GM releases some teasers for Volt 2.0

ah, maybe they could design it to run the wheels under a certain speed, instead of charging the battery.

 

Aye, the rumor mill suggests they also went with the larger 1.5L ICE so that it would better fit future Voltec platforms. Who knows how true this is though.

 

45 years ago, my buddies suburu engine was almost impossible to hear at idle.

 

The rumors were either a bigger N/A ice or a 1L like the ford ecoboost. The old 4 cyclinder required "mountain mode", having more power removes the need to force charge the batteries which is inefficient. The current ice only provides 60kw of power and they chose a 55 kw generator mga, which was not strong enough. Now hopefully for climbing on the highway the 84kw ice will be cluched in, providing plenty of power along with the battery pack to climb at highway speeds. The ice though is in the cruze which shares a platform. The turbo charged version could work in higher powered voltec offerings.

Here is information from the chinese cruze.
2016 Chevy Volt To Get 1.5-Liter, 4-Cylinder Range Extender

I'm not sure what the competitive models are but it should be quieter than the 1.4, as it both has di, and should run at lower rpm for the same power demand. The di and better valving should allow it to be more efficient at lower power levels also. Higher compression and volume bring better efficiency at higher power level. The new ice should cost gm more than the outgoing ice, but be less expensive than a 3ccyclinder turbocharged model.

 

I am referring to the latest rumors after the recent interview with Mark Reuss on Autoline combined with questioning for the larger ICE. The current ICE does just fine combine with mountain mode and I am willing to bet that in most areas of the country, a lack of power has never been an issue. Living at the base of the Sierra Nevada mountains I know I have had no issues.

A GM Legacy (Show #1901) on Autoline This Week

 

Maybe Chevy is thinking of coming out with their "CrossVolt" this time around? GM had CrossVolt trademark expired for a few years, until a few weeks back, when they renewed the trademark name.

 

Maybe or something else. The Mark hinted pretty hard at something else using the Voltec system or at least their battery technology. Start at 7:00 and listen closely at 7:35 where he talks about the production of the ELR and how they needed to produce that car to explore the technology in another car, he hints at future platforms. He also talks about plug ins becoming more mainstream and how vehicles need to look normal and not like a science project.

 

The Audi A1 PHV was a dedicated serial hybrid that used a rotary engine originally set to one rpm. Feedback from the small test fleet showed people didn't like the constant thrum from the tiny engine. So the software was adjusted for three set rpms that better matched the occupants' perception of engine sound matching vehicle speed should be.

AFAIK, the model was ended around the time of the recession, and if it comes back, it likely won't use the novel little rotary because of cost. I don't think the engine was really that loud to begin with. So some of it is the traditional difficulty of making a small engine quiet, part the issue with a PHV going from quiet EV to noisy ICE, and then part in how people perceive any noise or vibration.

The current 1.4L is part of an engine family that is being phased out. The 1.5L of the new family was likely the best fit without using a turbo. In addition to less components meaning less cost, no turbo means no turbo whine, no matter how faint, to deal with. Another factor is with the 1.5 becoming the base engine for the Cruze and Sonic, it is manufactured in the US. The 1L turbo is mostly be used in the Opel Adam at the moment, and it is made in Europe.
GM Small Gasoline Engine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

maybe they just need better sound proofing like diesels.

 

2016 Cadillac CT6. GM has already said this new car (not yet revealed) will have a plugin powertrain option but haven't said anything about the battery, motors, or transmission.

I'm guessing they will reveal that the CT6 plugin will use a bigger gas engine with the Volt 2.0 transmission and a 1/2 size Volt 2.0 battery pack.

Note that the CT6 is supposed to be RWD for the conventional powertrain so I'm assuming they repurpose the drive shaft tunnel area for the battery pack and make the plugin version as a FWD. I'm not too sure about this guess but it seems doable.

The GM Detroit auto show press events of interest here are Chevrolet at 7:30am on Monday the 12th and possibly Cadillac at 10am Tuesday the 13th.

 

This is the part I want to see.

 

Darn cell phones!

 

As a former owner, I think there are two reasons for the Volt ICE NVH.

1) Long periods of EV only attune the driver to a quiet, calm interior sound level.
2) Initial engagement of the ICE is too aggressive.

As an example on the latter note, I can engage the ICE in my Energi after getting up to about 45-50mph and then select EV Later to start up the ICE. Watching the available tachometer (nice feature, cough, cough, wink, wink), I see that the ICE runs at about 12-1400 rpm to warm up while the EV motor does most of the heavy lifting before handing off to the ICE. At these speeds, the road noise/vibrations makes this a seamless transition to my ear.

 

Do you have any metrics on this 'warm-up at speed?'

What you are describing is the desired, end game of a smaller scale practice I've been doing with our 2003 and 2010 Prius . . . a rolling warm-up:

• 0 seconds - start car to READY, and heater off
• ~45 seconds - gently accelerate to reach 35-40 mph, rpm 1,200-1,400
• ~300 seconds or coolant reaches ~40-50C - when ICE initially spikes > 1,600 rpm, maximize use of "N" to coast, traffic permitting, continue until coolant reaches lowest efficient temperature, 40-50C
• ~40-50C - 2010 Prius can shutoff ICE at stops with heater off
• >50C - 2010 Prius can enter 'hybrid mode' and shutdown engine when load is low enough even with heater on
• 70C - the 2003 Prius can enter 'hybrid mode'

I use a Scanguage or Graham miniscanner to follow this rolling warm-up, protocol . . . a little involved to reduce the cold weather effects. So after 3 miles, the car is in the middle 40 MPG versus middle 30 MPG. Once warmed up, the car runs in the mid-50s MPG. This is not warm weather performance but still affordable at the cost of a complex warm-up protocol.

I would be interested in seeing some recorded metrics for your car showing over time:

• velocity
• ICE coolant temperature
• ICE rpm and ICE torque
• MAF rate

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

 

this can be done in the pip as well. but i think the volt power train is set up differently.

 

Just saw this pop up on Chevy's Facebook page!

 

Yup, sorta looks like a Prius! LOL.

The bottom line: 50 miles EV range! (vs 19 miles Ford Energi & 10-11 miles EPA Prius Plugin), 41 combined mpg so better than Ford Energi (38 mpg) & 102 MPGe EV. The interior dash etc. is now similar to other recent GM cars. Slight increase in rear legroom but slight decrease in rear headroom. 0-30 acceleration notably faster and 0-60 somewhat faster. There are now 3 seatbelt in the rear but it's mostly for child seating or 3 adults in an emergency. Same rear hatchback storage. Still an EPA compact (nearly a mid-size). Overall the efficiency improvements are just slightly less than I expected but these aren't final so they could improve like they did for the Prius Plugin between the public announcement and the final production window sticker.

No word on price yet.

 

I showed it to my girlfriend who has been seriously considering a Volt and she thinks it looks like a Civic. That is what I had been thinking but I never mentioned it to her. lol