Featured Monkey Wrench thrown in Chevy Bolt Plan

i don't see the wrench. some will like the sporty style, and some will like the utilitarian style. i prefer the latter, but have no idea what the general public will do.

some will want gm, some will want tesla. gm has the obvious advantage of being first (if it happens) and of capability to reduce pricing as necessary to move units.

tesla has it's obvious advantages and both are good for the industry and planet.
i admire their tenacity and wish them both all the best.

funny, he contradicts his headline in the article, but headlines are what sells, right?

 

But what do we know about the Model 3 safety rating? Has a production model been tested by an outside and independent lab? Lots of assumptions are being made about a car where we don't even know what the production interior will look like...by both detractors and proponents.

 

sure, that's your opinion, but the buying public may not feel the same way. btw, i think your numbers are a little skewed. if gm can sell 30,000 a year, that will be 150,000 by the time tesla sells whatever in 4 years. gm still sells a lot of cars, despite their reputation.
i still don't see the wrench. mr. good wrench maybe.

 

I see the "monkey wrench" - for GM it is a clock ticking: tick tick, tick tock. Time is against them with the Model 3.

DBCassidy

 

We know the steel and aluminum unibody will have no fire wall because, no engine. It will have batteries on the bottom which means low cg and tiny roll over risk. It will have active safety features from the technology package. I would be shocked if it did not get 5's in every catagory. The thing is designed to be safe and fun to drive.

Not sure what finalizing interior would have to do with safety, but no of course there is no production model, that is over a year away. I don't get how they would make it unsafe. Do you think they will add a faulty ignition switch or gasoline, or pointy hard surfaces? What would stop the low cg/front and rear crumple zones from being safe?

 

Perhaps GM might put a Bolt chassis on a pedestal in the desert where the EV1 crusher was with a plaque that says:

Please accept our apology.​

Better still, get an EV1 shell and put modern batteries and electronics in it. Then take it on a tour of Chevy dealers as the Bolt arrives. It would generate a tremendous amount of 'free press' and the support team could train the dealer management on how to sell them.

Bob Wilson

 

Well I guess it depends on the buyers motivation for buying a BEV. Is it getting off fossil fuels or superior electric drive experience? If the former, then a "true believer" would be buying now not later or at least leasing a Bolt while waiting for their M3.

 

I didn't think GM ever sold an EV1; weren't all of them leases?

 

Talk about assumptions. We don't even know what the IIHS's tests are going to be by the time the production Model 3 is available and we are awarding perfect marks?

My point about the interior was only to point out how far from a final design this car is. Though, come to think of it, interior design is a contribution to safety too (See seat back design).

 

Since doing better than standards are part of the tesla business model, its not a big leap. The most likely additions to safety ratings are about software protecting the car, something that tesla excels at and is included in every model 3 (turning on autopilot is more, but all the safety and sensors are included). Its less than 2 years away, I am talking NHTSA not IIHS, who could devise a test to hurt, but hey it would hurt other cars more.

Interior is indeed part of safety. Of course the design is not final, as none of the cars this far out are, but we have a pretty good idea what their design requirements are. The model 3 is not going to take 8 seconds to go to 60 and its not going to roll over, or have an engine that will get pushed into the pasenger compartment in a small offset crash.

 

Tesla has announced their expectations and plan that they will attain 5 stars in each category.
Tesla has already achieved that with both the S, and expected with the X.

Given their stated plans, and their safety history, I don't see that prediction as unwarranted.

 

They were all leases, none were offered for sale.
GM did sell some S10 pick-ups that had most of the guts of the EV1.

 

Monkey wrench? Competition a beautiful thing.

 

only if you're not a tesla droolite.

 

That was uncalled for.
I'm probably the biggest Tesla fan active on this forum and I LOVE the idea of more competition.

 

that's what i said.