Will the Chevrolet Volt be a failure or a success?

You must be joking.

It's as honest as me adding an air compressor to a regular gas-based car and all propulsion coming from the decompression of that air, and my gas motor now serving only to compress it. Then me claiming that the car can "go coast to coast on nothing but air".

I think he meant what you and I both think he meant, which is why I called it a lie.

If it can go coast to coast on electricity it wouldn't need 80 gallons of gasoline lol

 

Now suppose the air power system was empirically better in terms of handling, performance, responsiveness, and ride quality, and your next nearest competitor only powered their car by air a small fraction of the time. Would you not try to stress that the air power system can always power the wheels if that is a feature your customers want?

 

Sure.

Except in this case the gas->electricity conversion means the Volt gets 37 mpg on premium vs 50 mpg on regular when compared to its nearest competitor. And thus the spin machine is polished and powered on.

Saying the volt can cross the country on electric is like saying a big rig can cross it on nothing but air pressure. Oh, little factoid, that air pressure doesn't happen unless you're burning gas, just like the volt's electricity doesn't exist without burning gas, too.

Trivia: What percentage of the US can the Volt cross without subsequently being plugged in and without gasoline? Answer: 1%. The source of its energy is gasoline. Saying it runs on electricity is a distraction. Apparently that works with some people, though, who purchased Volts.

 

lolz, I see what ya did thar, good one, you win the internetz

You're taking the comment in a vaccumn. You have a new emerging market with cars that the average citizen does not understand, heck the average car salesman doesn't understand. You have some new EV's that are completely awesome but can't go too far from home without making plans to stop for charging. Then you have your product that can give the same awesome electric driving experience, but you can go where ever you want without plugging in.

Its a comparison to EVs not to hybrids, its not all about you.

 

And comments like his will help them understand it? "Oh, well what I meant is although it's using gasoline for every mile driven and when you run out of gas the car stops, it's running on electricity produced by that gasoline."

If Toyota said I could drive 1/3rd or 1/2 my trip to work "on electricity", as I do in the Prius when the ICE shuts off, I'd also call it spin. It's esoteric and irrelevant.

So I guess that line also works on you when you hear it from your wife!

 

I would appreciate it if you would refrain from personal attacks. We can have a different point of view and spirited debate without resort to such schoolyard tactics. While disagreeing with many posters positions and some points in their arguments I have always endeavored to remain respectful and civil.

 

Very true, until this last tidbit.

No one doubts the utility of a plug-in PHV; Skoorbmax is complaining about the spin of calling a car burning petrol an EV. I think his stance is obvious and am surprised you even bother to belabor the point. You know, 28% of all petrol burned in a Prius takes an electric path to the wheels. Thankfully none of us are silly enough to call the Prius a partial EV.

 

Your hypothetical is talking about the car, not a powerplant. Last time I looked my Prius IC engine had neither a steering wheel or upholstery.

Sorry, I cannot resist a small jab: It really is a good thing that you like driving your car, because it appears to be the only benefit from the money spent.

 

I'm not sure where you got the idea that I was excluding the coasts. I was commenting on the choice not to warrant the battery to 10 years may impact sales in california only because of the lack of california rebate. Since production is small in the first year it will not decrease sales only where those sales are. You seem to think every state on a coast is a CARB state and cares greatly about these things. GM should be at-pzev in 2012 and will likely at a california emissions cost to all of those states that require an extended warranty.

Well you can bash yourself, but I would not bash the middle of the country as a barren wasteland. What city are you calling a giant ghetto. Many people in the middle of the country can afford a $350/month lease, but no i don't think the plains states will buy many leaf's or volts.

I am sorry that I jumped back into this thread. Go back to your volt bashing now.

 

Gwmort, surely you must see your claim is a bit of a stretch.
I think most people would consider the vehicle is powered by the fuel you put in the vehicle.
If you plug it in, it is an EV. If you put gas into it, it is a hybrid or standard car, if you can do both, it is a plug in hybrid.

I think the Volt is an interesting direction for GM to take. And for some people it will fit their needs perfectly. If the number of people in that market are enough of a market to ,ake the Volt successful is yet to be seen. But don't try to call a pigeon an eagle

 

Sorry, I couldn't help it. You hit a sore spot

 

^^ Aww, we know you cannot help but be 'generation ME.'

 

I cant believe people defend GM spin doctors .

 

The only electric vehicle (truck) I have driven wasn't exactly a premium driving experience. Can you tell me about this awesome driving experience? What would you enjoy about driving a Volt cross country without plugging it in?

 

I'm not sure your comment is directed at me, but I think gwmort is the good sort of Volt enthusiast. For the most part he just likes his car, likes talking about it, and is not immune to reality.

 

LOL. Anyone not driving a '92 Geo Metro (or the '89 Subaru Justy I drove until it was worth $50 at the junkyard) can make that assertion. I know I buy cars I like to drive these days. Perhaps I'm the exception in this community.

Personally, I excel at poor fiscal decisions of an automotive nature.

 

We noticed
I think we all pay attention to how a car drives, but you are probably right that for most here that criterion is only one amongst others of equal or greater merit.

 

The Volt falls much farther to the rational side on my personal scale than average.

 

I have a friend who cashed in options and bought a $100K porsche. Every one told him what a bad deission it was. The stock crashed to 20% of that cash out value and the porsche looked like an incredibly rational use of the money All you signed up for is $350/mo. Its not like you will take a huge bath due to depreciation or insurance in that car. Just think of how much less it is than a tesla. mmmm tesla.

 

Who knows? His claim doesn't make any sense to me. It sounds more like the usual uninformed and misinformed Toyota bashing.