The Story of the GM Volt

The perceived goal is quite different from the objective required.

Many get the impression that it is a vehicle to compete directly with Prius and plug-in Prius. Production volume of HSD makes that quite unrelistic. Toyota has far too much of a lead already. Then there's issue with the battery technology itself still, especially cost.

But looking at the big picture, GM attempting to have their volume of plug-in vehicles substantial enough to comfortably make the 2020 mandate is realistic.

In other words, short to mid-term forget it. But for long-term, that's a different story.

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The interesting point is that the Volt looks to have started life as a PR stunt, but the surge in gas prices turned the PR stunt into a real program to survive. (Exactly what marketing can GM do to return the public to buying SUVs?)

One irritating thing about the writer is he buys into the EV1 being a marketing failure (just like the Tesla failure to sell any of their cars?). He did absolutely no EV1 homework before making his EV1 statements.

 

You're half right. It started life as a PR stunt and continues to be a PR stunt until they ever show up in dealers' showrooms (assuming they ever do, which is sort of like saying "Assuming the Cubs win the World Series"). Then a year later expect a lot of "What went wrong" articles.

 

Hi All,

Yea, I reel at the nonsense EV1 comments too. I think these media types have to sign on to spread those lies, in order to get access. The information in the article is pretty good otherwise.

 

So if GM can make the Volt work I guess buying their stock at $13 is a good deal. or do they go out of business trying to sell gas guzzlers?

 

The big marketing failure is that demand outstripped supply when that was clearly not GMs intention with the EV1.

 

I believe that they will pull it off. It's not an impossible dream but it does require
..a ton of money ( they are directing development money away from trucks as of last week ),
..tons of engineering validation ( they are not complete dopes as shown by their good trucks ),
..good marketing ( now here they have a 30 year hole to dig out of ).

However as John alluded, if they are wildly successful then it will still be a tiny volume as compared to 'traditional' hybrids. The EVs and EREVs and PHEVs are not for everybody. They are all going to be niche vehicles.

Toyota is in good shape because they already have a platform on which they can weld a PHEV system thus keep costs down. GM has to develop a blank-sheet vehicle such as Toyota did with the Prius in 1996/97. Neither one will be humongous volume in the first years but 10 yrs from now with more infrastructure in place and lower costs it could offer a decent option to the everyday buyer who will probably be driving a traditional hybrid at that time.

At that time we may also be hitting spot shortages of oil so the traditional hybrids may be at a disadvantage in that they MUST use gas every day.

 

No one remembers the Rock Hudson/Doris Day movie in which he creates an advertising campaign for a product that doesn't exist? Then he has to create a product. He came up with VIP; alcoholic candy.

GM created an advertising campaign for "The Volt" without having an actual product. They did this to change perceptions. That was the goal. Not to actually supply the car, just to change the perceptions of the public. Now of course, they're scrambling to produce a car that even vaguely resembles what they've been promising. And along the way they've had to backtrack on some of what they've been promising.

 

What will save GM is China. They have a bigger market there than here, and will have an electric car there before here.

 

This article, by Jonathan Rauch
makes me want to vomit. "The EV1 did so poorly, that poor poor GM had to crush them" Hey! Now THAT's Funny!
No one crushed the Edsil ... no one's crushing hummers. But we DO have to crush the EV1's ... oh Mr. Rauch, what a tool you are. Do your homework. Maybe he's the only one that doesn't know ...
No one protested when GM anounced Hummers would no longer be manufactured .... or the Aztec, or the Edsil. Gee, I wonder why there were protesters, when GM crushed the EV1 ... since it did so poorly.

And how many of those EV1 leases were NOT snapped up, as soon as you could wade through GM's horribly difficult lease process. Hmmm.

And to the engineer, Andrew Farah, if I were you, and GM called ME up to do stuff for GM, after the lies they've spewed, I'd tell GM to have Wagoner call me personally ... have him BEG me to come back, then tell him to go (BLANK) him self.

 

Well I don't think so either.
Toyota been doing some local assembled Prius in China for sometime already (Japan been working on that market as well)
Green Car Congress: Sichuan FAW Toyota Starts Prius Production in China

while
China had been exporting their own EV products globally.
Miles Electric Vehicles

Imagine...when Miles figure-out how to fit a mini gas-generator on board on their EV-Sedan ....they'll get themselves a Hybrid similar to what Volt can do ..while cost only 1/3 to produces.

 

Brilliant article, highly reminiscent of the process Toyota went through to bring the first Prius to production (I recommend you read that one too!)

What's surprising is I don't see why GM are cautious of Toyota's progress in PHEVs, as they are both going to take a hammering from BYD, and they aren't even mentioned in the article.

 

I applaud GM for trying. Engineers love to work on new projects with full support from top-level executives. The riskier, the better.
If Volt succeed eventually, it might just be my 1st GM vehicle just like Prius was/is my 1st Toyota.
Seriously I have been a BMW/Honda guy because performance and handling has been top on my list of car shopping criteria. If not for Prius, I can't imagine myself driving a Toyota.
So, I agree, GM need Volt to revamp its image and internal red-tapes in the process.
"Go big or go home."
So, keep it under $35,000, will you, GM?

 

After decades of GM "not getting it" re quality, environment, fuel crisis ... don't EVEN think that GM has somehow had an epiphany, because GM's main goal is to KEEP the ICE in the equasion, as ICE repairs / parts are half GM's business. NO pure electric cars for YOU:

GM aims to be first to make 1 million hydrogen cars: exec | Reuters

The industry has been saying since the 1960's that a hydrogen car is "only 10years away". And as if it's not dumb enough to repeat the same thing that you continue to never be able to follow through on (because it's as impossible and impractical as warp drive) ... NOW GM says they're putting a MILLION fuel cel cars on the road? With no possible ability to afford the $1,000,000 cars? or the infrastructure? or the horrible amount of wasted energy to convert energy to hydrogen?

Oh, won't someone PLEASE fire that liar Wagoner.

If the Volt ever gets off the drawing board, and onto the street with a non-malibu actual body, that has a better drag coefficiency than a parachute ... then into the customer's hands, guess what the first shade-tree mechanic will do to mod it. Junk the ICE, then FILL the void with more batteries. Knowing that, GM will do its best to keep that from happening.

 

While not a GM fan, it should be noted that Toyota "pulled the plug" on the RAV4 EV the same day GM did on the EV1 and for basically the same reasons. I do credit Toyota for having a different marketing plan which allowed owners to keep their RAV4 EVs, but Toyota did have a hand in killing the electric car as well.

 

FWIW, I had a conversation about stocks this AM with a guy I consider to be a knowledgeable investor. He pointed out the following:

1) Ford's market capitalization ($11.3) billion is now almost exactly twice GM's ($6.6 billion). Apparently that's the first time that's happened in the modern era.

2) GMAC bonds were recently downgraded to less-than-investment (ie, junk) status, not due to their involvement in housing, but due to the large number of car loans now defaulting. That's one way to get rid of your SUV.

3) His final cheerful observation is that, at current rates, both GM and Ford are bankrupt in about 12 months.


These are interesting times.

 

My money is on Chrysler going Chapter 11 first. Actually, I think that Ford may have the best chance of returning to profitability.
Interesting times, indeed.:fish2:

 

Wouldn't that accusation be more appropriate for Toyota? Last I heard is that their plug-in hybrid is still going to be a parallel hybrid in which the ICE is an integral part of the drive train. GM's approach, on the other hand, is equivalent to Darrel's Rav-4 EV with a smaller battery and a gasoline backup generator in the trunk. Does Toyota even have a series hybrid or pure-EV in their product roadmap?