Volt chief engineer takes first drive in integration prototype [w/VIDEO]

[JimN]

There's a thread about Peak Oil Garage converting RAV4's in batches of 6 & selling them as new cars. Their site: 2009 RAV4 Limited Electric Vehicle Peak Oil Garage

[daniel]

Originally Posted by JimN

There's a thread about Peak Oil Garage converting RAV4's in batches of 6 & selling them as new cars. Their site: 2009 RAV4 Limited Electric Vehicle Peak Oil Garage

Bravo for Peak Oil Garage. But the credit goes to P.O.G., not Toyota! There are people (lots of them, actually) converting old Chevy pick-up trucks to electric, but you would not say that GM is "making electric cars" on account of them.

[ljbad4life]

Originally Posted by JimN

Tesla has 1 driveable Model S. GM has 1 driveable Volt. Tie ballgame!

The Model S has generated more than $3.6 million cash flow. GM has managed to get $0 from the Volt faithful.

I'm sure GM will be able to assemble the balance of their preproduction fleet before Tesla assembles a similar number but that will be the last time GM is ahead.

In the electric car market I believe Tesla is #1 and Toyota is #2 with the new Rav4EV conversions. GM has a long way to go before it moves into 3rd place with the Volt.

Evan, what's your number?

I wouldn't peg GM as number 3. Don't forget Mitsubishi already has the iMiev pretty much in production and will be availble in many other countries. Nissan seems to be pretty close too with their EVs. Ford is even in the game has working protoypes of an ev focus. The only ones that seem to be left in the dust are GM, Chrysler and oddly Honda (unless you consider the FCV).

[JSH]

Originally Posted by daniel

Tesla is number 1. GM is not even on the list! But numerous small companies are selling EVs today. And if the Volt ends up coming out with a 7 or 8 mile EV range, and 25 mpg when running on gasoline, would you even call it an electric car?

Since the Volt has an engine it is not an electric car but instead a series hybrid. I can't count the number of people that think the Volt is an electric car and laugh at the quoted range of 40 miles. I think GM's marketing people are creating a huge amount of misinformation that will be hard to overcome by call the Volt a "range extended electric vehicle".

[daniel]

There's a fuzzy line between plug-in series hybrid and range-extended EV. A true range-extended EV would have something like the promised 40 miles before the ICE kicks in. Of course, since the Volt does not exist and probably never will, everyone can make up their own specs and call it what they like.

I'd say the difference has more to do with how it's used than with absolute specs: A car that generally runs the ICE and uses the series hybrid arrangement to achieve better FE than a pure ICE car would have, but can be plugged in and run short distances without the ICE is, to my way of thinking, a series PHEV.

A range-extended EV would be, to my way of thinking, a car that is generally used as a pure EV, but that can run the ICE for those rare occasions when you need to go farther than the EV range.

For different people the line would fall at different numbers.

A car that can go 7 or 8 miles on pure EV and then gets 25 mpg when the ICE kicks in, would be, IMHO a useless piece of trash, and pretty much what I would expect from the company that dismantled public transportation in the U.S., crushed the EV-1, and pushes gas-guzzling SUVs with poor safety records with the promise that they are safer than proper cars. If they ever do market the Volt, I expect it will be over-priced, will go only short distances on EV, and will get lousy FE. GM's management cares about obscene personal compensation, and let the customers and the stockholders be damned. Expecting them to build a quality EV is like expecting beavers to migrate to the north pole and fish for marlin.

[patsparks]

Nice looking LITTLE car.

[DaveinOlyWA]

gm shouldn't have a number at all, they have ZERO EV cars on the road right now...

has anyone see the Miles mods lately? the Miles is a 4 door all battery EV. there is a company in indiana...or illinois...or in that region lets say that is modifying the Miles to drive up to 60 mph and maintain a 60 mile range. now, i have not test driven a Miles in a few years, so i can only hope that driving one at 60 mph will not scare the living daylights out of me, but fact is,

gm has nothing on the road... there are dozens of small car companies that do. now, i will say what i have been saying all along...

the sooner GM fails the sooner we can start paying attention to the companies that deserve it. unfortunately, i can only dream about what these small EV companies could have done with just half of the money the government gave gm, mostly because the proposal is let a handful of companies split about 1/100th of the money gm was given...

[JSH]

Originally Posted by DaveinOlyWA

gm shouldn't have a number at all, they have ZERO EV cars on the road right now...

GM still has some S-10 EV's on the road. Unlike the EV-1, they sold some of the S-10's directly to customers so they couldn't take them back. Chevrolet S-10 EV - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia I occasionally see one come up on Ebay.

Originally Posted by DaveinOlyWA

has anyone see the Miles mods lately? the Miles is a 4 door all battery EV. there is a company in indiana...or illinois...or in that region lets say that is modifying the Miles to drive up to 60 mph and maintain a 60 mile range.....

Are you talking about this Miles? Miles Electric Vehicles If so, they only make NEV's not highway capable vehicles. They claim they will have a highway capable EV for sale in 2010 but as with all EV claims, I'll believe it when I see one for sale in a showroom.

[DaveinOlyWA]

yep that the one and Miles is not producing the vehicle, the vehicle is being MODDED by someone else... now will the mod pass the test of time and reliability?? ... we shall see

[JSH]

Originally Posted by DaveinOlyWA

yep that the one and Miles is not producing the vehicle, the vehicle is being MODDED by someone else... now will the mod pass the test of time and reliability?? ... we shall see

That is scary. A NEV that doesn't meet crash standards modified to go 60 mph.