Official Volt photos

[Dr Mordrid]

GM did the official announcement today so official photos are available -

Obviously the story of charge ports on both sides isn't true, dammit (option?), but the rest looks as advertised including the flat panel dash.

[xortam]

What's the weight distribution on this vehicle? Total wet weight?

I don't have much interest in a vehicle that only gets 40 miles on a charge. I wonder how sales will do on this Volt. A longer range electric/hybrid vehicle will quickly come out and decimate sales of this model.

[cjolley]

Seems to me I read the range would be 300 or so miles with the gas engine doing recharge.
I wonder if it has a "limp along" mode to keep moving if the batteries become drained and only has the generator to supply electricity.

[xortam]

Seems to me I read the range would be 300 or so miles with the gas engine doing recharge. ...

That's right.

... As the battery begins to run down as the car is in use, a small gasoline engine will turn on and generate enough electricity to drive the car about 300 miles, said GM. ...

I'm anxious to see the details on the Tesla sedan.

[Nowhere]

One electric drive unit? Somehow I was under the impression GM wants to put electric engine in every wheel...I guess that's planned for later models?

And with those photos, it looks even better/less affected by the "mean" looks that prototypes had. (but...how didn't I notice the way "dark stripe" ends up around rear wheels?...and, more importantly, why would they do something like that? :/
Though, perhaps, that's one of the ways to make whole car, optically, to lean towards the front or something...)

[Dr Mordrid]

What's the weight distribution on this vehicle? Total wet weight?

I don't have much interest in a vehicle that only gets 40 miles on a charge. I wonder how sales will do on this Volt. A longer range electric/hybrid vehicle will quickly come out and decimate sales of this model.

50/50 and about 3,500 lbs.

In the US about 80% of all drivers drive less than 38 miles/day, making a 40 mile range more than sufficient for those that want to drive EV only while still having a long range mode. Hell, 40 miles would drive my wife to/from work for over 2 weeks. If you need to drive longer then when that 40 is used up its flex/fuel engine starts up and the generator provides electricity to the 100% electric drive - unlike other hybrids there is only one driveline - the electric motor. No mechanical driveline at all.

The mileage during the range extender mode varies according to how far you have to drive. GM says this;

GM estimates that the Chevy Volt will save about 500 gallons (1,892 liters) of gasoline based on 40 miles (64.36 km) of daily driving and 15,000 miles (24,135 km) annually. For drivers that commute 60 miles (96 km) per day or 21,000 miles (33,789 km) annually, about 550 gallons (2,081 liters) of gasoline could be saved.

How much money that saves you depends on the oil market and the nutcases overseas, of course.

Seems to me I read the range would be 300 or so miles with the gas engine doing recharge.
I wonder if it has a "limp along" mode to keep moving if the batteries become drained and only has the generator to supply electricity.

That 'limp along mode' is called "the range extender". This is the normal driving mode past the first 40 miles (the electric mode) and is fully capable of climbing Pikes Peak from what's coming out of the mules (Malibu's with a Volt driveline).

Fact is that about a month ago GM announced that not only are the batteries exceeding their specs but that the car itself is meeting or exceeding its specs with alpha-level software in the driveline and the battery management system - meaning it has little or no optimization.

Rumors are the driveline OS is one created by a GM-Chrysler-Daimler-BMW consortium called HOS - Hybrid Operating System - for the two-mode hybrid system first used in the GM Tahoe and other large hybrid trucks. AFAIK it's the only hybrid system capable of handling large horsepower vehicles from the size of a pickup to semi's. A friend of mine familiar with HOS says it's far more capable than what the Tahoe etc. needs, making the rumor at least a bit credible IMO.

Chrysler, Daimler and BMW are aso slated to come out with two-mode vehicles- a relatively easy thing as all it requires is the two-mode tranny (electric motors inside), a NiMH battery and the new computer.

One electric drive unit? Somehow I was under the impression GM wants to put electric engine in every wheel...I guess that's planned for later models?

And with those photos, it looks even better/less affected by the "mean" looks that prototypes had. (but...how didn't I notice the way "dark stripe" ends up around rear wheels?...and, more importantly, why would they do something like that? :/
Though, perhaps, that's one of the ways to make whole car, optically, to lean towards the front or something...)

The Volt has 1 electric unit but other models will very likely have a mix of the front unit the Volt has and rear wheel motors or even 4 wheel motors. One step at a time.

Well, those angular 'mean' looks sucked in the wind tunnel having a CD of over 3. This one is way under that.

