Updated with more photos, 6 PM PDT
Toyota has often talked about building a whole brand around the Prius, but now it appears a whole army of Chevrolet Volts might get there first. In Beijing today, General Motors introduced the Chevrolet Volt MPV5 concept -- the Chevy Volt minivan.
A joint design effort between GM's North American and Australian crossover design teams, the Volt MPV5 brings the wonder of extended-range hybrids to the crumb-encrusted world of the minivan. Of course, practical, box-shaped vehicles present all sorts of aerodynamic challenges. To that end, designers gave the Volt minivan a full-underbody belly pan and deeply cut rocker panel trim.
Chevy claims that the minivan version of the Volt is still good for 32 miles of all-electric range when its 16 kWh lithium-ion battery pack has a full charge. If you fill the gas tank for the 1.4-liter, range-extending gas engine, you could drive for 300 miles total, says Chevy. The front-drive electric motor is rated at 150 hp and 273 pound-feet of torque; top speed is a claimed 100 mph.
This is a compact minivan, of course, sized to appeal to worldwide markets. The Volt MPV5 rides on a 109-inch wheelbase that's less than an inch longer than the Volt sedan but stretches 7 inches longer at 180.5 inches from its Volt nose to its flat-butted minivan tail. It's also 2.9 inches wider (73.7) and 7.2 inches taller (63.4).
Even with batteries onboard, there's still a good amount of cargo space in the five-seat Volt minivan, according to Chevrolet. There are 30.5 cubic feet of luggage space behind the second row, and when you fold those seats, you open up 62.3 cubic feet.
Chevy isn't ready to talk much about the interior design of its Volt MPV5 concept, other than to say it has the same gauges, center stack and front seats as the Volt sedan.
If the Volt lives up to the years of advance hype it has gotten, there's no reason to think GM wouldn't expand the lineup to include different body styles for different markets. The automaker further announced today that it will begin Chevy Volt sales in China in 2011.
td1105 says:
11:22 AM, 04/22/10
While I can't say I'm a huge fan of the Volt [family?] design scheme in general, I think the proportions of the front end, taillights, etc. look less awkward on this crossover then on the sedan, which has a decklid and beltline that are too high, IMO. The all glass hatch reminds me of the Volvo C30 and the UK market Toyota Aygo (and it's Peugeot/Citroën brethren).
brn says:
11:33 AM, 04/22/10
Not so pretty from behind, but I like it otherwise.
bb30 says:
11:54 AM, 04/22/10
I'll buy one. So much of minivan life is spent driving in a fairly limited geographic area. Combined with a fleet of family and utility bicycles a Volt minivan could drive our family gas use to very low quantities.
isend2c says:
11:54 AM, 04/22/10
A 5 seat minivan will fail in America. The Mazda MAZDA5 has not really been selling like hot cakes, and the Kia Rondo isn't in every drive way either. Those both have 7 seats also... So this is like a station wagon, but it looks kinda crossover-y but it's too low. OH OH! I got it, it's a Venza rival, or a Crosstour rival... beats out the Honda.
I like the back very much. I like zest in design, and this has some. Honda / Acura has horrible zest...
subytrojan says:
12:13 PM, 04/22/10
Before I saw the back, I was going to say this looks better than the Volt!
gmjung says:
12:19 PM, 04/22/10
I would definitely buy this - it is the perfect urban family car. I think that if it's competitively priced, it would be very competitive for the Mazda5/Honda CR-V/Kia Rondo market, which is pretty large where we live (DC area). 30 cubic feet behind the second row is a bit small though...
throwback says:
12:27 PM, 04/22/10
HHR replacement, at double the cost?
captainvw says:
12:33 PM, 04/22/10
Almost looks better as a minivan
dougtheeng says:
12:59 PM, 04/22/10
I think it does indeed look better as a minivan.
compressor says:
01:04 PM, 04/22/10
I really like the glass tailgate. I may be the only one to not like the trend, but modern cars (and GM is very guilty of this) have incredibly high decklids/rear beltlines. Yes, camera's have helped in parking situations, but the lack of visibility causes issues once moving as well as for other drivers. This not only looks good, but is functional.
anythngbutgm says:
01:41 PM, 04/22/10
40 thousand for a Volt and what 50 grand for this?
