Chevy Volt

[Hardwyre]

Product Description Price Deposit Source

Tango T600 (Mostly-Assembled Kit) $108,000 $10,000 Commuter Cars, Spokane, WA

Lead-acid pack w/ 10+ kWh $8,000 na Tate Technology, Spokane, WA

Drivetrain w/ ADC 9” motors $5,000 na Bert Transmission, St-Constant,Quebec

Drivetrain w/ ADC 9” motors $5,000 na ElectriTorque, Spokane, WA

Optional battery packs and drivetrains can also be ordered:

Li-Ion 30 kWh pack $33,000 na EV-Force, China

Li-Ion 49 kWh pack power or energy $53,000 apx. na K2 Energy, Nevada

Drivetrain with AC Propulsion $40,000 apx. na AC Propulsion, San Dimas, CA

" with Azure Dynamics AC drive $20,000 apx. na Azure Dynamics, Boston, M

 

Are you kidding me? $108k for the BASE model? That's an expensive go-kart.

[Ratty260z]

those look like fun on a windy day.

[Creepy Cruiser]

Lol, they don't tip over. (unlike some other cars). All the weight is right at the bottom, so they are super stable.

 

But you're right, they're not cheap. They went after the higher end market, instead of cheap.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0biSmCktVY&feature=player_embedded

[Hardwyre]

Lol, they don't tip over. (unlike some other cars). All the weight is right at the bottom, so they are super stable.

 

But you're right, they're not cheap. They went after the higher end market, instead of cheap.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0biSmCktVY&feature=player_embedded

 

 

I don't mean to sound like I'm bitching; but I see so many companies that come up with these great possibilities, and yet design them in manners that make them unobtainable to the vast majority of people.

 

I would love to see an all electric or all ethanol smart car or similar.

 

Then again, I'd love to see society all ethanol anyways. :)

 

The little two tire action right at the end of that video is a bit heart stopping. :) Love it.

[Ratty260z]

Lol, they don't tip over. (unlike some other cars). All the weight is right at the bottom, so they are super stable.

 

But you're right, they're not cheap. They went after the higher end market, instead of cheap

 

still it would feel sketchy driving one fast on a windy day. My 76' honda and 73' beetle both are sub 2,000lbs and they get blown around on the highway pretty easy on a windy day. My beetle is pretty low and has a low center of gravity not to mention the sides are tall and flat. but regardless they seem cool i'm sure they are interesting to drive.

[Creepy Cruiser]

I don't mean to sound like I'm bitching; but I see so many companies that come up with these great possibilities, and yet design them in manners that make them unobtainable to the vast majority of people.

 

I would love to see an all electric or all ethanol smart car or similar.

 

Then again, I'd love to see society all ethanol anyways. :)

 

The little two tire action right at the end of that video is a bit heart stopping. :) Love it.

 

Yep, if read more on the site about the whole concept, you'll see that they wanted to produce a very very safe, and very cool commuter car, and because of that, they knew the cost would go up. However the ultimate goal is, to be able to ramp up to full production, and be able to get the cost down enough to sell them in the low 20K market, so every one can afford one. The whole concept started, when he though it was so bad that with so many cars on the road now, they keep having to build and widen more roads. His idea, was to just make the cars half as wide, and be able to get twice as many cars on the existing roads, and that would cut out all the bad that goes with all the new road construction. Pretty smart really, lol.

[strang3majik]

Ethanol is another subject completely...a complete waste for everyday cars...cars with built engines intended to run e85, that's different, usually you're not caring about mileage then.

 

But...burn almost twice as much to go the same distance for only a dollar less a gallon...no thanks.

 

 

And, I'm sure this will blow up...but, I have proof...

 

I drove from FL to PA, then PA back to FL in my 98 Ram 1500 last year. Every tank, religously, between 300-320 miles out of a 26 gallon tank depending on how low I ran it...thats almost 12 mpg. Right before hopping on the highway in PA on the way back to FL, I found a station with no ethanol...fill the truck up, ran it to 1/16th tank (wasn't even to E yet like all the other fill ups)...I got a little over 400 miles out of that tank...driving exactly the same as I was the rest of the trip and as I did on the trip up. Thats a little over 15mpg (thats saying I used all 26 gallons...which I did not).

