Tuesday, September 16, 2008

GM unveils their new electric car, the Chevy Volt


GM debuts the Chevy Volt

DETROIT (CNNMoney.com) -- General Motors unveiled the Chevrolet Volt electric vehicle on Tuesday, allowing outsiders their first full look at the car GM says will go on sale in 2010.

"The Volt symbolizes GM's commitment to the future," said Rick Wagoner, the company's chairman and CEO.

The Volt will be driven by electricity stored in a large T-shaped lithium-ion battery pack running the length of the car. After charging for several hours, the Volt will be able to run for up to about 40 miles without using gasoline.

GM did not announce pricing for the car, which will have the equivalent of about 150 horsepower and a top speed of 100 mph, the automaker said.

To charge the batteries, drivers will plug a cord into one of the ports just ahead of each of the side mirrors. The cord can then be attached to an ordinary home electrical outlet.

The car will cost "less than purchasing a cup of your favorite coffee" to recharge, and use less electricity annually than a refrigerator. The Volt should cost less than 2 cents per mile to drive on electricity, GM said, compared to 12 cents a mile on gasoline at a price of $3.60 a gallon. [...]

There is a small gas engine as well that kicks in if the batteries run down, but if I understand it correctly, the gas engine doesn't turn the wheels, it generates electricity, so it's a truly electric car, not a hybrid.

To me it looks beautiful, but some people have actually canceled their orders lost their enthusiasm for the car after seeing this, because they expected something more boxy and angular looking. That's kinda dumb, because this new design is meant to make it more aerodynamic, to help you get more distance out of the battery charge. Form AND function, what more do you want?

Read the whole thing for more details, I think it's an exciting new development.
     

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

What some people have done is to remove themselves from the waiting list that was created by a private web site. There ARE no orders pending for the Chevy Volt, because GM has never taken any orders.

Chas said...

That would make sense, since GM hasn't announced the price yet. Thanks for the clarification.