Comments on: BREAKING: Volt Combustion Engine Still Undecided: Won’t be HCCI at First

By: Russ Judge

Russ Judge — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 13:11:26 +0000

Has GM given any thought to using a stirling engine to power the volt’s generator? The stirling would appear to be an excellent match for the volt. It is the world’s most efficient combustion engine and is completely silent. It has very poor power response but this would not be a factor in powering the volt. It is not an unknown factor as the Swedes actually use them in powering some of their submarines. I seem to remember GM once actually looking at them.

By: Dave

Dave — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 12:34:16 +0000

Drake – I agree, it would be great if you could trigger the climate control system of your car wirelessly while you are plugged in. It would also be great to able to do the other things you mention.

But for the average Joe, my concern is that these features may be confusing and/or frustrating. Also, a lot of folks are turned off by any kind of geek factor.

So, I think these features should be added in such a way as to be hidden from the average user. Perhaps this could be offered as an option. Or better yet – offer an optional in-dash navigation system, and have these features enabled further down in the menus of this unit.

By: Dave

Dave — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 12:11:07 +0000

Russ Judge says: “I would like to know what kind of electronic drive the volt will have ie AC or DC. Will it have the capability to act as a generator, to pump 120v/60Hz back into your house as a backup generator”

Russ – see forum thread here:
http://www.gm-volt.com/volt-discussion?forum=1&topic=50&page=1

Brian – Yes most generators are mechanically AC, but the generator includes diodes that change that into a choppy DC which connects to the battery. See pictures here:
http://www.bcae1.com/charging.htm
(about 1/2 way down the page).

So the best way generate 120 volt AC power is to connect an Inverter to the battery and let the gas engine generator charge battery as necessary.

Inverters aren’t that expensive. The only issue is that the Li/Ion battery in the Volt is a much higher voltage than a regular 12V car battery, and the Inverter would need to be designed for this. So it might be a while before aftermarket Inverters for the Volt are available. This is why it would be great if GM offered this as a factory option…

By: Drake

Drake — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 03:02:32 +0000

This is totally off topic, but a pipe dream I have for the Volt is to be able to log in to its onboard computer, wirelessly like you can with a network router or a high-end copier.

Once logged in, you could run reports covering a wide range of areas like efficiency, average mileage, gasoline usage, upcoming servicing needed, etc. While logged in, you would also be able to upload mp3s and playlists to the car to listen to while driving. You could also configure what time of day you want the batteries to charge, and you could even program what time of day you wanted the heater/air conditioning to come on so that each morning you had a warm/cool car. This would be especially nice in the winter. Plus, the electricity to do this would still be coming from the plug so it would not affect the battery’s charge for your day of driving. This feature would probably not activate if the user didn’t/forgot to plug in and might be limited to a maximum of 10 minutes or so before turning off the air conditioner/heater.

By: Brian

Brian — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 02:28:00 +0000

[quote comment="5425"]I would like to know what kind of electronic drive the volt will have ie AC or DC. Will it have the capability to act as a generator, to pump 120v/60Hz back into your house as a backup generator[/quote]

The motor will certainly be AC (either induction or permanent magnet, probably PM I think).

DC motors are not efficient enough, although they could save some money on the electronics side.