Remember that plug-in Prius we drove for a bit? Yeah, Toyota is bringing that technology to more models. The Prius has long been the popular hybrid vehicle but cars like the Volt and Leaf are stealing a good deal of the public’s love thanks to their plug-in ability. It seems Toyota is looking to recapture some of its lost karma by shifting the entire Prius line to plug-in hybrids by the 2014 model year.
This comes by way of a short and sweet Reuters report that also states the plug-in feature will come standard and the models should sell at the current Prius’s rate. The big change comes as the automaker switches from NiMH to Li-ion batteries. → Read More
The awards just seem to keep stacking up for the Chevrolet Volt. Yesterday, the Volt was awarded a Gold Medal at the Edison Awards for innovative engineering that resulted in the world’s first extended range electric vehicle.
Also, on the same night, OnStar’s mobile app won a silver medal for Best New Product in Transportation. The OnStar mobile app allows for drivers to view vehicle data, unlock and lock doors, and start their car remotely on any iOS or Android device. For the Volt, the OnStar mobile app has additional features such as charge level readings, electricity rates tables and other EV data.
Press release after the break. → Read More
Road and Track is a great car magazine, but they forgot an important fact about April Fools’ Day: the date. Yesterday, March 30th, they outed some pictures of the Volt sans roof. Their post even discussed some new tech for the unsightly little thing, despite its lack of a regular size gas tank. “We’re extremely excited about the new GM-patented photovoltaic film that covers two-thirds of the soft-top’s surface,” says GM spokesperson Taylor Wildwood. Uh-huh. Nice try guys, but those Volt engineers have more important things to do, like building rebadging the Volt. → Read More
I recently got a chance to speak with Andrew Farah, chief engineer for the Chevrolet Volt. While getting keyed in on the enormous amounts of controls and tech that went into Volt, he mentioned that he had already been chosen as chief engineer for the next EV at GM, stating that, “[my bosses] figured that I had already made mistakes, so I won’t make them again.” Farah, is a very enthusiastic and charismatic engineer, and in fact, reminded me of Ford’s CEO, Alan Mulally. When I asked him what’s up next, he said that “..battery technology will have to get better and smaller..it’s a big energy balance and controls game.” → Read More
Last year at the NAIAS in Detroit, Cadillac introduced the Converj concept, a vehicle based on the Chevrolet Volt. Most of it’s electronics were shared from the Volt, including GM’s new Voltec power system. While it was definitely a cool looking car and was much talked about at the auto show, nothing came of it—most concept cars rarely make it further then the tenure of a GM CEO.
GM’s new CEO Dan Akerson, was in Detroit last Thursday where we heard him say that GM will be offering different versions of the Volt, not specifically a Chevy nor a car. Now the speculation is just what will be coming out. Andrew Farah, the Volt’s chief engineer, has recently stated he has been picked as chief engineer for GM’s next electric vehicle. Just what exactly, we don’t know. → Read More
CrunchGear’s Matt Burns recently called the Chevy Volt GM’s “knight in shining chrome and white plastic.” Burns was not citing projected sales numbers, instead he was making the point that the Volt has saved GM by forcing the troubled automaker to “change internally and reinvent nearly ever aspect of how it does business.”
In support of Burns’ thesis, IBM and GM revealed new details on Monday on the car’s electronic backbone and how it came together in 29 months, from concept to finish. → Read More
The time has come to fiddle around with all the options for your new Chevy Volt. Assuming you’ve got a spare $42K laying around. Yes, it’s not exactly the most affordable vehicle, nor is it, strictly speaking, an electric vehicle, but it is a practical, good-looking, and high-tech car, which is perhaps better.
At any rate, the official configurator is now live, and you can add and subtract trim as you please. → Read More
While the Volt will charge overnight on a normal outlet, those with less predictable schedules may understandably want to opt for a 240V charging solution, which can cut the charge time to four hours. But you better believe you’re gonna pay. → Read More
Chevrolet has just announced the price for the Chevy Volt home charging kit : $490. That’s the price “before installation,” mind you. How much are you looking at with installation? → Read More
Want to drive the Volt or Leaf for just a day or week? Don’t feel like paying large for a car that hasn’t run its course? Call up Hertz and rent one. That’s right, Hertz has just announced that it plans to rent out EVs through its car rental and car sharing operations. Zipcar take note. → Read More
Maybe it’s true after all; GM using its Voltec platform for something other than a compact/midsize sedan, a cargo van named Vivaro. Expected to be unveiled tomorrow at the IAA Commercial Vehicles Fair in Hannover, GM will showcase Vivaro for those interested in low fuel consumption–like a small organic farm that only needs to make small deliveries around the city.
