How the Chevy Volt Drives in "Generator" Mode

We've driven a prototype of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt. However, the car's lithium-ion batteries were fully charged at the time, so we never experienced the 1.4-liter inline four-cylinder firing up to power the front-drive electric motor. In this capacity, the gas engine acts as a generator, and it's the reason we consider the Volt a series hybrid.

Since the Volt has only 40 miles of "all-electric" range, most owners are likely to spend a considerable amount of time driving the car in "generator" mode (or in General Motors-speak, "charge-sustaining" mode). GM has finally made Volts available for members of the media to drive in generator mode on its Michigan proving grounds, and the New York Times' Lindsay Brooke and CNBC's Phil LaBeau were the first journalists to get behind the wheel.

Both report that the experience is initially a bit unsettling, because the gas engine runs when battery charge is deemed low, but its operating rpm has no obvious relationship to the driver's throttle input.

"The engine's initial engagement is inaudible and seamless, " Brooke writes. "I'm impressed... I push the accelerator and the engine sound does not change. The pedal has no connection to the generator, which is programmed to run at constant, preset speeds. This characteristic will take some getting used to by a public accustomed to vroom-vroom feedback.

"A few hundred yards later, as we snake through the track's infield section, the engine rpm rises sharply. The accompanying mechanical roar reminds me of a missed shift in a manual-transmission car."

GM officials say they're continuing to refine the software to smooth out, and quiet down, these transitions. You can read the first drives at the links below.

New York Times

CNBC

Inside Line First Drive: 2011 Chevrolet Volt Prototype

Categories: Chevrolet,Green Tech,Hybrids,Sedans