Chevy Bolt - 200 mile range for $30k base price (after incentive)
- Thread starter FredTMC
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They are a bit late:
1 Million BMW Cars Assembled at Chinese Plant
VW opens new China car plant despite slowing sales
Mercedes production manufacturing plant in China, Beijing Benz Automotive - Autogefühl - YouTube
http://www.at.ford.com/news/cn/Page...hina with New Assembly Plant in Hangzhou.aspx
You get the picture. Most auto mfrs have factories in China now.
The Bolt is not being made in China, so it's kind of unrelated though.
1 Million BMW Cars Assembled at Chinese Plant
VW opens new China car plant despite slowing sales
Mercedes production manufacturing plant in China, Beijing Benz Automotive - Autogefühl - YouTube
http://www.at.ford.com/news/cn/Page...hina with New Assembly Plant in Hangzhou.aspx
You get the picture. Most auto mfrs have factories in China now.
The Bolt is not being made in China, so it's kind of unrelated though.
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Grendal
SpaceX Moderator
Kind of. The Bolt just gets all of its drivetrain from LG Chem of Korea. Not China though...
Jeff N
Active Member
- Oct 31, 2011
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Did you notice who wrote that...? It was written by none other than Edward Niedermeyer, who co-founded the DailyKanban with Bertel "I'll eat my hat" Schmitt. Niedermeyer is also a "truther" at TheTruthAboutCars. Niedermeyer has written a number of hostile articles about Tesla, GM and Volt. Anything he writes about GM should be read skeptically.
He notes in this article that GM will be importing the CT6 hybrid to the US from China. What he doesn't mention is that GM is estimating US sales at a mere 1,000 per year. Also not mentioned is that the key hybrid parts of the car are actually made in the US and exported to China where most of the CT6 hybrids that are built are expected to be sold. The battery cells will be made at LG Chem's Michigan plant, the pack is assembled at GM's battery pack factory (where the Volt packs are built). The CT6 hybrid pack is a slightly repackaged Volt pack. GM is also making the electric motors in one its Maryland factories. I don't know if the entire hybrid transmission is being assembled in the US or if that is happening in China. I suspect the CT6 hybrid transmission is going to be used in future, as yet unannounced, hybrid trucks and larger vehicles in the US market so it's my guess that the entire CT6 transmission will be built in the US. The technical details of the RWD CT6 hybrid transmission are not yet known but it seems likely to be a modestly updated 2008-era Two-Mode.
It is a little weird that GM is shipping these hybrid components to China, dropping them into a CT6 built at a Factory there and then shipping 1,000 of them back to the US. Why not just drop the hybrid parts into the US built CT6, which is being assembled at the same Detroit factory that bulds the Volt and ELR? Maybe there are weird contract or tariff/tax advantages. If there is strong unexpected US demand for the hybrid CT6 I expect GM can quickly start building them in Detroit if they want to.
Generally, it's not surprising that GM is focusing most of their Asian operations in China. It really is a huge market and GM is doing very well there. I recently visited China and the cars on big city streets are almost indistinguishable from what you would see in the US. The cars are mostly GM or VW brand models but I saw Tesla and French cars as well as some Chinese domestic brands.
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diamond.g
Active Member
Is Tesla the only EV maker that doesn't have a physical power or start/stop button in their vehicles? I am wanting to get a Model 3, but was thinking of leasing the Bolt while all the high end units are being sold. The idea of getting in and just going is a powerful one.
Cyclone
Cyclonic Member ((.oO))
In a way, the Model S (and presumably the X, maybe the Roadster too?) do have a physical power button - the brake pedal. You cannot get in the car, select drive/reverse, and go. You must hit the brake to turn the car "on".
That said, I do very much enjoy the lack of a stop/start button or any need to do anything extraordinary to get going.
adiggs
Active Member
The Roadster uses a physical key that you turn, much like a gas engine car. Of course, nothing is "started" - it's more like an on/off switch. If you go another stop, the equivalent of actually starting a gas car, after the Roadster has been on for 10+ seconds, that will toggle you into Performance mode for just a little bit more giddyup (all from POV of Roadster 2.5 Sport).
The brake pedal is used to enable changing between P, R, D. Overall, the controls are very compatible with how automatic transmissions work.
diamond.g
Active Member
If you already have to press the brake to get out of park, I fail to see why a start button is needed. I am gonna hope that the button will be removed (not high hopes).
I think you misunderstood. There is no button in the Tesla Model S or X. You just step on the brake, which you would be doing anyway, and then put the car into drive or reverse. I doubt there will be a button in the Model 3.
It's not weird at all. Why tool a USA plant for a low volume PHEV on top of the Chinese plant where all the volume is?
Since this is a thread about the Bolt, I assumed he was talking about the Bolt.
diamond.g
Active Member
Which is exactly what I want to be the case in the Bolt as well (really all EVs).
Yeah was referring to the Bolt.
Ah, apparently *I* misunderstood. Why does the Bolt have a start button? Seems rather pointless.
JRP3
Hyperactive Member
My guess is GM thinking it would be more "familiar" to the general public. Plus there might be a slight safety benefit in having to press a dedicated button to turn the car on instead of just putting your foot on the brake pedal, since that is a foreign concept to most people.
igotzzoom
Active Member
I know it's a big deal to Teslaphiles, but button or no button is no big deal to me. The fact that it will likely have a 200+ mile range is the big deal. Heck, most of the cars on the road right now (not necessarily new in showrooms) still have a key!
To the best of my knowledge, the S and X are the only cars in the world to date which don't have an on/off button. (I would expect the 3 to continue that trend.)
I can't say that it matters much to me - I'm perfectly comfortable with having to hold the brake and press a start button to make the car turn on - the combination of actions makes it unlikely to happen by accident, and it's not like hitting a single button is hard to do or remember (in fairness, I've never lived with a car that came on when you hit the brake, but I really don't see it mattering much.)
Do we know if the Bolt will be front wheel drive or rear wheel drive? I don't think I have ever heard anything about that. With an electric motor being as small as it is, there is no reason to prefer FWD over RWD for reasons of saved weight, cost or space as is the case with an IC engine.
igotzzoom
Active Member
Bolt is front-drive. It doesn't have a "frunk" but I do think the front-mounted motor does give it a little more rear cargo room. That's why I don't think an AWD Bolt is going to happen. Will GM do a AWD EV at some point? Possibly. But it won't be the Bolt.
They put the motor in the "engine compartment" just like an ICE. One of the design constraints of using an ICE frame to make an EV I guess. The motor doesn't look that small either, as far as I can tell. I was surprised how large it was.
Breezy
Member
They didn't use an ICE frame to make the Bolt. Dedicated architecture called BEV-II.
This design does keep the weight over the front wheels. Modern aluminum ICEs aren't that heavy. Motors, inverters, gear boxes and differentials still have significant weight.
This design does keep the weight over the front wheels. Modern aluminum ICEs aren't that heavy. Motors, inverters, gear boxes and differentials still have significant weight.
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