GM CEO: Toyota Prius is a "geek-mobile" that "I wouldn't be caught dead in"

This explains it

[ame=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_acidification]Ocean acidification - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]

 

Why speculate? Go see what the Volt owners are actually getting.

First post is concern of only getting 22.9 EV miles in 30F temps.

I'm seeing in 20's, 30's range from most.

How far on a charge

 

Hi Cycle..., et al,

Did a quick scan of those Volt posts.

Seems people are using the heated seats in 20 to 30 F weather, and setting the climate control to the high 70's (even though they presumably have a winter jacket on as temps are in 20s and 30s). Seems a little silly.

Of course the electric seats run right off the battery, with no heat pump pushing warm air through them, so that is like running a toaster off the EV battery. Heated seats are really only a noticable comfort below 10 F to me.

With a jacket on, one is usually comfortable with the interior temp at 65. Only reason to go warmer, is if its been raining, and you want to dry out. Put your winter jacket on in front of your keyboard right now, in your 75 F residense and wait to see how long till you feel uncomfortable hot.


Its interesting to see GM in the same predicament Toyota is in with people who pretty much flunked, or never took freshman physics. How long till the first law suit over unrealistic customer range expectations? What is it with the lack of common sense out there in the general public ????

I have commented on this before - EV's need fuel based heaters for cold weather enviorments. Which would have been a good reason to have made the Volt a diesel, and then used the diesel fuel in a fuel-oil based heater design for battery and passenger compartment heat.

One could even blow hot air on the tires and transmission 2 minutes before driving, to get the tire and bearing frictions reduced a little.

 

The Prius doesn't need a rainbow, all it needs is a parking space

 

Welcome to our forum! Not bad for a first post.
Perhaps your BMW is as discrete as a Prius, but ok, you are welcome at the same...

 

I have been reading the Volt thread as well, and as many predicted, the vehicle is not performing up to expectations in very cold weather. So many have said the Volt is a niche vehicle .... perhaps one "niche" it does not fit comfortably includes ...... extremely cold weather.

Now that is OK. I drive my AWD is deep snow; my truck to pull my RV; but my Prius meets most of my other driving needs .... and does so very comfortably even in temperatures well below freezing. Thank you Toyota. I wonder how many will be satisfied to sit in a cold car bundled up in a coat for more than a short commute. Also, the interior of the windshield will frost over from the moisture in your breath if it becomes too cold. Now we recognize it need not be that cold inside, but to be comfortable .... it will deminish battery mileage.

 

The reports of mid 20's EV range in the Volt were in 20s - 30's F temps.
We will read even lower range results.

I am curious what road conditions were like though. Rain and slush increase energy consumption a lot all by themselves. The Volt readership has very little experience in general with cars that actually report fuel economy, so this winter is quite the eye opener for them.

 

Lexus > BMW. No question. Have fun with your $500 electrical repairs. LOL

 

Wow - weren't you writing sceptically a while back about AGW ?

Mainstream media has done very little in the way of educating people about effects of global warming. Even though Europe is probably better than US ...

 

^^ Yeah, I wondered about that too.
The difference between grumpy and US "skeptics" is his admission of ignorance. Both however somehow think they should have an opinion.

 

If the "geek mobile" comment offended you, then you (and Leaf fans) are REALLY gonna' hate Jay Leno's comment (see video) and, more importantly, him putting his money where his mouth is.

Jay Leno picks up his new Chevy Volt | MNN - Mother Nature Network

 

I express an interest in things I don't understand. I also still don't believe in Global Warming is man made. I believe in energy conservation, purely because I don't like to spend more than I have to and oil/gas is a finite resource.

Still don't get how here in the UK and Europe we're having the coldest winter or December for decades and in some areas of our country, the coldest since records began 200 years ago, when apparantly temperatures are getting hotter.

But the answer's for another thread!

 

Take a Volt, remove the front grill, remove the rear bumper, put on a Prius front grill and rear bumper. Take the 40000 price tag, let the American taxpayers subsidize $7500 of the list price and you're getting pretty close to guess what! A Prius! Volt has a feature by feature comparison to the Prius V on its website. Dimensions are within a couple inches of each other. Interior and Exterior features are essentially the same. Both cars have an engine and a battery and soon the Prius will plug in too. I recall that the first incarnation of the Volt was totally electric and the size of an Impala and now, well, it's a carbon copy of the Prius, hatchback and all. So here is the CEO of GM totally disrespecting the vehicle his company cloned as close as his lawyers would let them. GM took Bob Lutz' original misguided dream of an all electric vehicle and morphed it to the Prius. If imitation is the greatest form of flattery we Prius owners should feel duly flattered. Oh, and I read yesterday that GM now is planning several new models based on Volt technology. Sound familiar? I'm even more flattered.

 

we should start pushing volt hate to get people off our backs

 

No need. It will be automatic, starting with the volt-owners.

 

This comment came from the President of a company which provided us with automobiles with fins, chrome bumpers, and V8 engines that got 6mpg. He was obviously trying to be witty; but he only got halfway there. Halfwits can make it big in Amerika! ...look at Fox News!

 

6 MPG??? Hey...my '59 Impala with big fins and the 348 V/8 got around 8 MPG! Also, it came with "BIG hubcaps"!. But, I had to pay for and install seat belts myself.

Keeping everything in perspective tho', I paid $2650 out the door, and 100 octane gas was 26.9C. AAAH! the good old days (not so good). My Prius is an infinitely superior car, as it should be with technology and all, eh?

 

I haven't kept up with this thread, so this may have already been discussed. Last nite I was listening to the TV (not watching) and heard a commercial or something for the Volt. They made some sort of remark about a "leaf blower". I am sure it was some type of low blow towards the leaf.

Nothing is a bigger turn off than when GM can't even stand on its own merits. Instead, they are left with comparing themselves to and bashing the competition. Usually, when companies do this type of advertising, the other product is of superior quality. Between the CEOs comments and their marketing techniques, they sure know how to turn people off to their product.

 

if GM was so great, why did i lose when they went bankrupt? i wouldn't buy stock in GM again, and wouldln't buy another GM car.... i followed the volt from the beginning,,,,it was going to be a $20,000 car.....then $30,000,,,,, now $40,000.....seems like greed to me...
good luck to GM and the volt,,,,they will need all they can get... sorry to say, but japanese
cars have dominated US cars for years..... i hate supporting foreign suppliers, but it only makes sense to buy the best merchandise you can get... . GM,,,pull your head out of down below, and start being real