitors for small amounts of electrical storage, versus a large battery for electric drive purposes like the Volt has. And I don't think there have been any series gas-electrics, with or without a big battery.

The Volt is still a hybrid, after all you can drive it without ever plugging it in just like every other hybrid on the market today. And most hybrids (the exception being the mild hybrids) have an all electric range, with certain limitations on speed and range. It just so happens that the Volt has higher limits on its electric range (and no switch-over speed). So mechanically, its a hybrid, and functionally, it acts like most other hybrids. I see no logical reason to call it an EV. With an EV, if the battery dies you aren't going anywhere for a while. With a hybrid, if the battery dies jump start it and you're on your way.

[305pride]

Originally Posted by DGthe3

It is a new application though, to my knowledge there haven't been any cars with this type of hybrid system. There has been diesel-electrics in earth moving equipment and locomotives, but nearly all of them just use inductors and capacitors for small amounts of electrical storage, versus a large battery for electric drive purposes like the Volt has. And I don't think there have been any series gas-electrics, with or without a big battery.

The Volt is still a hybrid, after all you can drive it without ever plugging it in just like every other hybrid on the market today. And most hybrids (the exception being the mild hybrids) have an all electric range, with certain limitations on speed and range. It just so happens that the Volt has higher limits on its electric range (and no switch-over speed). So mechanically, its a hybrid, and functionally, it acts like most other hybrids. I see no logical reason to call it an EV. With an EV, if the battery dies you aren't going anywhere for a while. With a hybrid, if the battery dies jump start it and you're on your way.

this

[Mr. Wyndham]

Originally Posted by Captain Awesome

You guys need to stop complaining about people...and embrace them instead.

Many people don't want to learn. Many "people with voices" care more about inciting emotions out of their audiences to keep themselves in a job than making any real positive difference.

It's a lost cause to "embrace" any of them with a contradicting idea to their own.