Chevy Volt: Running Prototypes by June! -Lutz
Chevy Volt Price Tag Raised
GM has confirmed reports that the first Chevy Volts will cost $35 to $40,000 not the $30,000 that they had claimed previously.
Canada.com first published the report, that includes the following statements:
GM has found it can`t re-engineer features such as windshield wipers and high-powered audio systems fast enough for the all-electric car, so it will be forced to put expensively redundant systems into the first-generation Volt.
The redundant systems will be eliminated later, probably in the second generation of the Volt, after engineers have had time to rework them for the new world of electric propulsion. "It's starting to look like it's going to be close to $35,000," Dee Allen, a spokesman for GM, said of the first-generation Chevy Volt.
In a later post Wired confirmed these statements, and quoted Allen as saying ". . . if it comes in closer to $35,000 and it means meeting the 2010 deadline, that's the direction we're going to go." Wired also added air conditioning to the list of accessories adding to the cost. Wired also made this statement:
GM has no doubt it will solve the problem, but not in time to meet the 2010 deadline. The first-generation Volts will have workarounds GM called "redundant systems." Allen couldn`t tell us anything more about that, but said second-generation Volts will be "more refined."
Chevy Volt: Running Prototypes by June! -Lutz
Chevy Volt A123/Continental Prototype Lithium-ion Battery Pack Delivered
January 31st, 2008
The next major Volt milestone has been achieved.
GM plans large run of all-electric Chevy Volt
GM has confirmed receiving the first Chevy Volt specific lithium-ion prototype battery pack from the Continental/A123 Systems production team. The pack was delivered to GM`s Mainz Kastel laboratory in Germany on the morning of January 31st.
GM already has at least two prototype packs from the LG Chem/Compact Power production team since the first was delivered on October 31st (see First Battery Delivered). The Continential/A123 pack was expected in December-January and is on-time, keeping the vehicle's production schedule on track. GM plans to evaluate both teams packs until this summer when they will decide on moving either one or both towards production.
Today's is an extremely important landmark in the Chevy Volt development story as it further validates the concept, now that two independent teams have shown they can build properly behaving 16kWh lithium-ion packs.
GM Vice-Chairman Bob Lutz told reporters in Flint, Michigan on Tuesday that the Volt remains on-schedule. He said: "We`re going to prove the skeptics wrong," and "I hope to drive the 40 miles electrically by March or April and by June we`ll have running prototypes for the press."
see independant GM-Volt.com for updates
GM plans large run of all-electric Chevy Volt
Thu Jan 31, 2008
By John Crawley WASHINGTON, Jan 31 (Reuters) - General Motors Corp (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) plans a strong production run for its plug-in Chevy Volt, according to a senior executive on Thursday who also urged Congress to approve tax incentives to help spark demand.Lauckner said GM still hopes to start production of the Volt by the end of 2010 and said the company is planning a healthy roll-out. "We`re talking about large numbers - in the tens of thousands," he said (60,000?). "It`s not a niche market."
Jon Lauckner, GM vice president for global program management, said the automaker is mindful of the current high costs of battery development but expects the per-vehicle price to drop as the technology improves."As volume scales up, you will move down this curve to see better economics going forward. You can`t get hung up on the economics of the first unit or the tenth unit," Lauckner told an energy forum at the Competitive Enterprise Institute.
Plug-ins, viewed by the world`s two biggest automakers as one answer to reducing U.S. gasoline use and meeting sharply higher U.S. fuel efficiency standards, are designed for short trips powered entirely by an electric motor and a battery charged through a common electrical outlet. A gasoline engine would kick in after 40 miles on electric power.
GM hopes to be the first to mass production and snatch the lead on all-electric fuel-saving technology from Japan`s Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T: Quote, Profile, Research). Toyota also plans a plug-in hybrid by 2010.
The biggest hurdle to success of electric vehicles is improving lithium ion battery power and storage capacity while making it small, safe and light enough to fit easily under the hood with other components.
"Cost is the killer right now," said Jack Deppe, a U.S. Energy Department consultant.
Current estimates show that every 10 miles of electric power adds about $1,500 in costs.
But with gasoline/electric hybrids comprising just 2 percent of the U.S. auto market even with gasoline prices above $3 per gallon, some experts are skeptical about the rush to perfect plug-in technology.
John German, a hybrid expert at Honda Motor Co (7267.T: Quote, Profile, Research), said the case has not been made for mass-market plug-ins, arguing there are too many questions about cost, efficiency and consumer interest.
German said "plug-in hybrids are coming" but stressed that automakers have embraced and then abandoned other fuel-saving ideas before. He said industry should not try to "force feed" electric cars to consumers.
Lauckner said GM is not betting that gasoline prices will remain stable or go down and that consumers globally will rally around the Volt.
All executives recommended that Congress invest heavily in battery technology and offer tax incentives to consumers like they have for purchases of the popular Toyota Prius hybrid.
"That`s a helpful role government can play to speed the technology and bring these benefits forward," Lauckner said.
(Editing by Richard Chang)
contact Obama! 