Chevrolet Volt Leads General Motors Into Its Second Century

DETROIT - General Motors launched its next 100 years today by unveiling the much-anticipated production version of the Chevrolet Volt - a vehicle that delivers up to 40 miles of gasoline- and emissions-free electric driving, with the extended-range capability of hundreds of additional miles.

"Revealing the production version of the Chevy Volt is a great way to open our second century," said Rick Wagoner, GM Chairman and CEO. "The Volt is symbolic of GM's strong commitment to the future ... just the kind of technology innovation that our industry needs to respond to today's and tomorrow's energy and environmental challenges."

Form follows function
The design of the Chevrolet Volt production car has evolved from the original concept that was unveiled at the 2007 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Because aerodynamics plays a key role in maximizing driving range, GM designers created an aerodynamically efficient design for the production vehicle. Many of the design cues from the concept vehicle endure in the production Volt, including the closed front grille, athletic stance, rear design graphics, outside rearview mirrors and more. The Volt's rounded and flush front fascia, tapered corners and grille are functional, enabling air to move easily around the car. In the rear, sharp edges and a carefully designed spoiler allow the air to flow off and away quickly. An aggressive rake on the windshield and back glass help reduce turbulence and drag.

Working closely with GM aerodynamicists to shape the Volt, design and engineering teams developed one of the most aerodynamic vehicles in GM's history. They spent hundreds of hours with the Volt in GM's wind tunnel, testing and re-testing parts such as the front and rear quarter panels, rear spoiler, rockers and side mirrors. Aerodynamic improvements enabled GM to reach the Volt's target of driving up to 40 miles (based on EPA city cycle) without using gasoline or producing emissions.

Inside, the Volt offers the space, comfort, convenience and safety features that customers expect in a four-passenger sedan, and it delivers them in a variety of interior color, lighting and trim options unlike any offered before on a Chevrolet sedan. Modern controls and attractive materials, two informational displays, and a touch-sensitive infotainment center with integrated shifter distinguish the Volt's interior from other vehicles in the market.

Some of Volt's interior technological features include:

* Driver-configurable, liquid crystal instrument display
* Standard seven-inch touch screen vehicle information display
* Touch screen-style climate and infotainment controls
* Optional navigation system with onboard hard drive for maps and music storage
* Standard Bluetooth for cellular phone and USB/Bluetooth for music streaming

New era in automotive transportation
The Chevrolet Volt is leading a new era of electrification of the automobile by creating a new class of vehicle known as the Extended-Range Electric Vehicle, or E-REV.

The Volt uses electricity to move the wheels at all times and speeds. For trips up to 40 miles, the Volt is powered only by electricity stored in its 16-kWh, lithium-ion battery. When the battery's energy is depleted, a gasoline/E85-powered engine generator seamlessly provides electricity to power the Volt's electric drive unit while simultaneously sustaining the charge of the battery. This mode of operation extends the range of the Volt for several hundred additional miles, until the vehicle's battery can be charged. Unlike a conventional battery-electric vehicle, the Volt eliminates "range anxiety," giving the confidence and peace of mind that the driver will not be stranded by a depleted battery.

The Chevrolet Volt can be plugged either into a standard household 120v outlet or use 240v for charging. The vehicle's intelligent charging technology enables the Volt's battery to be charged in less than three hours on a 240v outlet or about eight hours on a 120v outlet. Charge times are reduced if the battery has not been fully depleted. At a cost of about 80 cents per day (10 cents per kWh) for a full charge that will deliver up to 40 miles of electric driving, GM estimates that the Volt will be less expensive to recharge than purchasing a cup of your favorite coffee. Charging the Volt about once daily will consume less electric energy annually than the average home's refrigerator and freezer units.

Charge out of driving
The Chevrolet Volt offers spirited driving performance in a remarkably quiet interior. More than 220 lithium-ion cells contained within the Volt's battery pack provide ample power. The Volt's electric drive unit delivers the equivalent of 150 horsepower, 273 lb-ft. (370 Nm) of instant torque, and a top speed of 100 miles per hour. The lack of engine noise, combined with special sound-deadening materials, make the Chevrolet Volt an extremely quiet vehicle to drive.

GM estimates that the Volt will cost about two cents per mile to drive while under battery power compared to 12 cents per mile using gasoline priced at $3.60 per gallon. For an average driver who drives 40 miles per day (or 15,000 miles per year), this amounts to a cost savings of $1,500 annually. Using peak electric rates, GM estimates that an electrically driven mile in a Chevy Volt will be about one-sixth of the cost of a conventional gasoline-powered vehicle. The cost savings are even greater when charging during off-peak hours, when electric rates are cheaper.