 

Ethanol makes a difference and I hate it with a passion.

 

 

And, as far as those little cars being safe...about all they'll do is preserve the body. They've done studies at 70mph hitting a brick wall, you will die, however, in normal "small" car with crinkle zones, you'd survive with injuries. These little cars are too strong and have no give, so the occupants take the full brunt.

 

But, hey...at least you'll look good in your coffin.

[king bee66]

But, hey...at least you'll look good in your coffin.

 

amen to that, brother

[q-tip]

electric car=crap, the technology just its there, or not used. small diesel powered cars have been getting 50+ mpg for years. i had a 1st generation crx that had 60hp burned oil like a 2 stroke and still got 38mpg driving it like i stole it.

 

i agree that ethanol is terrible for the average car, real fuel just burns better

[danfiveten]

Thing is no matter what you think, or care, electric cars are goign to happen, more and more. Support for fuel using vehicles is going to go down. Its what the government wants on the road, and dont u know the government GETS what it WANTS. They want our fuel using cars off the road, and havent u realized obama hates old cars.

 

So enjoy the electric cars up your butt.

[q-tip]

i have no problem with electric cars. i think its just the wrong technology to invest in. there are companies developing new engines that can produce more than 1hp per pound and get amazing fuel mileage

[danfiveten]

^ I truthfully think they should be putting into electric, and the other forms of style. More variety, and it keeps from any one comapny being a monopoly over things. If everyone runs a electric car, prices will go up for power. But if you have a variety of vehicles with different fuel systems out there...well you get the idea.

 

 

Heres what i dont understand, Things like the leaf, we use wind technology to make power. Why not put some turbines on the front of the car that turn when yoru driving and put power back to the battery, with that solar panel the high end model has on the rear spoiler....? Just another wayt o make some extra free power for the car. We could also make the cars so they suck up static electricity.

 

Or in the big cities like say portland. Put stuff on the cars that can touch the road, and the city puts things in the ground to charge teh cars and provide them electricity while their in the city? That way you have unlimited city driving. Thign is theirs alot of different ideas that can be done with electric cars, but no lets stay simple minded and only plug them in.

[danfiveten]

And creepy those things are cool. But here in the states, so many truck drivers and shit done pay attention anymore, id be afraid of getting hit by a semi and flying like i was in a pinball machine. Any suv, or anything big hits that, it doesnt matter what kind of roll cage and safety system you have, the car would still go flying like a ball hit by a bat.

 

 

 

And thats the thing to that gets on my nerves here. Big vehicles. Trying to get big vehicles better gas milage. You know what, fuck the big vehicles. I get tired of them trying to force themselves in parking spots as well.

[datzenmike]

Ethanol contains less energy than reg gas. About 30% less by volume. On top of that low compression motors that are built to run on gas do not efficiently get the most out of ethanol. Compression should be above 12 to 1 fr this.

[Jesse C.]

Isn't that what the first year 510 came with?

 

Sadly, yes

[yellowdatsun]

Electric cars are a great idea, and work for the vast majority of the public.....................the problem is that the American public is too stupid and egotistical to drive them. The general public has the small penis complex of everyone thinking/wanting the biggest and baddest car they can have. Do you NEED that Ford Expedition, of course not, but boy you'll sure look cool driving it right? We need to get on the same page as the rest of the world and drive the car that ACTUALLY fits your daily needs. This is why people in places like Taiwan don't own pickups, and the majority drive scooters, because that's all they need on a daily basis. Here in the states you get laughed at if you ride a scooter. People here need to get their priorities straight, open their eyes, and change their attitudes towards alternative modes of transportation. It's only after we get past these hurdles will electric and small cars work here.

[Dirk Diggler]

I want to know where you are getting gas for $3.19

 

It was $4.39 yesterday, $3.27 last Saturday.

