Why Can't Other Plug-In Hybrids Copy Chevy Volt's All-Electric Running?

Here's the info on the car:

VIN: C-10318, Crystal Red, Light Neutral Leather
06/01/11 - Deposit placed on a 2012 Volt. | 11/14/11 - ECOtality Installs Blink EVSE | 12/03/11 - Volt arrives home! | 11/26/12 First trip to the gas station due to FMM. | 6/09/13 FMM #2. | 4/23/14 FMM #3 | 3/08/15 FMM #4
Lifetime Stats - 4,325 mpg | EV Miles: 70,000 | ICE Miles: 139 | EV% 99.8 | Gallons Used: 5.4 | Gallons Wasted 11.0 | Total Gal Saved: 3,043 | $10,681 Saved
EV Range Record: 81.8 miles | Volt Stats | HOF Score:5

 

139 ICE miles / 5.4 gallons used = 26 MPG.

Although there are 70,000 EV miles, there is no indication of kWh electricity used. Typical Volt owner.

Imagine the amount of electricity wasted hauling the gas propulsion system?

 

The only option available at that time was the Leaf. I think, Fueleconomy.gov's search isn't working at the moment. It likely would have worked for them, but people have many factors in their car buying decision.

I don't think the 2012's were reporting kWh used directly to the owner.

Imagine the electricity wasted by all the TV set top boxes and other TV devices on standby.

Hauling a EREV's ICE is at least insurance. It is also a tiny waste of electricity compared to all the TV devices that just suck down electricity when "off" because the manufacturer isn't paying the price for the power.

 

A simple button on-off or an extension cord to cut all the power may cost way above that price, even considering many years energy wasted: the overwhelming majority of TV's made after 2006 draw less than 1 watt of power when they're plugged in and not running.
source: How much electricity does my TV use?

 

Actually, he has meticulously kept track of his energy use. His last updated graph from 4 months ago seems to have been eaten by the forum software but here's an earlier version:

 

There is more than just the TV though, and the set top box provided by the cable companies here were made to their specs. That is cheap and without concern for power usage because they weren't paying for the electric for them.

I know it is still a small amount but they are in nearly every home. So it is millions compared to the few thousand Volts that are mostly being used as EVs in terms of electricity wasted.

 

+1

And a chevy volt 2011 versus a 2011 nissan leaf for 70,000 miles should have used an extra 1,500 kwh over the 3+ years he drove it. It's a really small amount of energy, about half the amount used to run a refrigerator over the same time. The gen II which we are talking about on this thread will use less than that 2011 leaf.

Preference on looks, the desire to not have range anxiety, etc are great reasons to use that tiny extra amount of electricity.

Fiat 500e Infographic Compares Energy Use Of EV To Common Household Appliances

 

Can't agree, Volt was supposed to be superior design.

 

I agree, the Volt is a poor platform for watching TV and movies on.

 

Are you interested in ~$0.025 per mile driving costs? (More in the winter)
Or half of that if you work for a progressive company that allows EV's to plug in at work?
Or the ability to Pre- cool or heat the car from anywhere with a smartphone or PC? (and make no stink while doing it !)
Or the ability to change the oil (up to) every 2 years (needed or not....)


To each his own. Some people are proud Late Adopters !

 

Bill he is an early adopter of the prius phv. The statement really meant that blended miles are fine for him, as they are for many people.

For many a phev that can run their daily commute on electricity alone is the best choice (gen II volt, i3-rex)
For others a blended phev that can use electricity to reduce gasoline use is a choice. (prius phv, ford energi, outlander phev)
For still others a bev or nothing (leaf, tesla model S, etc)

 

Now I know why we're not seeing so many 'hypermiler' advocacy posts:

• Those OCD about not burning gasoline have self-select to join the EVs/plug-ins group
  
• They have left the Prius ownership pool for their new ride of choice
  • Taking the 'hypermiler' advocacy to avoid gasoline consumption with them.

A good thing, it has improved the average IQ of both groups.

Bob Wilson

 

ouch!merged.my point is simply, the right job for the right tool. if the volt is right for you, great. leaf, tesla pip, whatever. i'm not anti any fossil fuels, i'm just not a member of the my car is better than your car, club.

 

To me it comes down to $$ per Mile.
Choose your weapon. Old tech or New tech.

Nobody likes those 'hypermiling' traffic obstacles.
At least when driving EV you can go Fast and Cheap !
And with an EV you have the ability to make your car's power at home! Good for the OCD and/or the Green crowd ! Options, yay !

 

go fast. what is this, the vdub club?

 

Good call, remember the Jetta TDI advocates who tried to claim superior high-speed fuel efficiency (i.e., Greenhuman failure) and U-tube videos showing a Jetta burning rubber. Then Tesla came and shut everyone down. Small wonder so many EU car companies no longer mock the Prius and came out with their own plug-ins and hybrids ... well also urban bans on gas/diesels helped too.

Having read "The Prius That Shook The World", I am reminded that in September 1993:

. . . Kimbara advocated a small-size car with a large cabin as the most important prerequisite for the 21st century car. Fuel-efficiency would be necessary since traffic congestion would become an inevitable chronic urban condition and fossil fuels would begin to deplete. The first and immediate prerequisite was "a small-size car." (THE PRIUS THAT SHOOK THE WORLD HOW TOYOTA DEVELOPED THE WORLD.doc p. 3 / 104)​

The EU urban bans confirm the brilliant insights of Kimbara. Add to that, the Prius pioneers who made the NHW20 into a plug-in, kicked the can further down the road. That the car companies were finally shamed into 'doing the right thing' is also good ... but where are the customers?

Conquest sales of conventional ICE and diesels is what is needed. When former Prius owners release them to the used market, the 'hybrid premium' has been paid. That used Prius now becomes a conquest sale. But impatience with existing Prius owners who still enjoy their rides, well it is less bad than the 'hypermiling' harangues.

I participate in the ZVW30 fuel efficiency forum and certainly the well established driving techniques are shared. But I'm also seeing more attention to the Prius technology, a good thing. For I noticed 'hypermiling' was advocated as a way for 20th century technology to compete with hybrid technology ... a bandaid. Thankfully, EV/plug-ins appears to eclipse 'hypermiling.'

I remember Tennessee Williams singing "John Henry" about a contest between a machine and a man. A luddite's lament, the steam driver wins over the skilled man. And that is what EV/plug-ins are doing to 'hypermiling' records.

Bob Wilson

 

Cost per mile to who? It is very high for tax dollars. $7,500 tax incentive can buy more gas than Volt could consume.

 

Tax incentives are to encourage a hopefully clean sustainable future. For the benefit of all.
All plug in cars get them to varying degrees.

Do you like buying gas and sending a big portion of your American dollars to OPEC?
Do you like how oil companies get incredible tax breaks? And go out of their way to avoid paying American taxes?
There are groups that are spending BIG money to help increase the number of "Deniers". 'Stay the course' is their message.

I believe keeping your money close to home is a good personal policy. Solar Panels are as close to home as it gets!

Maybe I should have said "Fun and Fast" and cheap and clean....
Do you old timers remember Fun? When's the last time the old Prius has had the pedal to the metal? Ever?

(ZVW30-NHW20 ? Are these also documents from long ago that we are supposed to be familiar with?)

 

in the interest of conservation of all resources, i would suggest looking to other, non energy intensive areas for your fun.

 

Indeed, cost to who?
Our soldiers pay a dear price for "stabilizing" oil producing sectors of the world.
Of minor importance compared to that, the U.S. spend far more subsidizing oil than it does EVs.