The Chevrolet Volt is expected to be built at GM's Detroit-Hamtramck manufacturing facility, subject to GM successfully negotiating satisfactory government incentives. Production is scheduled to begin late 2010 for models in the United States. Pricing has not been announced. Visit media.gm.com/volt for more information.

General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM), the world's largest automaker, has been the annual global industry sales leader for 77 years. Founded in 1908, GM today employs about 266,000 people around the world. With global headquarters in Detroit, GM manufactures its cars and trucks in 35 countries. In 2007, nearly 9.37 million GM cars and trucks were sold globally under the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, HUMMER, Opel, Pontiac, Saab, Saturn, Vauxhall and Wuling. GM's OnStar subsidiary is the industry leader in vehicle safety, security and information services. More information on GM can be found at www.gm.com.

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PRELIMINARY SPECIFICATIONS: 2011 CHEVROLET VOLT

General

Vehicle type:
5-door, front-wheel-drive sedan

Category:
Extended-Range Electric Vehicle (E-REV)

E-REV competitors:
none

Chassis:
independent McPherson struts front, compound crank twist axle rear, four-wheel disc brakes, full regenerative brakes to maximize energy capture, electric power-assist steering

Seating capacity:
four

Manufacturing location:
Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly (subject to GM successfully negotiating satisfactory government incentives)

Performance
Top speed (mph): 100

EV range, city (miles):
40 (based on EPA city cycle)

Dimensions

Wheelbase (in / mm):
105.7 / 2685

Length (in / mm):
177 / 4404

Width (in / mm):
70.8 / 1798

Height (in / mm):
56.3 / 1430

Cargo volume (cu ft / L):
10.6 / 301

Battery system

Type:
lithium-ion

Energy (kWh)
16

Electric drive unit

Power (kW / hp):
111 / 150

Torque (lb-ft / Nm):
273 / 370

Exterior

Tire and wheel size:
specially developed low rolling-resistance tires on 17-inch forged aluminum wheels

In fact, LimeLite reported no trouble dealing with the hybrid's unique high-voltage electrical system, and the company plans an even more extreme 220-inch conversion in the near future. With the arrival of the Cadillac Escalade Hybrid on the scene right about now, LimeLite is also planning an active conversion business with the new green Caddies as well. Oh, and if you want a Tahoe Hybrid Limo, the LimeLite version will set you back just under a hundred grand, or you can ride in this one by calling up its new owner, Zbest Limos of Baltimore, MD. Full specs below.

Exterior
• Four Opera Lights per post - Behind the Glass
• SUMMIT WHITE Exterior
• Custom Color Matched Paint
• White Mohawk Vinyl Top
• Tubular Style .025”Thick Steel Chassis Frame
• All 18 Gauge Steel Body Parts
• 160" Tinted Windows
• Custom Tinted Rear Windows
• Black Step Running Boards
• Upgraded Factory Braking System
• Upgraded Factory Suspension System
• 3M Undercoating
• Optional Wheels

Interior:
• Custom Bench Seating with
• Black Fiber & Grey J-Style Bench Seating
• Fiber Optic Rope Piping Under Seats
• Upgraded Factory Headliner
• Hardwood Flooring
• Removable Black Carpet Overlay
• Full Length Stainless Steel Ceiling with Fiber Optics
• Rear 3rd & 4th Row Bench Seat
• Fiber Optic Rope Piping around the Headliner
• Halogen Accent Lights
• Stainless Steel Privacy Partition with Fiber Optics
• Stainless Steel Ceiling with Starlight Fiber Optics
• Ice Coolers & Drink Holders Throughout
• Lighted Glassware & Decanters
• Two Full Bars with Pearl Lexan Tops
• Stainless Steel Bar Backs with Fiber Optics
• Manual Sun Roof (For Emergency Use)
• Seats 14 very comfortably

Audio/Video/Effects:
•Level III Stereo with Pioneer DEH-5000 with MP3-WMA-AAC Compatible CD Player
• DVD Player
• Two 15” Flat Screens next to the Partition
• One 7” Flat Screen in bar area
• One 7” Flat Screen in the pillar
• Two Laser Lights
• A/V Hookup
• 110 AC Outlets
• 12V DC Power Socket
• Strobe Lights
• Laser Lights
• LimoTouch Control Panel
• Backup Camera with Rear View Mirror in Color
• Hands free intercom for the Driver
• Phone Intercom for the Passenger
• iPod - iPhone Docking Station
• Back up Video System with Monitor
• Invisible Stereo/Television Antenna

Engine and Drivetrain:
• Vortec 6.0L V8 SFI LIVC with ACTIVE FUEL MAMAGMENT
• 2-MODE HYBRID Transmission
• HYBRID PROPULSION ELECTRIC 300 VOLT ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEM
• PREMIUM SMOOTHRIDE SUSPENSION

[LimeLite Coachworks via Hybrid Cars]

Apparently, Dennis is concerned that GM may be underestimating consumer interest in the Volt, leading to shortages when the vehicle finally arrives. "If everyone who wanted a Volt could get one, that would be the dream," he said. Given the Volt's expected price point, there's no word on whether Dennis' dream goes so far as to loan everyone who wants a Volt the means to get one, but for now we're willing to take the neurologist at face-value. We want a Volt. Where's our $40k? [Automotive News, Sub. Req.]