[banzai510(hainz)]

I hope the Volt gets better and gas/diesel Electric Hybrids take off and become the norm.Made in USA or hope most of it.

 

Toyota has done OK with the Prius and the VW turbos diesel in Europe are getting 60mpg in their smaller car but bigger than a Smart car

Old Submarines were diesel/electric

 

Even if the volt only gets 25miles before the motor kicks on is a good start as my work is 22miles.

 

 

Just needs to get cheaper. and a demand for them unfortunatly the demand come when GAS is about 4.50 a gal and the poor cant afford the cqar nor the newer car.Thus the 1200Datsun and little A motor B210/210s become wanted ubstead of Dumped.

[Z-train]

1)Electric cars are a great idea, 2)and work for the vast majority of the public.....................3)the problem is that the American public is too stupid and egotistical to drive them. 4)The general public has the small penis complex of everyone thinking/wanting the biggest and baddest car they can have. 5)Do you NEED that Ford Expedition, of course not, but boy you'll sure look cool driving it right? 6)We need to get on the same page as the rest of the world and drive the car that ACTUALLY fits your daily needs.7) This is why people in places like Taiwan don't own pickups, and the majority drive scooters, because that's all they need on a daily basis.8) Here in the states you get laughed at if you ride a scooter. 9)People here need to get their priorities straight, open their eyes, 10)and change their attitudes towards alternative modes of transportation. 11)It's only after we get past these hurdles will electric and small cars work here.

1)You got that backwards.

2)In-correct

3)In-correct again-the vast majority know they don't work

4)And that is our constitutional right

5)Yes,i need my 2500 Cummins RAM

6)No-we don't

7)So you're comparing a 13,892 square mile country to one with 3,539,242 square miles?

8)And right so.

9)They have them straight-it's called owning what YOU WANT

10)There are no alternative modes of transportation,just like there are no "alternaitve energy sources".

11)And how do you make up for the lost revenue form the gas taxes that are no longer being collected? :blink:

[71DIMER]

I want to know where you are getting gas for $3.19

 

It was $4.39 yesterday, $3.27 last Saturday.

 

Last time I filled up my daily (CRX) I paid $3.58/gal, now my next fill up will be $4.37+/gal! Geez, that's nuts!

[nismo dr]

510 with a Leaf power plant?

The Leaf's battery pack weighs 1200 lbs.....

[Z-train]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

The sad saga of the latest Edsel continues. Boldfacing and editorial comments added by poster.

 

GM to Idle Chevy Volt Output as Sales Slow

By SHARON TERLEP

 

General Motors Co. will idle production of its Chevrolet Volt battery-powered car for five weeks beginning this month because of slow sales amid an effort to boost the vehicle's consumer appeal, the company said Friday.

 

Launched last year with great fanfare, the Volt has had a rocky start as sales stalled, and the car became a lightning rod for critics of the Obama administration's auto-industry bailout and support for alternative energy.

 

General Motors will idle production of its Chevrolet Volt battery-powered car for five weeks beginning this month because of slow sales. Sharon Terlep has details on The News Hub from Detroit. Photo: AP

 

GM said around 1,300 workers at the Hamtramck, Mich., factory where the Volt is built will be out of work between March 19 and April 23, a spokesman said. The plant had just resumed production on Feb. 6

Mark Reuss, GM's North American chief, said in an interview the auto maker remains committed to the Volt and is taking a number of steps to improve lagging sales. GM will launch a new national ad campaign this month that features Volt owners praising the car. It also recently dropped the monthly cost of leasing the vehicles to $350 from $399 for a 36-month lease. In California, new low-emissions versions of the vehicles that qualify for use in the state's high-occupancy vehicle lanes will be sold to consumers at no extra cost.

 

"This technology is here to stay, we have all kinds of people who want to copy it and go after it. We are not re-evaluating anything," Mr. Reuss said. "The only question here is what the rate of sales will be." (Jesus H. Christ. This is an auto executive. Doesn't the fool realize that sales are the only thing that really counts?!)

 

Volt uses a lithium-ion battery to power the car and has a small gasoline engine that kicks in when the battery runs low.

