Lutz Now 95% Confident Volt will be Built, 55% Confident it will Arrive in 2010

In his latest interview, with Forbes reporter Jerry Flint, the Volt’s main proponent GM vice-chairman Bob Lutz was asked about his confidence in being able to produce the Volt.
Lutz told the reporter on a scale of 1 to 10 he rated his confidence that the Volt will get produced as a 9.5.
This number dropped to [...]

Interview with Frank Weber, E-Flex/Chevy Volt Vehicle Line Executive, Part II

A few final questions from my interview with Frank Weber, Chevy Volt/E-Flex vehicle line executive:
Do you have or are you working on E-Flex simulation models for other sizes of vehicles besides the Volt?
Before we get the team up off the track in thinking too much about the expansion of E-Flex, the focus is clearly to [...]

It’s Official – Bush Signs Energy Bill Into Law

Today President Bush signed the energy bill passed by the House and the Senate, mandating automakers to achieve a corporate average of 35 mpg for their vehicles by 2020, 40% higher than they are right now.
Rick Wagoner of GM said the standard “set a tough, national target that GM will strive to meet.”
The bill also [...]

Does Honda Lack “Clarity” on Their Thoughts About Plug-in Vehicles?

We have previously reported how Honda CEO Takeo Fukui did not believe the idea of a rage-extended electric car made sense.
Now, according to the AFP, he has gone so far as to say that he “saw no value in developing plug-in hybrid vehicles”.
It seems Honda is interested in petroleum displacement as they have begun leasing [...]

Lithium-ion Battery Storage Capacity Research Breakthrough

Normally we discuss news and facts related to production of the Chevy Volt. But this technological breakthrough seems so important I thought it deserves mention here.
As we know, the Volt will be powered by lithium-ion batteries either from A123 systems or LG Chem.
In these and most li-ion batteries, energy is stored in an anode [...]

Opel Flextreme is not for Production: Chevy Volt will be a Global Vehicle

At the Frankfurt Auto show in September, GM unveiled the Opel Flextreme; an E-Flex concept car illustrating the possibility of using a diesel generator as a range-extender. Lost in the initial enthusiasm were comments we had here from Tony Posawatz in which he acknowledged the Flextreme was not production intent.
Here is vehicle line director [...]

Interview with Frank Weber, E-Flex/Chevy Volt Vehicle Line Executive, Part I

Frank Weber
I just had the chance to speak with Frank Weber who is GM’s vehicle line executive for the Chevy Volt and E-Flex systems. This is the first of two parts.
Do you have some new information for us today?

We are explaining that vehicle efficiency is something that is very important to make the volt [...]

A123 VP Ric Fulop on Chevy Volt Battery Pack Delivery

Speculate no more about A123/Conti’s pack delivery.
Rather than conjecture, and hopefully to clarify, I decided it would be best to go straight to the source, and ask Ric Fulop, who is A123 co-founder and VP of marketing, whether they missed the Volt pack delivery date, or not. Here is my question:
(GM-Volt) Is the Volt [...]

Production Volt to Have Left and Right Charging Ports

The Chevy Volt concept car is shown with plug-in ports on both sides of the cars front end.
Many enthusiasts here have cited an interest in continuing to have two ports, although to some folks it doesn’t really matter.
I asked in interviews with Bob Boniface, chief Volt designer, and later Tony Posawatz, Volt vehicle line director, [...]

A123’s Chevy Volt Battery Pack Won’t be Home for Christmas (or for New Year’s for that matter)

There were initial reports after GM received the first CPI/LG Chem Chevy Volt battery pack that they would be receiving the first from A123/Continental in December.
The other day, GM spokesperson Rob Peterson was quoted as saying the pack would not arrive until 2008.
I was able to verify that fact with Mr. Peterson. His official statement [...]

A Word About the Volt with Fritz Henderson, CFO of General Motors

It’s not every day I get to talk with someone who handles billions of dollars, so I guess I got a little nervous.
GM graciously invited me to their annual NYC holiday party for journalists, at which Fritz Henderson, the CFO of GM was a distinguished guest.
I couldn’t resist the chance to ask a couple of [...]

Tour of Volt Design Lab and More Production Volt Details

Sam Abuelsamid of Autobloggreen, out in Detroit, had the chance to tour the GM wind tunnel and E-Flex Design studio the othe day and heard from Frank Weber, E-Flex vehicle line executive.
Sam has written a post about it: (LINK)
He talks about why aerodynamics are so important in this car, more so than mass.
He also goes [...]