Also Consider:
• Non-Hybrid Chevy Tahoe
• Chrysler Aspen / Dodge Durango Hybrid
• Non-Hybrid Chevy Tahoe
• Cadillac Escalade Hybrid
• Non-Hybrid Chevy Tahoe
• Mercedes-Benz GL 320 CDI
• Did we mention the non-hybrid Chevy Tahoe?

Suitability Parameters:
· Speed Merchants: No
· Fashion Victims: Yes
· Treehuggers: No
· Mack Daddies: No
· Tuner Crowd: No
· Hairdressers: No
· Penny Pinchers: No
· Euro Snobs: No
· Working Stiffs: No
· Technogeeks: Yes
· Poseurs: Yes
· Soccer Moms: No
· Nascar Dads: Yes
· Golfing Grandparents: Yes

Vitals:
· Manufacturer: Chevrolet
· Model tested: Tahoe Hybrid 2WD
· Model year: 2008
· Base Price: $49,590
· Price as Tested: $52,780
· Engine type: 6.0-liter Vortec V8 with two-mode gasoline/electric hybrid
· Horsepower: 332 hp @ 5100 rpm
· Torque: 367 ft.-lbs. @ 4100 rpm
· Wheels and Tires: P265/65R-18 all-seasons on 18-inch aluminum wheels
· Drive type: Rear-wheel drive
· 0 - 60: 8.8 seconds
· 1/4 mile: N/A
· Top speed: 118mph
· EPA Fuel economy city/highway: 21/22
· NHTSA crash test rating front/side/rollover: 5/5/Not Rated

Also See:
2008 Chevy Tahoe Hybrid, Part One
2008 Chevy Tahoe Hybrid, Part Two

Acceleration: ***
Six liters and electric assist be damned, this is a huge truck, and it's not in any hurry to get out of its own way. That said, it never felt dangerously slow, but stepping on the gas when decelerating in electric mode sometimes confused the software, resulting in a delay when you really didn't want one — such as while turning left with opposing traffic approaching. When all else fails, the big Vortec can jump when asked — just don't look at the real-time fuel economy indicator while you've got your foot in it. On the other side, it sure is fun trying to keep yourself in all-electric mode.

Braking: ***
The Tahoe Hybrid hauls itself down to a stop in impressive fashion, with four big discs combining with the hybrid system's regenerative assist. Our complaints weren't with stopping prowess, but rather the odd clunks and whirrs that occasionally accompanied it. Another editor noticed the gas engine/motor system does some sort of transfer of power during braking that makes it feel as though the vehicle has been rear-ended.

Ride: ***
You want smooth and floaty? You can't go wrong with body-on-frame. The Tahoe was designed to be a top-shelf SUV, and it rides like one, keeping passengers disconnected from the surface below through the use of soggy rubber bushings, stout shocks and springs, and a few hundred pounds of sound insulation.

Handling: ***
Read the part about ride above and you'll discover everything you need to know about the Tahoe Hybrid's handling. It's a huge, top-heavy truck. The handling is as good as one can hope to expect from this type of vehicle, with slow, overboosted steering and soggy suspension. It was kind of fun on dirt roads, though.

Gearbox: **
The two-mode hybrid autobox is the heart of GM's hybrid SUVs: Essentially, it integrates the automatic transmission and the electric motors needed for hybrid operation. As a pure automatic, the hybrid shifts imperceptibly. But as mentioned earlier the transitions into and out of gas-power and into purely electric mode aren't always subtle.

Audio: ****
As one would expect in a $50k ride, the Tahoe does tunes justice. Thanks to the Bose Premium Speaker System as standard equipment, including sub tucked into a rear-compartment cubby, we were able to kick Willie's Place sky-high on the XM for our entire drive north. Speaking of, like most GM vehicles, XM radio in the Tahoe is free for three months to get you good and hooked; it's hard not to fall in love with it.

Toys: ****
It's all here: The Tahoe Hybrid has OnStar, satnav, XM, heated seats, tri-zone automatic climate control, overhead DVD, a 120-volt outlet, and power everything. The radio system also has an addictive "hybrid power flow display" that graphically shows what the hybrid system is doing at all times, much like other hybrids on the market. In other words, you get most everything you'd get on an Escalade, including the price tag.

