It has been long known that the Volt would begin its North American launch in November 2010. GM continues to report confidence in being able to achieve that deadline.
Previous interviews have suggested the Volt would be rolled out throughout North America more or less at the same time. However, without giving much detail it was just disclosed by Volt vehicle line director Tony Posawatz that the the Volt would be “rolled out 9 months later in Canada.” This puts it into August 2011.
Recent cold weather testing of the current developmental mules confirms the car operates as expected in cold climates including tests in Kapuskasing, Ontario at temperatures “very much” below zero.
Volts kept unplugged for prolonged periods in extreme cold would start the generator first to heat or condition the battery to optimum operating temperature before going into EV mode, a battery life-saving strategy pure EVs do not have. If the cars are plugged in in extreme cold, grid electricity would be used to keep the battery warm via an internal heating element.
Of course it will be warm in Canada in July anyway, but winter is always on the way.
Did you know 9% of the last 30 days visitors to GM-Volt.com were from Canada? Eh?
Apr 5th, 2009 (7:24 am)So I guess the race is on to see which car statik will buy…..
“Previous interviews have suggested the Volt would be rolled out throughout North America more or less at the same time.”
I thought it was supposed to be a staged rollout, with only a few areas getting the initial deliveries. Has GM changed their mind on this???
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Apr 5th, 2009 (7:35 am)As a canadian, I am glad to hear that the Volt will be rolled out in Canada, but the sooner the better. I have been awaiting this car’s arrival for more than two years now and have been putting off buying a car of any kind because of it.
But cold winter testing is absolutely crucial. The winters are tough up here and even IC engines need to be plugged in at times during the winter to keep them warm so they start-up. The great thing about that is portions of this country already has the plug-in infrastructure. Canadians are just as excited about the Volt and it couldn’t get here soon enough, eh.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (7:39 am)Don’t you mean ‘Eh,’ Lyle? (My wife is from Plattsburg, NY so she’s practically 1/4 Canadian!)
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Apr 5th, 2009 (7:56 am)OMG! Statik is going to hit this one like a hurricane.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (8:04 am)Eh!
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Apr 5th, 2009 (8:07 am)This confirms my initial hunch. The launch will be confined to 2 or 3 metro areas, but shortly after that, GM will slowly but surely expand the number of Volt dealers. Within a year of the launch, I believe you will be able to buy a Volt anywhere in North America.
That’s when we’ll start to see sales figures rise.
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+1
Apr 5th, 2009 (8:09 am)July or August?
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-3
Apr 5th, 2009 (8:30 am)______________________________________________________
Educate the Canadians!
GM needs to avoid the situation of a bunch of Canadian’s perplexed on how to plug in ther purchased VOLTs for charging.
Further, there may be a danger of the Canadian VOLT launch bringing down the Canadian power grid system.
There is a solution….
Before launching the VOLT in Canada, GM needs to send Britta Gross (Director of Electric Vehicle Infrastructure) and her “Team” to Canada to make sure those Canadian’s get educated about EV infrastructure. Perhaps Static could help Britta translate her message in “Canadian Speak”.
If we American’s need infrastructure education I would believe the same would apply for our Canadian friends.
______________________________________________________
Electric Cars + Nuclear Energy = American Energy Independence!
______________________________________________________
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-2
Apr 5th, 2009 (8:43 am)I have a toddler who has difficulty putting the square peg in the round hole, so he puts the round peg in the round hole. In Canada, perhaps the toddlers never have success, so no wonder GM is holding back introducing a vehicle that requires such complex motor skills.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (8:45 am)The Canadians and the Hi-Liners of Montana and North Dakota will at least have the advantage of long years of experience in plugging their cars in at night. Hmmm… I wonder how long the free head bolt heater outlets in parking lots will last after the Volt starts showing up?
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Apr 5th, 2009 (8:49 am)Remind me again when the VUE Plug-in hybrid was going to be “Launched” .
NPNS!
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Apr 5th, 2009 (8:52 am)All of you hosers stereotypes make me not want to get off my chesterfield this morning.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (9:05 am)However, without giving much detail it was just disclosed by Volt vehicle line director Tony Posawatz that the the Volt would be “rolled out 9 months later in Canada.” This puts it into August 2011.