 

Former GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz the main force behind the Volt, said recently that GM's lofty targets for the Volt are its main problem.

 

"The Volt is a bases-loaded home run," Mr. Lutz said. "It will overcome."

 

"We shall overcome!

We can't sell our schitty car,

But we shall overcome!"

 

But short supplies at U.S. dealerships (because the dealers won't buy them either) and some missteps in rolling the vehicles out to U.S. dealers weighed on sales last year. The vehicle's relatively high price tag—$41,000 before a $7,500 government rebate—also kept many consumers away. (Ya think?)

 

A U.S. safety investigation into whether the car's battery posed a fire risk after a serious accident added negative publicity. One vehicle caught fire and battery packs in three others sparked or caught fire after severe crash tests by a U.S. regulatory agency. GM said it would modify and strengthen the vehicles, and federal officials cleared the Volt of any safety risk. (obvious racism at play.)

 

At the same time, GM has boosted the appeal of its gasoline-engine compact cars. Its 2012 Chevrolet Cruze, for instance, gets up to 42 miles on a gallon of gasoline in some versions, yet costs about half the price of a Volt.

 

Jack Domaldson of Davis, Calif., said he and his wife considered buying a Volt but found it impractical and bought a Toyota Prius instead. Why did the Volt lack appeal? "Short range, expensive, no infrastructure support, and the element of uncertainty with performance," he said.

 

Word of the production halt comes only days after President Barack Obama praised the car in a recent campaign speech in Washington, D.C., saying he planned to buy one "in five years when I'm out of office." (Let's all hope he's buying one a lot sooner than he thinks.)

 

GM on Thursday said it sold 1,023 Volts in February, up from 676 in January. It outsold Nissan Motor Co.'s all-electric Leaf, which had sales of 478 in February. But the Volt had a large backlog of unsold vehicles while the Leaf is in short supply.

 

GM's move signals, "consumer demand is just not that strong for these vehicles," said Lacey Plache, chief economist for auto-research firm Edmunds.com. "The price premium on the Volt just doesn't make economic sense for the average consumer when there are so many fuel-efficient gasoline-powered cars available, typically for thousands of dollars less."

 

The Volt also has garnered strong backing from environmentalists, (the kiss of death) including many of the critics who slammed GM for killing a previous effort to test an electric car called the EV1.

 

The auto maker has scaled back expectations for the Volt after it fell short of its target for 2011. GM sold about 7,700 Volts last year, below its target of 10,000 vehicles.

 

After the battery-safety probe cut customer visits to dealers and slowed sales, GM Vice Chairman Stephen Girsky cautioned the company will know by June whether the Volt "has legs" in the market.

 

GM's Mr. Reuss said the reduced lease price will make the vehicle more affordable. (In other words, "get these schitboxes out of here!") Demand also will increase once the newly modified version of the vehicles are on the road, he said. A planned new national advertising campaign and rising gas prices also should bring in more consumers, he said.

 

"There are some really good things happening and we are going to keep that momentum," Mr. Reuss said.

__________________

[flyerdan]

If they were serious about electric cars (they're not, but that's another topic), there are several steps that could be taken to guarantee acceptance in the market place.

1. Make a purely electric drive, no hybrid or synergy drive faggotry. Electric forklifts work all day packing around 12-15000 pounds so a gussied up golf cart should travel a reasonable distance at a considerably reduced weight.

2. Exempt them from the federal vehicle safety requirements that drive up the cost of all vehicles. Granted, they have to have lights and windshield wipers and seat-belts, but all the rest, not so much.

3. Make them affordable to own. Not just to purchase, but to have. No more than a $25 per year addition to your liability insurance and no more than $10 per year to license. Who the fuck in their right mind wants to spend as much for a limited use vehicle that they would for a loaded suv? Especially since the fixed costs are the same as a real rig.

Follow those steps and you'd see a lot of people picking up electric commuter rigs to enhance, rather than replace their gas rigs. How many people would have bicycles if they had the same fixed costs as cars?