Value: *
The Tahoe Hybrid offers a lot of goodies and a powerful, uniquely efficient powertrain (for a full-size SUV). But at a list price of $52,250, we can think of so many better vehicles for the money that the Tahoe can't compete. When big SUVs were fashionable, folks would pay that kind of scratch just to have one in the driveway. Times have changed.

Overall: **
As far as novelties go, the Tahoe Hybrid is one. It's a nice luxury SUV, but no one buys those anymore. Don't get us wrong, it's much more efficient than a standard Tahoe. But if you need the space and towing capacity, buy a diesel Savana van if fuel efficiency is the priority. At the $50k plus price point where the Tahoe Hybrid sits, there's enough really good competition that this thing is a non-starter. On the other hand, viewed as a first application of the two-mode hybrid system and nothing more, the Tahoe Hybrid shows that GM can build a true hybrid with the best of them; we look forward to seeing the system in something more manageable and less expensive.

Also See:
2008 Chevy Tahoe Hybrid, Part One

So a friend and I left for that imaginary line cutting across the middle of the state that heads into the untamed wilderness known as "up north." The Tahoe Hybrid was ostensibly built to make such trips easier. Haul the family to the lake in comfort, all while getting 22 MPG. It made sense two years ago when the GMT900 hybrids were in the design phase, gas was $2.50 a gallon, and credit was cheap. But summer 2008 is shaping up to be one of cottage foreclosures and deferred vacations, a vastly different scenario into which these beasts have been thrust.

On the highway, the Tahoe's manners are impeccable, at least for a nearly three-ton vehicle. It's exactly what we've come to expect from a GMT900 truck: A massive, comfortable cruiser that loafs along at 1,800 RPM requiring only minimal input from the steering wheel and even less from one's brain. The highway manners of the nav system, on the other hand, were awful. The interface was a pain to use, options were difficult to find, and the system's idea of the "fastest" way to and from our destination was laughably wrong.

Encountering a few hundred of the lake faithful in a traffic jam near Saginaw, the hybrid's uniqueness began to show. Puttering bumper-to-bumper at about 20 MPH, the engine drops out with a slight shudder and the Tahoe hums along in pure electric mode, smoothly and silently. Until the brakes are applied, anyway: At that point, the regenerative braking leads to an unexpected off-throttle deceleration effect—kind of like engine braking in a manual transmission vehicle. It's not exactly refined, but one gets used to it and learns to anticipate the effect.

When traffic opens up again, a push on the throttle brings the 6-liter Vortec V8 back into action, with the transition between electric and gas marking itself with another slight shudder. A Prius owner might consider the whole thing obtrusive, but the driveline machinations are reasonably imperceptible. At least to the occupants of the Tahoe, that is — everyone else knows exactly what's going on thanks to no fewer than nine different hybrid badges, stickers, and emblems on our tester.

As we turned off the main highway onto the back roads near Mio, and then onto dirt tracks for the final 20 miles of our journey, the Tahoe continued to impress. The suspension soaked up rough terrain without complaint, the interior remained smooth and quiet, and when the going got slow, we slipped into golf-cart mode, gliding past startled deer while the onboard computer bragged about its nearly 22 MPG average.

Green credentials notwithstanding, the Tahoe Hybrid is truly a mammoth, a soon-to-be-extinct lumbering giant that looks at the same time contemporary and horribly passé. It has no place to go; the market window for a full-size SUV that gets 20 MPG closed somewhere around the $3.50-per-gallon point, leaving the Tahoe Hybrid and its GMC Yukon brother outdated before they ever hit the road.

"But it's a hybrid, so it must be environmentally sound, right?" No. A 50% improvement in mileage vs. the straight gasoline-powered Tahoe is a damn impressive feat, but 21 city/22 highway isn't good enough anymore. Conventional minivans do better than that (combined) and carry just as many people, yet even their sales are sinking because their size and mileage simply doesn't cut it these days.

The real nail in the coffin, though, is the $52,780 sticker price on the Tahoe Hybrid we tested. Yeah, it was outfitted with everything except 4WD, but that's the only way they come. "Base" price for a Tahoe Hybrid is still tickling $50,000. Why didn't Chevy offer a cloth-seat, no-nav basic Tahoe Hybrid for, say, $38k? They would have if volume sales were really what they were interested in.

But they weren't. The Chevy Tahoe Hybrid is a marketing gimmick, both for General Motors and the handful of McMansion dwellers who might actually take one home from a dealership. And, unfortunately for both of them, this particular electric car has already been killed by yet another ebb in the American tide of conspicuous consumption.

(All photos copyright Jalopnik/Andrew Stoy)

Also see:
2008 Chevy Tahoe Hybrid, Part Two