====================
In other news Tony Posawatz was careful to not actually say August 2011 but a very ambiguous ‘9 months later’
On a related matter to me, I was just up there (Kapuskasing) not too long ago (late last fall for a wedding…nice place, pretty small/isolated) and it is a fair hike north of Toronto…so seems like a good winter test place, lol. (I’d love to get the AER results from there).
As for the release, I’m sure it will be regional here as well, starting in Toronto/Oshawa (Canadian HQ). However, I am right close, so who cares about the other people in Canada when it doesn’t affect me. (j/k)
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Apr 5th, 2009 (9:06 am)Canada!!
We love you guys up there!
Thanks for being out friends!
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Apr 5th, 2009 (9:06 am)Canada!!
We love you guys up there!
Thanks for being our friends!
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Apr 5th, 2009 (9:23 am)From the article:
“Did you know 9% of the last 30 days visitors to GM-Volt.com were from Canada? Eh?”
—I’m pretty sure 8% of them were me
========================
#8CDAVIS
Not that…is funny.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (9:25 am)No edit function (dunno why):
—–
#8 CDAVIS
Now that…is funny
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Apr 5th, 2009 (9:50 am)Good point about battery-only electrics. But if EESTor comes thru
(or possibly other battery technologies on the horizon) temperature won’t mean much to batteries anymore.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (9:53 am)Why the delay? If the Volt is worth doing, it should be
released continent wide ASAP. That would prove that
the Volt is worthwhile.
Isn’t it interesting that pure EVs aren’t so great in cold
weather? Recent fuel cell cars on the other hand seem
to handle that just fine.
Why is GM messing around with large potentially explosive
Lithium ION batteries when it has fuel cell technology?
The neat thing about hydrogen cars, getting the hydrogen
cold enough to liquefy it has been difficult where the artic
is just what the doctor ordered. Not that liquid hydrogen
is the answer.
What is the point of a chemical battery EV if it can’t handle
an arctic winter without a gasoline powered ICE? After all,
carbon dioxide from cars is contributing significantly to the
melting of arctic ice and that is endangering the polar bear.
Why should the consumer pay $10k more for a series hybrid
that still has to use a significant amount of gasoline ? I
don’t think people in cold regions will be impressed with
the Volt, especially if they get to test drive a fuel cell car.
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+1
Apr 5th, 2009 (10:05 am)Enfin. Finally! We hit -30C (-22F) for 2 consecutive weeks last February, in Chicoutimi up northern Québec. Hope the Volt can go through that!
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Apr 5th, 2009 (10:07 am)Why so long… I guess I’ll have to cross the border and buy one in the States then…
My Cobalt lease ends on Sept. 11th 2011
, but I had planned to get a Volt before that.
What about the Converj?
#8 CDAVIS:
Considering that we export most of our electricity to the US, I don’t think our grid would be in danger.
Plus the province I’m in produces 95% of its power using Hydro, and 2% Wind, 0% Coal. The Volt is by far the best option for the environment in our situation!
But indeed, they should start putting more Volts in the news here, and start educating pple. How about bringing it to the AutoShow once and for all… can’t wait to see this car in person
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Apr 5th, 2009 (10:26 am)Our weather in southern Alberta is no different than Montana or North Dakota, although we use degrees C instead of F (sounds colder).
I’ve been plugging in vehicles since I was a toddler (for my mother), it’s a skill learned very early in Canada.
We also have heated garages (not igloos) and electrical outlets in most parking lots (at work).
I think a simultaneous roll-out to select Canadians (like me) would give GM a chance to test it in diverse regions. BTW, I’m < 100 on the GM-Volt.com wait list.
On the other hand, Transport Canada has a few extra requirements for cars coming into our country ie. daytime running lights and kilometers instead of miles. That might be the real reason for the delay … eh?
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Apr 5th, 2009 (10:38 am)Statik #17
When you are “seen” as a member, then the edit feature is available. Otherwise you are seen as a guest and no edit. I think there was a windows update recently that clobbered the browser history and you may need to log into the forum to be “seen” as a member. I think if you go to the Forums section and you see the link for Today’s Posts instead of New Posts (or something like that) then this is the issue.
