Some have doubted either GM's willingness or ability to bring the Volt to market in a timely fashion, and at times it looked like the skeptics could be right. Recent developments have largely turned that perception around, however, and once the older-model Chevrolet Malibu test mules start trotting the E-Flex drive system around Detroit, the nay-sayers will have even less to use against the maker.
The drivetrain won't make it into a Volt chassis until mid-2009, when the first driveable prototypes are expected, and production is now scheduled for late 2010 but GM wants to get the drivetrains on the road as soon as possible, reports AutoWeek.
Testing in real-world driving conditions will give the engineers an idea of how far they have to go to meet the goal of 40 miles of electric-only travel, on-board recharging and regenerative braking and eventually fuel-cell power. The batteries that will be used in the mules have already been in testing since October of last year, but this month will mark the first time the whole E-Flex system has been put to the test.
Check out the video below, which gives us an inside look at GM's Volt laboratory. Here we can see engineers test the aerodynamics of a one-third scale model of the production Volt as well as get a look at one of the lithium-ion battery arrays that will be going into the car.
Reader Comments
Fri Apr 4 2008 4:51 PM
Roy says
Meanwhile, Toyota will have their 3rd model Prius out and Honda will be previewing something completely different. Let's just hope that GM learns from Toyota's lesson: people who pay extra for this sort of silliness will be looking for a design that's just a little bit different.
Fri Apr 4 2008 5:35 PM
Gus says
But even Toyota doesn't have plans for a plug-in...
Fri Apr 4 2008 6:06 PM
PJE says
www.autocar.co.uk has a better (artist rendering) picture of the 'production' version.
If the picture is correct, I think it'll be a nice looking car.
Sat Apr 5 2008 9:43 PM
Roy says
Toyota doesn't need plans for a "plug-in". It's already got a hybrid Highlander that can be operated on battery power alone by pressing a button. They can just run a charging circuit from that and they'll have a "plug-in" hybrid, which is only better for the environment if you're getting your juice from something other than oil, coal or wood.
The most impressive thing about the Volt is its lithium ion batteries. Beyond that, it's still going to have a gasoline engine on-board, and you're still going to have to use that engine if you go too far. The Volt is not an Impact 2.0.
So, the real question in my mind is not whether Toyota has plans for a plug-in hybrid but whether they have plans to incorporate more advanced batteries into their next generation hybrids. I'm pretty sure the answer to that question is yes.
Sun Apr 6 2008 2:12 PM
Gus says
I really think you underestimate the value of an extension cord.
As Chris pointed out a while ago, power from the electric grid is still much cleaner than from a car, even if it is a fossil fuel plant...
Mon Apr 7 2008 11:32 AM
chris says
yeah roy,.. i can assure you that every watt of power on a western grid is cleaner than the cleanest burning engines in any production car.
look into the particulate emissions for any coal power plant. large industrial operations can afford expensive systems to scrub their emissions of everything except CO2 (even in a theoretical and perfect world, this is the natural by product of all combustion: fire, rusting, rotting, digestion, etc). power plants worth hundreds of millions of dollars can spend another 10 million on emmission controls and have some of the most advanced technology available at a fraction of a percentage of the cost of supplying their product.
but you can buy a kia elantra for $9k.
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