Toyota: Volt is 15-20% less efficient than Prius PHV

What little info we have had seems to suggest 40mpg may be right. Like Rybold says, the crossover point is 130+ miles, not a distance many people drive every day.

For me, my commute is about 26 miles, so an ampera would cover that entirely. on weekends we sometimes drive 60 miles or so (the shopping place 30 miles away is about to install charging stations...) or we just wander over to the next village.

Whatever it's final figure, it will force competition from Toyota, and that is a good thing for all of us.

 

Hi All,

One thing - the Gen III Prius has that extra planetary gear between the MG2 and the wheels. That is extra EV loss. Of course that was done to avoid the extra gear set below the PSD - which results in less ICE to Wheels loss.

So, I find any comment that the Volt will be less lossy than a HSD Plug-in a little dubious.

USB..., hmm its not clear that patent is for the Volt, or a different form of dual-mode hybrid, in my opinion. One thing is clear - GM is lousy at new tech marketing. This sorta stuff was out in the open early in the Prius pre-sale history. With GM we are all just guessing what is actually in the car (what we would be buying). Not good , unless one is a blind-faith kinda buyer...

 

Yea, they don't tell CS MPG, EV range nor the drivetrain details. They expect die hard fans to take a $41k plunge.

 

It is amazing to read that GM does not plan to publish CS mpg ahead of sales. I half expect them to demand a blank check too.

I gather Volts are going out to enthusiasts this month, about 30 days before sales start. Compare that to the Prius PHV, put in the hands of enthusiasts around *18 months* before sales begin.

The difference between Toyota and GM is day and night. For the last laugh of the evening, in GM's eyes they are operating transparently, part of the 'new GM era' ushered in by the bazillion dollar bailout.

 

Considering the ridiculous price and iffy performance (based on what we have to surmise from what gets leaked out), the Volt is just a test-bed for potential technologies that may find their way into future GM products. So congratulations America! You get to pay through the nose to be a part of GM's R&D dept.!

 

Motortrend editorial came out today explaining how the complex transmission works.

They mentioned "clutches" but did not specify the actual number. We know there are three of them from the patent.

 

Also what is sad about the Volt, this car won't bail out GM from their massive rivers of red ink! If the Volt were to save GM, Then the pricing would have to be in the Prius price range, also sales would have to be in the 100,000 range per year.

I got to give the Volt credit - it did capture Congess' attention - in giving GM a taxpayer bailout.

This only does one thing - extends life support of an ailing corporate giant.

Dbcassidy

 

He must be Satoshi Ogiso, Mr. Prius.

A step ahead of the curve / Success of its hybrid cars fuels Toyota's rise in industry

Ken@Japan