No doubt about it; the Chevy Volt is the centerpiece of GM centennial celebration, called GMnext.
Bob Lutz, GM's vice chairman of product development, who's been arguably the most visible GM executive promoting this car, drove out a silver Volt before a waiting crowd at the Wintergarden in the downtown Renaissance Center.
The Volt is viewed as potentially industry-changing technology, as it is an extended-range electric vehicle. GM claims it can go 40 miles on an electric charge alone, and with the gas-burning engine which recharges the lithium-ion battery, can go about 400 miles.
Here's Inside Line's take: Aerodynamic Chevrolet Volt Electrifies GM's 100th-Anniversary Celebration
dougtheeng says:
09:10 AM, 09/16/08
the Volt looks good there. I can't wait.
jederino says:
09:11 AM, 09/16/08
Okay,the video of the car looks more interesting than the original still photos. I hope this is a very successful car for GM! Still, I'm not digging that plenum grill from Acura.
firstwagon says:
11:59 AM, 09/16/08
For GM's sake, I really hope it lives up to it's press.
ateixeira says:
12:19 PM, 09/16/08
It's different and it's supposed to be. Look how much good PR the Prius gave Toyota, while green cars based on production models didn't do as well.
I think it looks great. I like the iPod interior, looks like a Mac store almost. The door panels, too.
This car should be a huge hit. Too bad the price point will keep volumes low.
m_thrizzle says:
01:28 PM, 09/16/08
The front end looks good although very Civic-esque. And the rear end is straight Prius. The dash is nice looking but will get dirty quite easily and will look dated in a few years (since iPods don't even have that look any more).
I'm dissappointed in the Volt's derivative styling, especially the rear.
albook says:
01:40 PM, 09/16/08
I don't know why anyone out there is hating on it. Looks better than the Prius- now and the next gen version.
jederino says:
03:23 PM, 09/16/08
Yes, it does look better than a Prius. However, the Prius hits a niche demographic that wishes to demonstrate an intellectual antithapy toward the automobile. Therefore, its ugliness is a virtue.
billt9 says:
04:12 PM, 09/16/08
So once the first 40 miles are up, the Volt gets 48 mpg, which is pretty much the same as the current Prius.
So the new trick it has is that it's a plug-in electric vehicle that goes for 40 miles. In those plug-in 40 miles, it gets an equivalent of 100 mpg.
That's about the same as the Tesla Roadster's 105 mpg plug-in.
Making this car a Tesla Roadster for commutes to work, and a Prius for roadtrips.
billt9 says:
04:15 PM, 09/16/08
GM is still arguing with the EPA on how to test the Volt?
It's obvious to me that as opposed to the traditional 3 numbers:
city/highway/combined,
This car needs 6 numbers:
electric city/electric highway/electric combined/hybrid city/hybrid highway/hybrid combined.
Consumers too dumb to understand the 6 numbers are not worthy of driving this car.
wenhead says:
04:30 AM, 09/17/08
I think the Volt looks great.I also think that making the car aerodynamic was very importannt. I hope the Volt does well.
sabastian says:
04:58 AM, 09/17/08
Could it be true? Did Chevrolet actually build a decent steering wheel for this car? Yes! I think they did! Oh yeah...The rest of it doesn't look too bad either, except that I see that they went with the Honda method of placing controls on the dash: make a button for everything and then glue where ever you want to!
hondacura4 says:
07:14 AM, 09/17/08
The final design looks much better rolling as pictures didnt do it any justice.
I also like that GM didnt follow the form of the Japanese Hybrids although their designs have been proven to be aerodynamically efficient.
GM certainly needed a standout....game changer if you will and it looks like the Volt is that vehicle. Unfortunately, its not inexpensive.