chevy volt

With GM's Volt extended-range electric car set to arrive in dealerships by early next decade, some are asking whether US buyers will be switched off by a $40,000 Chevy. But would those buyers -- essentially early adopters of GM's new plug-in, gas-electric propulsion technology dubbed Voltec -- be more likely to plunk down such a wad of cash on a Caddy?

With GM having spent a reported $1 billion bringing the Chevrolet Volt to fruition, spreading out the risk among several models could be the key to paying down the R&D tab on its gas-electric engine. And tapping into the family-mover market wouldn't hurt either. Enter the Chevrolet Orlando. GM unveiled the attractive minivan concept at the Detroit auto show this past January, with a target release date of 2011. The Orlando may also come with an option other than juice-box holders and Band-Aid cubbies: The Chevrolet Volt's Voltec (formerly E-Flex) powertrain.

This shiny little black car is the first real Chevy Volt—the first of many hand-built but bona-fide production-intent prototypes that will roll out of GM’s pre-production workshop in the coming weeks. This car is the next big step in the production process after the testing of the Volt “mules”—test cars with a Chevy Cruze body and a Volt powertrain. (We drove one of the mules last month; see our full review here.)

Since early last year, two companies -- the Watertown, Massachusetts startup A123 Systems and Compact Power, Inc., a division of LG Chem -- have been battling for the contract to build lithium-ion batteries for General Motors's Hail Mary, the Chevy Volt, an electric car with a small gas engine on board for backup.

GM has yet to officially announce the winner, but Reuters reports that Compact Power is the victor. From our current issue, here's a look inside the fight to power the Volt.

The battery that will power the Chevrolet Volt weighs approximately 400 pounds and, stood on end, reaches a height of six feet. The $10,000-plus, T-shaped monolith contains 300 individual three-volt lithium-ion cells, bundled together in groups of three, then wired in series and kept from overheating by an elaborate liquid cooling mechanism.

Today, after a nearly two-year tease, General Motors unveiled the final design for the car that it hopes will save the company: the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, the world's first production plug-in hybrid. The Volt is designed to drive 40 miles on a single charge of its giant lithium-ion battery; after that, an onboard 1.4-liter four-cylinder flex-fuel engine kicks in to power the electric motors that drive the car. GM will most likely make 10,000 of the cars in the first year of production; it's expected to go on sale in November 2010.

Heres an odd PR move making the blog rounds today: Bob Lutz, the General Motors Vice Chairman whos driving the charge to build the Chevy Volt plug-in hybrid, was recently quoted in D Magazine calling global warming a crock of s**t.

No, we're not a business magazine, but this story on Xconomy about how battery-developer A123 Systems jumped from a university lab into a potential powerhouse is pretty fascinating.

The first consumer electronics car?

General Motors' CEO Rick Wagoner just took the wraps off the Cadillac Provoq—the first car
ever introduced at the Consumer Electronics Show. Their latest fuel-cell
vehicle gets twice the range of the new Equinox SUVs that are about to hit the
road, and its engine is only half as large.

It still seems weird to put the words Cadillac, crossover
vehicle (small SUV) and environmental in the same sentence . . . maybe thats why
they named it Provoq. (And hopefully they are better at engineering than at
spelling.)

In addition to looking badass, the Provoq has just about every green feature you (or GM) could think of. There's a plug on each side for
charging the lithium-ion batteries at home, plus a solar panel on the roof for
charging on the road. Louvers in the front of the car can open up to provide
more cooling or close to reduce wind resistance at high speed. The 300-mile
range is nice for convenience, but not critical. After all, you can refill the
car with hydrogen in about 8 minutes (at least, at the two or three dozen
hydrogen stations in the entire country). 

But this ultra-green car doesnt have Prius-style timidity.
It can hit 100 miles per hour and get to 60mph in 8.5 seconds—faster than
Cadillacs current crossover. And I believe those numbers. I got to drive the super-peppy
Equinox around Vegas today and I was amazed at the whiplash acceleration.
(Despite the defamation of electric motors by internal-combustion enthusiasts,
motors are the ultimate sports car power plants—delivering high torque as soon
as you hit the gas—err, accelerator.)

Of course, like GMs other hydrogen cars, you wont be
buying a Provoq immediately. But you might do it pretty soon. GM hopes to be
selling the Equinox by 2010 (in the first city or city that builds enough
hydrogen refueling stations to make it practical.) No word yet on when the
Provoq will hit driveways, but I sure hope its soon.—Sean Captain

More pics after the jump.