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GM Chevy Volt

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The National Geographic Ultimate Factores / Man Made episode on the Volt was quite interesting. Pre-production construction of the prototypes in advance of mass production. I'm impressed that GM was able to stick to their aggressive timeline, and it shows what can happen when massive resources are brought to bear on a project. Watching this just made me fear that the model S will be much later than 2012.

Man-Made | Chevy Volt | National Geographic Channel
 
Got to do a couple of parking lot laps in the Volt this week.

Not as bad as I thought it would be.
Pretty good pep. It's no Tesla but better that the Leaf mule in acceleration.
Looks are OK. Better in the charcoal grey than the silver I've seen before. Pretty much in the Malibu tradition.
Center screen was a filler but the cluster was clear. I liked it.
I was at the end and had the engine kick in. No drama. Fans and pumps make just as much noise.
Tons of body roll. Did not like the handling in the turns. Pushed a bunch. On the second lap the GM guy pushed in the Spot button and the heaver regen button. I would just leave them on all the time. Regen is less than a Tesla and am told Much less than a MiniE.
Before the drive I rode with an EV newbie. Fun to hear all his comments how it's so smooth and no shifting, revving up etc. :)

There were several EV advocates there and many who were waiting to see for themselves are now ready to buy.

I could see replacing our Prius but that's not my decision.
 

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Plug in America has a lot of questions.

[youtube]RJFRBfQD0AY[/youtube]

answers aplenty

Sport mode
adjustable regen
driver's feedback
J1772
Charge cable level schemes
plug in safety
Ipod remote
On Star Black Box communication with car and away driver
battery warranty

There are some bars being set here. (Music not included)
 
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And perhaps sooner than we thought.

From Sherry Boshert: A Volt Visit, and an EV Tease from GM

I got a much more concrete answer when I asked when GM would sell an all-electric car -- a mere 6 months after the launch of the Volt! That would put it somewhere in mid-2011, perhaps. It will have a bit more battery and lose the gas generator, so will be a lighter car overall, they said.

She goes on to say in the comments:
It will be an EV version of the Volt. I think they've kept quiet because they didn't want to steal the Volt's thunder when it's launched. When I asked GM's Shad Balch at the test drive when they might have an EV to complement the Volt, he said that their CEO had inadvertently mentioned the Volt EV in a press interview recently, so the secret is out. That's why he could answer my question with this news.

Perhaps they let this slip to compete more directly with the Leaf. Of course they'd also have to compete with the Leaf on price and be careful not to cannibalize the success of the PHEV version.
 
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