The Chevy Volt is just another hybrid?

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LTC8K6

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
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That article is entirely incorrect, imo.

I have always read and heard that the on board generator cannot fully charge the battery pack, and only charges it up to a minimum safe level. Almost all of the generator's output goes to moving the vehicle, and not to charging the battery. You must plug in to recharge the battery.

In fact, I got into arguments here for wanting the capability to charge the pack up fully via the generator.
 
LTC8K6

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
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The volt's generator was always going to move the vehicle and not charge the battery. Not sure where those writers got their info.
 
LTC8K6

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
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They seem confused to me. The Volt's gasoline engine was always going to drive the car via the electric motors as far as I can remember. I do not recall the Volt ever being described any other way.

If they are saying the engine will mechanically drive the wheels in some mode, then that would be quite surprising.
 
LTC8K6

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
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It's a plug in Prius, that gets worse fuel economy, apparently.

http://gm-volt.com/2010/10/11/motor-trend-explains-the-volts-powertrain/

Though not specifically tesing it, Markus said drivers should expect fuel effieicny when running on gas from high 30s to low 40s.

He also noted the Volt will flash a dash message “low propulsion power” when going up steep grades in extended range mode and will drop to 40 MPH. This will not happen if mountain mode is engaged ahead of time, which will leave extra energy in the battery, causing the engine to go on sooner.
Click to expand...
 
LTC8K6

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
1,576
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MikeMike said:
uh... man, im not even going to get into an argument about the Volt... no matter what, if you average out your Volt mileage, vs. Prius, the Volt will win... all day, every day...
Click to expand...

Doesn't seem possible for the Volt to win unless you take very short trips all the time and never use gasoline.

Even so, it will take you until the fifth of never to recoup the extra costs of the Volt over other fuel efficient small cars.

Prius seems to kill it on the highway.

The reports are still sketchy, but it now seems likely that the Volt will use gasoline at highway speeds even with a charged battery.
 
LTC8K6

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
1,576
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This likely won't affect the Volt fans much, I'd guess. They will brush off GM's false statements and buy the Volt anyway. The trendiness factor will not be hurt much.
 
PricklyPete

PricklyPete

Lifer
Sep 17, 2002
14,582
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This is disappointing to say the least. I understand compromise is needed in engineering, but the whole point of this exercise was an electric car with a range extending generator if needed.

Granted, the effect may be the same as long as you rarely use the engine (I can't call it a generator anymore), but in principal this is not the tech they have been touting all this time. It's essentially a plug-in PRIUS with an all-electric mode.
 
roguerower

roguerower

Diamond Member
Nov 18, 2004
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I wonder how I can get on Oprah's show? She's bound to drool all over it and give it away to her studio audience. Then I can turn around and sell it with markup.
 
M

MikeMike

Lifer
Feb 6, 2000
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LTC8K6 said:
Doesn't seem possible for the Volt to win unless you take very short trips all the time and never use gasoline.

Even so, it will take you until the fifth of never to recoup the extra costs of the Volt over other fuel efficient small cars.

Prius seems to kill it on the highway.

The reports are still sketchy, but it now seems likely that the Volt will use gasoline at highway speeds even with a charged battery.
Click to expand...

you mean like 85% of ALL AMERICANS? iirc, ~80% of all americans commute less than 40 miles a day...
 
PricklyPete

PricklyPete

Lifer
Sep 17, 2002
14,582
162
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Mermaidman said:
Motor Trend has a couple of in-depth articles on this:
Test drive shows 126 MPG!

Detailed explanation of 'drivetrain'--Fundamentally different compared to Prius.
Click to expand...

Interesting info...and it certainly makes it sound like it was a good compromise...but GM was a bit dishonest in its marketing in an attempt to distance itself from the competition. That type of behavior belittles the effort their engineers have put in. They should have marketed it as "the next generation hybrid" and not repeatedly said to the journalists and general public that the car was !00% electric with a gas generator.
 
FoBoT

FoBoT

No Lifer
Apr 30, 2001
63,084
15
81
fobot.com
only GM could take 10 years and $50 billion of Taxpayer money to make a $41,000 copy of the $23,000 Prius
 
LTC8K6

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
1,576
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MikeMike said:
you mean like 85% of ALL AMERICANS? iirc, ~80% of all americans commute less than 40 miles a day...
Click to expand...

Yes, we know...we hear you. A deaf man could hear you...

Now explain how that is relevant to the topic of the Volt suddenly turning out to be a more expensive Prius instead of something new and different.
 
Bignate603

Bignate603

Lifer
Sep 5, 2000
13,897
1
0
LTC8K6 said:
Doesn't seem possible for the Volt to win unless you take very short trips all the time and never use gasoline.

Even so, it will take you until the fifth of never to recoup the extra costs of the Volt over other fuel efficient small cars.

Prius seems to kill it on the highway.

The reports are still sketchy, but it now seems likely that the Volt will use gasoline at highway speeds even with a charged battery.
Click to expand...

Work through the math, it's not just short trips. If you get a 35 mile all electric range and 35 mpg on gas (which is what car and driver talks about after their testing) you'll have to go 117 miles before the Prius will use less gas. Because the majority of drivers drive less than that per day they'll burn less gas.

It's not a more expensive Prius, show me a Prius that can do a short commute without burning a drop of fuel. As has been said ad nauseum, this is not a car was not designed for somebody that consistently drives long trips every day. This is a car designed for someone that usually drives within (or maybe slightly more than) the electric range but sometimes needs to do longer trips.
 
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LTC8K6

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
1,576
126
Bignate603 said:
Work through the math, it's not just short trips. If you get a 35 mile all electric range and 35 mpg on gas (which is what car and driver talks about after their testing) you'll have to go 117 miles before the Prius will use less gas. Because the majority of drivers drive less than that per day they'll burn less gas.

It's not a more expensive Prius, show me a Prius that can do a short commute without burning a drop of fuel. As has been said ad nauseum, this is not a car was not designed for somebody that consistently drives long trips every day. This is a car designed for someone that usually drives within (or maybe slightly more than) the electric range but sometimes needs to do longer trips.
Click to expand...

I disagree. I know how the vehicle was marketed and the claims GM made. I stand by my opinions about the Volt. The range on a small tank of fuel was a large part of the Volt's marketing.

I also know what sort of driving I do and those around me as well. I know how long it would take me to break even on a Volt purchase, and I'm tired of the whole subject.

It's a trendy niche car that is bettered by much cheaper cars, imo. Buying it is not an economically sound purchase, and I really don't think that can be disputed.

The car was heavily subsidized in development, and heavily subsidized to the buyer, and it turns out to be an ordinary hybrid with a larger battery.

Quite disappointing to me to have spent that much money on a car and end up with a plug in Prius with a larger battery, imo.
 
LTC8K6

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
1,576
126
There's a boatload of taxpayer money attached to every Volt. Much more than the rebates.
 
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