More on the range extender; the reason they call the Volt's system "E-FLEX" is that the range extender can be most anything from its standard flex-fuel + generator or a bio-diesel + generator, a fuel cell or whatever. This means that as new generating systems become available all GM basically has to do to use them is drop them into an existing E-Flex vehicle design. If the EESTOR is real then all they need do is strip out the LiION and drop in the EESTOR units.

Another handy thing about the range extender is that it solves a big EV problem: batteries don't work well in very cold climates like N. Canada, Alaska, the Nordic countries etc. In this situation the computer senses the low temp and fires up the range extender which then powers the vehicle and warms the battery until it can take over.

Problems with the Tesla

Cost: over $100k

Numbers: only a few hundred made per year

Batteries: thousands of small (AA?) LiION's, and not of the latest chemistries that pretty much eliminate overheating.

Still in flux: they tried to go without a tranny but are now trying to integrate one as it solves many of its problems.

Range: 200 miles only then you need a full recharge. NO range extender or limp along mode.

[Mehen]

Looks like a cross between an Aztec and a Saturn. Why must they make electric cars so ugly?

[xortam]

I don't think you are talking about the Tesla sedan.

AFA 40 mile range without gas, that doesn't cut it for us Californians (though I rarely drive anywhere these days).

[Dr Mordrid]

Looks like a cross between an Aztec and a Saturn. Why must they make electric cars so ugly?

It's all about the necessity for a low CD - coefficient of drag. That almost dictates a gumdrop-shaped front with a Kamm rear end (read: flat) for passenger vehicles that are to be mass produced.

The difference in range between the original Volt show car (very angular) and the production model (gumdrop/Kamm) amounted to about 5 miles of electric range even at low speeds, virtually all of due to the change in CD.

With the increasing need to meet CAFE standards you'll see a lot more vehicles going for low CD's.

Tesla sedan supposedly will run about $60k and will have a similar drive line to the sports car. Haven't read of them contracting with LG Chem, Continental/A123 or any others using the new chemistries. They've mention A123's chemistry but seemed to be holding off on it even though Daimler is already using it in their hybrid buses.

As for "Californians":

We all know Californians are 'special needs' cases in all manner of ways, especially those in northern California

That said you'd turn down a vehicle that could get >100 mpg equivalent for most anyone's driving, electric or mixed mode? Can't really believe that. Pure EV's have far too many disadvantages including longer charge times, limited range (no 500 miles in one day with a Tesla) or low temp problems in the mountains.

[xortam]

... As for "Californians":

We all know Californians are 'special needs' cases in all manner of ways, especially those in northern California ...

You're such a fracking ass! Shove it where the sun don't shine.

[Evildead666]

I thought the US had roughly 50% of its electricity from Coal fired power stations ?
If thats the case, using more and more electricity is going to be worse for the environment.

I also hope crash tests have been done, and that large Li-Ion battery cannot break open and catch fire....Lithium tends to burn very well...

[az]

I really like it, except for the stupid and ugly faux-iPod center console. I LOVE the rear lights, though. Even better than Audi's.

BUT: It's not going to meet the 30k USD price point.

[Dr Mordrid]

True about coal, but putting scrubbers and some of the new carbon sequestration methods on them could make them much more viable while we wait for someone (the enviro whackos) to get out of the way of nuclear.

The Volts LiION uses a low impedance nanophosphate cathode with a carbon anode, so relax - the the system has by far the lowest intrinsic heat/kWh of any LiION system.

Add to that a crush resistant/penetration resistant case and monitoring of each cell that allows a damaged one to be disconnected on the fly. In fact A123 batteries have has had steel spikes driven into them at full charge with no fire.

Cost is a function of production capacity and while GM is going to select a primary battery source both the competitors (LG Chem and Continental AG/A123) will be used. IMO the per/battery cost is going to drop a lot between now and release because GM is keeping their options open for other battery techs.

[Nowhere]

To be fair, nuclear also has "not in my backyard" problem even among supposedly supporters, magnified by the thing that the best place for it is near bodies of water...where people also like to live.
And at the same time it's probably the safest, when placed in large population, large scale power generation method...

(though it gets better...in my city the only prominent organisation that would be, in many places, called "damn lefties"/"anarchists"/"ecologists"/what have you, actually somehow menages to be coolheaded on many idiotic issues on which typical such organisations concentrate; they are supporters of nuclear energy, for example (and even menage to not be outright antisemitic/propalestinian O_o ))

[Evildead666]

Yup, nuclear would be the way forward until a better source of energy could be done...

Dr : Glad to hear the batteries have gone thru a good salvo of crash and impact tests...
You can only do so much testing in labs tho...somebody out there is gonna do something you have never even thought of...(park in front of train)...