GM Turning Green - Daily Auto Insider

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.caranddriver.com/dailyautoinsider/13079/gm-turning-green.html

...
Among the projects GM is fast-tracking:

• the Chevrolet Volt, a compact car with a huge T-shaped battery pack in the middle with a small gasoline engine in the front, not to drive the wheels but to serve as a generator to recharge the battery. GM estimates the vehicle could go 150 miles on a gallon of gas.
• GM's hydrogen fuel-cell technology is scheduled to be transferred from the lab to an engineering group that prepares new powertrains for commercial launch, a sign of increased determination to put hydrogen-powered vehicles on the road, the WSJ said.
• Two hybrid SUVs are due late this year with a system that GM believes has advantages over Toyota's hybrid technology.

...

Oh well, 2 out of 3 ain't bad...

[hatrack]

1. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

This all sounds vaguely . . . familiar. :boring:

[tinrobot]

2. I'm going to go out on a limb here....

...and say I think this is great.

If GM actually does produce the Volt and it lives up to it's promise, I'd seriously consider buying one. Sure, GM crushed a bunch of electric cars, but I'm not going to hold that bad business decision against them forever. The EV1 was a great car, so I know GM has it in them. If they redeem themselves by producing and selling (not leasing) a plug-in hybrid that gets 150mpg, then that would be great news.

Even a hybrid SUV is a small step in the right direction. Gotta wean those Hummer lovers off of gasoline one step at a time.

[razzleberry]

3. if the EV1 was so great, why didn't Honda build one

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_EV%2B

[tinrobot]

5. Because the Honda cost $53,000

...and I'm sure the EV1 cost a similar amount of money, which is why they were leased. NiMH batteres were not cheap back then, and the range wasn't that great.

Seems as though battery technology is finally coming to a price point where it's viable to make electric cars. If GM doesn't step up to the plate, they'll be eclipsed. Simple as that.

[hatrack]

4. "If" is a very big word. The Volt is a concept, nothing more

Sure, if they move forward, cool. However, the most recent GM news I recall concerned two items which did not inspire optimism:

1. Discontinuing their two hybrid pickup trucks - granted, these were designed more as portable generators than fuel-sippers. Their MPG went from about 13 to about 15, so economy wasn't exactly a selling point. Still, did this even make sense from the get-go? If you're in need of a generator, I think Honda and Kawasaki have nice-sized ones that will power a house for about $500.

2. Bob Lutz bragging - actively boasting - about the return of rear-wheel drive to multiple GM models. Great, let's make our cars heavier and less efficient by harking back to the Golden Age of 1974?

Maybe some of their research to date will have useful spin-offs - assuming that it's ever applied. But if Lutz, Wagoner & Company actually do the right thing, it'll be only after they've tried every other thing, and we don't have a lot of time left.

[CRF450]

6. Actually, going to RWD will help their sales

Cause look at the shitty FWD's they been selling for a while now! The impala SS back in the mid 90's was an awsome car but then they pussyfied it with the 98+ models!

GM's got some good vehicles coming out in the coming years, one of the highly anticipated cars is the 2008 Pontiac G8 to replace the Grand Prix. Its an imported Holden Commodore which is an Australian car, that car has an awsome reputation over their too. I'm seriously considering the G8! http://autos.msn.com/as/minishow/article.aspx?contentID=4024629&s=Chicago2007

[Javaman]

11. god, you're back again, weren't you banned a few dozen times before? nt

[CRF450]

12. Why should I?

I wish for GM to make some good mpg cars too, the current ones from all car makers just dont suit my tastes.

Few dozen times? What are talking about?

[LSK]

7. why not dust off the blueprints of the 10 year old EV1 and start making them

Dont see the need to reinvent the wheel.

[tinrobot]

8. That's actually a good idea.

Toss some lithium batteries in an EV1 and you'd have something that could go hundreds of miles on a charge.

[gravity]

9. That only costs $80k

[Javaman]

10. is that with envy at Toyota?

:rofl:

[44mpg by 2010]

13. Hmmmmm ? ? ?

Since first made visible in January or February '07, the "VOLT" has gone from 50 mpg to 150 mpg using a 40 miles EV range. And, the reason it has not been committed to the market is because "batteries to support 40 mile EV range are not available".

NOW ... HERE IS THE HARD QUESTION: If the "VOLT" will continue to run AFTER THE BATTERIES ARE DISCHARGED ... WOULD IT NOT GET BETWEEN 100 and 110 mpg on it's internal combustion engine? That is a fuel cost of $0.03 per mile (@ $3/gallon fuel price) or $3,000 per 100,000 miles.

Why would ANYONE want the additional weight of batteries to achieve 40 mile EV range at a cost of about $0.05 per mile in EV mode? The long range battery pack could be a "field installable after delivery add-on option" ... you know ... like a computer memory upgrade ... IF the battery packs ever became available ... and IF the customer wanted to buy one.

That said ... WHY ISN'T IT IN THE MARKET NOW ? ? ?

COULD THIS BE PR smoke in light of the pressure to reduce fuel consumption and emissions while sueing to prevent improvements ... AND ... running publicity campaigns to scare consumers into opposing HIGHER MPG and LOWER EMISSIONS ? ? ? ! ! !

YOU DECIDE ....

[CRF450]

14. "That said ... WHY ISN'T IT IN THE MARKET NOW ? ? ?"

It takes time to produce a new car no matter what car maker it is. GM just made the concept, and if they follow through with it, it'll take at least 2 or 3 years for it to hit the dealer lots. Theirs ALOT of testing that has to be done to get it right, insure its reliability, fit and finish etc etc...

[44mpg by 2010]

15. So 100 mpg by 2010?

[OKIsItJustMe]

16. I don't think you understand how it works

The Volt is a "serial hybrid." http://www.ev1.org/sshb.htm The gasoline engine runs a generator, sort of like on a diesel-electric locomotive. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diesel_locomotive#Diesel-electric

The key is that going down the highway, you don't really need a lot of horsepower. You need power for acceleration or climbing a hill. This sort of mileage was demonstrated in the 70's using just this sort of design (at that time though, it was large capacity lead-acid batteries, recharged by a relatively small gasoline engine and regenerative braking.)

To get this sort of mileage, you really need a large capacity battery. (You can get much better mileage out of a Prius by adding a much larger capacity battery.)
http://www.calcars.org/priusplus.html