Hold back the lines folks.
ed124c says:
02:00 PM, 04/22/10
Looks like GM is determined not to follow the leaders anymore.
Not playing it safe is chancey though, especially for a company that needs all of its new vehicles to be successful.
I hope GM has an overall plan and is not just shooting out models helter-skelter.
ant14 says:
02:04 PM, 04/22/10
So it's small minivan, but yet it seats 5? I mean, it seems its sort of a Mazda5, Ford Grand C-Max, but those seat 6-7...When I think minivan, I think 6-8. Then when I study this package, reminds me of Pontiac Asstek had similar mission.
brn says:
02:26 PM, 04/22/10
anythngbutgm: "40 thousand for a Volt and what 50 grand for this?"
Where do you get the $50K from?
yamahr1 says:
02:26 PM, 04/22/10
Looks fantastic all the way around. I definitely want one!
beermagazine says:
04:32 PM, 04/22/10
Looks good. I don't know why people complain about it being a 5-seater. Not every family has 9 kids. In reality it's a STATION wagon, but for some reason people cry when they see that term.
Also to the person that complained about high belt lines...news flash. 1997 called and wanted to tell you that safety standards have changed car design. They figured out that you're safer behind a door than glass ;)
firstwagon says:
05:10 PM, 04/22/10
Most 5 seaters will not carry 3 baby or kids seats. Most families do no have 9 kids but many have 3.
subafly says:
05:23 PM, 04/22/10
It would be great for delivery fleets.
kingkhalas says:
06:10 PM, 04/22/10
sort of copies volvo a little with the space behind the console.
skw0123 says:
06:16 PM, 04/22/10
Come on! Minivan <> MPV! Someday there might be a righteous MPV in our market that gets the respect it deserves. The Prius is a hatchback (pretty much the only successful one in the US), so it might be just a matter of getting the formula right.
ohhbobby says:
06:51 PM, 04/22/10
It reminds me of an ugly version of the GMC Granite, how about you guys build that one instead. Mazda 5 hasn't sold that well here, and if they think the "electric tech"will be Chevy's edge...ehh not so much.
froggersjc says:
07:20 PM, 04/22/10
isend2c says:
11:54 AM, 04/22/10
A 5 seat minivan will fail in America. The Mazda MAZDA5 has not really been selling like hot cakes, and the Kia Rondo isn't in every drive way either. Those both have 7 seats also... So this is like a station wagon, but it looks kinda crossover-y but it's too low. OH OH! I got it, it's a Venza rival, or a Crosstour rival... beats out the Honda.
Mazda5
Unless you know something I don't the Mazda5 sells very well. When we bought ours a year ago the dealers said they could not keep them on the lots and they were hard to find. I see quite a few around town.
bailey6954 says:
07:49 PM, 04/22/10
Dear God, Please let someone invent or discover an alternative inexpensive combustible fuel source so that the Big 3 and the Japanese, Koreans and the Europeans can STOP building these stupid electric and hybrid cars. I know that I am not supposed to hate, but I really hate these cars. Amen!
kurtamaxxxguy says:
09:59 PM, 04/22/10
It's attractive, far more flexible than the Volt sedan and would have just enough range for my daily commutes.
However, us NW USA folks have to deal with bad weather and snow , so FWD may not be enough (the Subaru Outback is almost Oregon's official car !). Whether GM can adopt an efficient AWD option for this remains to be seen!
rocket_ says:
01:07 AM, 04/23/10
@bailey6954 uhh, pretty sure you're not supposed to 'amen!' your own comment.
scottyscooter says:
04:42 AM, 04/23/10
Not too shabby, I like it!
krankshafted says:
02:46 PM, 04/23/10
Pretty nice for a minivan.
dace1 says:
05:25 PM, 04/23/10
Can someone please tell me why this is called a minivan? It looks like an equinox. Does not have sliding doors which is what makes minivans so easy to get in and out. Plus the comment made about not being able to fit three car seats is right on. I mean they keep making cars smaller and car seats bigger. No way will you be able to fit three car seats in the back of that.
kjnorman says:
07:52 PM, 04/24/10
Call it what it is, a tall wagon. I think the back needs work but overall I like it. Much more practical than the sedan.
To GM, fix the back styling and allow me to put a hitch on it for bike racks and I'll be all over this!
easym1 says:
04:48 PM, 05/ 1/10
This is not a minivan, this is an suv!