[Z-train]

To expect people to get a "second vehicle"is a flawed premise as the Volt it self.

[Icehouse]

Electric cars are a great idea, and work for the vast majority of the public.....................the problem is that the American public is too stupid and egotistical to drive them. The general public has the small penis complex of everyone thinking/wanting the biggest and baddest car they can have. Do you NEED that Ford Expedition, of course not, but boy you'll sure look cool driving it right? We need to get on the same page as the rest of the world and drive the car that ACTUALLY fits your daily needs. This is why people in places like Taiwan don't own pickups, and the majority drive scooters, because that's all they need on a daily basis. Here in the states you get laughed at if you ride a scooter. People here need to get their priorities straight, open their eyes, and change their attitudes towards alternative modes of transportation. It's only after we get past these hurdles will electric and small cars work here.

 

AGREED!!!

 

I asked a buddy at work why he bought an S2000, he said "it fits 99% of my driving needs." He doesn't drive to work, doesn't have a wife or kids, doesn't need to haul things. He said "why should I buy a car for the 1% of the driving I do?" It all makes sense to me.

 

People can drive whatever they want. As long as my tax dollars aren't used to go into foreign countries to raid there natural sorceress to power it. I guess they are trying to get that DAMN keystone pipeline in.... Bush and his buddies trying to exploit anything to make a buck.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1)Electric cars are a great idea, 2)and work for the vast majority of the public.....................3)the problem is that the American public is too stupid and egotistical to drive them. 4)The general public has the small penis complex of everyone thinking/wanting the biggest and baddest car they can have. 5)Do you NEED that Ford Expedition, of course not, but boy you'll sure look cool driving it right? 6)We need to get on the same page as the rest of the world and drive the car that ACTUALLY fits your daily needs.7) This is why people in places like Taiwan don't own pickups, and the majority drive scooters, because that's all they need on a daily basis.8) Here in the states you get laughed at if you ride a scooter. 9)People here need to get their priorities straight, open their eyes, 10)and change their attitudes towards alternative modes of transportation. 11)It's only after we get past these hurdles will electric and small cars work here.

 

 

 

1)You got that backwards.2)In-correct3)In-correct again-the vast majority know they don't work4)And that is our constitutional right5)Yes,i need my 2500 Cummins RAM6)No-we don't7)So you're comparing a 13,892 square mile country to one with 3,539,242 square miles?8)And right so.9)They have them straight-it's called owning what YOU WANT10)There are no alternative modes of transportation,just like there are no "alternaitve energy sources".11)And how do you make up for the lost revenue form the gas taxes that are no longer being collected? :blink:

 

1. my bro drives one daily and loves it. I personally don't see what's wrong with it. his electric bill didn't even go up.

 

2. The volt would and so would the Leaf. I don't know many people that drive over a hundred miles a day. If you need more read about the Tzero, he has great ideas for not only long trips but helping our out of date power grid.

 

3. I haven't heard any complaints from the guy at my work who drives a homemade electric or the guy who drives a leaf or the guy who drives a volt. They all love them. Who wouldn't, 70 bucks to fill up a gas tank is craziness. one fill up would charge my brothers car everyday for 5 or 6 months.

 

4. Where in the constitution does it say we can do whatever we want no mater what the outcome to others? 6% of the worlds population 25% of the energy consumption.......

 

 

5. I have no problem with people using the rig they buy they should just have to pay for it. Gas prices should reflect the actual cost.

 

6. As soon as we get rid of religion. I can't wait!

 

7. no one goes to the middle states haha on a serious not refer to Tzero again.

 

8. HAHA true

 

9. Agreed with original statement.

 

10. wind and solar are alternates.

 

11. they already have a tax when buying tabs on electric vehicles. My brother has to pay it.

 

 

My thoughts towards SUV's are in agreement with the book "high and mighty" it's a good book you guys should read it. kinda thick but worth it. Kinda old and outdated now but still good information.

 

 

Also I don't mind that Obama loaned the car companies money, they paid it back and that's good. Unlike when Bush loaned money to the banks.... That's a whole different thread and we all want to like each other :)