More after the break. → Read More
I honestly laid in bed last night thinking about the Chevy Volt’s $41k price tag. Seriously. When I got the press release shortly before it crossed the wire yesterday, the price seemed about right for a first-gen Voltec vehicle. The $350 lease program looked even better. I was already totally sold on the Volt after driving an early mule over a year ago and the price tag didn’t even bother me one bit. It’s not like I planned on buying one, but I could see where GM was coming from.
Then my post went up at 12:00 pm yesterday and quickly filled with commentors railing against the $41,000 price tag. That was followed by nearly every national news program claiming the Volt’s price invokes a bit of sticker shock. I thought, “Did these people really think the Volt was going to be the same price as a Malibu?” Apparently.
But then Rush Limbaugh opened-up on the Volt today and two things became clear. One, many people including Rush (and previously Letterman) do not fundamentally understand the Volt’s capabilities. I believe most consumers expected the Volt to be a mass-market vehicle and an instant hit in a sort of iPhone way. Yeah, that’s just not how the auto industry works. → Read More
Ford‘s 2011 Focus Electric will run on Compact Power Inc.’s lithium-ion battery, the company announced today. The batteries will initially be made in South Korea at CPI’s parent company, LG Chem, with plans to start manufacturing at a new $300 million site in Holland, Mich. in 2012.
The Focus Electric will be a full battery electric passenger car made at Ford’s Michigan Assembly Plant, which used to mainly produce large SUVs. The Focus Electric is expected to travel up to 100 miles with zero tailpipe emissions. Ford said it plans to have five electric car models on the roads by 2012. → Read More
Feeling a bit forgetful? Worried that you’re not going to be able to find your way back to your car? Worry no longer, there’s now an Android app for that. All you need is an Android phone, and Chevy Volt with OnStar. Once you’re parked, you can speak your destination into your phone which will then keep track of where you are relative to that point, and help you to find your way back. This is actually just part of GM’s plan for the Volt, which is going to be closely linked with the Google platform when it comes out. In addition to the location feature, you’ll also be able to check the battery level, monitor the vehicles overall health, and even run the A/C before you get in. [via DVice] → Read More
Things are looking good for the Volt. Chevy said that the first pre-production Volt rolled off the line yesterday. Of course, that doesn’t mean that you can buy one yet, but it’s still a pretty huge deal. For the future! → Read More
This test is no doubt neat. I mean, automakers test the exterior to make sure every piece can withstand extreme temperatures and they should. But how about the test where the Volt‘s battery is heated up to 200 degrees. Where is that video? I’ve sat in a few cars after they baked in the sun all day long and the exterior was cool to the touch but were at least 200 degrees inside. What’s that going to do to the lithium-ion battery pack? I have so many questions. → Read More
GM has a lot riding on the Chevy Volt. It’s not the vehicle that will save the company from failure, (the Chevy Cruze will do that) but it’s huge PR halo car. It will be the car that draws everyone’s attention back to the auto maker and having the car work with a flashy iPhone and Blackberry app should help with that. → Read More
You wouldn’t think quieter cars would be a problem, but then again, you’re probably not blind. Hybrids and electrics make so little noise that they pose a serious risk to blind people, who often use the sound of a car passing to determine whether it’s safe to cross the road. Nissan’s Leaf, it was announced, will make a “beautiful and futuristic” noise at low speeds so that unaware pedestrians won’t get run down.
Good, but any noise, however beautiful, may become a bother if you hear it all the damn time. So Chevy has stated that its noise, “a series of low horn audio signals,” will be driver-controlled. I have to say, I’m glad of that, because “a series of low horn audio signals” sounds like it’d really bug me. → Read More
You know that strange viral marketing campaign popping up around the Interwebs as of late? Well, we know what it means now thanks to GM’s CEO Fritz Henderson and it’s somewhat impressive – and a tad dubious. GM is claiming that under the new EPA guidelines, the Chevy Volt will hit 230 MPG. The Volt would be the first car to ever earn a triple digit number.
Take a look at the current high-mileage kings and that 230 MPG rating really sinks in. The EPA handed the Prius a 51 MPG city ranking and the Insight a 41 MPG. The EPA says that the Ford Fusion hybrid can get 41 in the city and the Camary Hybrid 40 MPG in the city. With hyper-mileage tactics like killing the engine to coast down hills and fancy pedal work, a few obsessed drivers have pushed a few of these cars into triple digit territory. → Read More
