Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Chevy Volt's quantum leap forward actually more of a baby step
Until recently, GM has been claiming that the gasoline motor in a Chevy Volt was only there as a backup, that it was only used to charge the battery. Well now it turns out that the gasoline engine may indeed directly power the wheels at speeds over 70 mph among other situations. So it turns out the Volt cannot be correctly called an electric vehicle. There is a word to describe a car that is powered by a combination of electricity and internal combustion its called a hybrid. Before I get too negative, I'll concede that the car does represent a technological advance, but it is, as of today, a PR failure for GM.
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I like this post because it shows a second flaw in the GM EV thinking. Besides the car not being a real EV, the main problem I saw was that it only was designed for a 40 mile commute. Although many (maybe even a majority) people have a commute of 40 miles or less, it eliminates the use of the volt for any real road tripping or recreational use, which is a staple for many high mileage car users. I think Tesla got the point when they designed their EV with a 250 mile range. Its too bad Chevy's first venture into EVs will likely (in my opinion) be a failure.
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