I have this problem too and haven’t been able to find/remember my password and the requests to have it emailed hasn’t worked either. Maybe we have to create a new profile.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (11:09 am)“Recent cold weather testing of the current developmental mules confirms the car operates as expected in cold climates including tests in Kapuskasing, Ontario at temperatures “very much” below zero.”
To clarify, it wasn’t particularly cold (apparently -10 to -15), the cars were stored indoors overnight, battery testing was not the primary task and they broke a motor mount. The car performed “as expected” but they “stil have some work ahead of” them. They called these conditions “very cold”, which they were not.
I love the phrase “as expected”. It implies so much but says so little.
http://gm-volt.com/2009/03/23/volt-mule-winter-testing-has-been-successful/
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Apr 5th, 2009 (11:09 am)Yes, hybridization allows for the best of both worlds.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (11:31 am)Flex fuel for the volt sustainer; and “smart charging” via onstar:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-10210454-54.html?tag=newsLeadStoriesArea.1
I’m curious to know what plans might be in works to offer the Volt as part of the smart grid.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (11:37 am)#24 “-15 degrees isn’t very cold” ?!?!?!?!?
Thank goodness I live in a place meant for human habitation
. Just roll out the car in the SF bay area already…actually wait, I’ll be in LA by then, so do it there!
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Apr 5th, 2009 (12:01 pm)Limit USA dealerships that can sell the Volt and spread it around the World is a very good move. I think the Volt will be much more popular outside the United States where gas is much more expensive. If GM was smart it would launch the Volt in the U.S. last as most Americans travel long distances in their cars (don’t believe that agenda crapola that says 75 percent travel 40 miles or less per day – utter nonsense with no objective research to prove it). Most Americans know nothing about electric vehicles and are totally completely ignorant of the Volt.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (12:03 pm)______________________________________________________
#21 Patrick (Montreal) Said:
“#8 CDAVIS:Considering that we export most of our electricity to the US, I don’t think our grid would be in danger.”
———-
Patrick,
My #8 post was just my having a little fun with GM’s “Division of Electric Vehicle Infrastructure”.
______________________________________________________
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Apr 5th, 2009 (12:11 pm)“Previous interviews have suggested the Volt would be rolled out throughout North America more or less at the same time. ”
————————————————–
I don’t remember anything here saying that. What’s been here has said “staged” and implied that stage 1 was CA and DC. Anything after that has been left to the imagination.
Personally I am assuming Volt in NC maybe in 2013, if GM and Volt last that long. I recall that EV-1 never came to NC and do not expect Volt to be different. It is a low volume limited market niche car, as it has developed.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (12:14 pm)#28 Lex Luther says
“Limit USA dealerships that can sell the Volt and spread it around the World is a very good move. I think the Volt will be much more popular outside the United States where gas is much more expensive.”
———————————————————–
That may be what happens, but perhaps not for the reason that you give. if one thinks of Volt as a symbolic, low volume car, it is good to show the symbol around the world, something like flying a big flag on your aircraft carrier. At the same time, it is almost better if one does not sell too many, as selling a lot will create shortages and hard feelings.
When Volt started out, I was thinking of it as a real and potentially high volume car. That would have been nice. However, as the story has been told so far, that seems more and more to be an unlikely ending.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (12:17 pm)Canada can suck my c***!!! Just kidding, my Canadian friends
lol
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Apr 5th, 2009 (12:24 pm)Disapointed. I was hoping to get it earlier in Canada.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (12:50 pm)#23 koz said::
Statik #17
When you are “seen” as a member, then the edit feature is available. Otherwise you are seen as a guest and no edit. I think there was a windows update recently that clobbered the browser history and you may need to log into the forum to be “seen” as a member. I think if you go to the Forums section and you see the link for Today’s Posts instead of New Posts (or something like that) then this is the issue.
I have this problem too and haven’t been able to find/remember my password and the requests to have it emailed hasn’t worked either. Maybe we have to create a new profile.
=======================
It is definitely this computer. I have the edit feature on all my other computers…works flawlessly.
I should probably update the browser, but I use ‘old and busted’ to surf the web and she has been doing a bang up job for almost 2 years flawlessly so I don’t want to mess a good thing up. I use another computer for ‘business’ – secure sites, graphics/design, accounting for my business, etc…then another for ‘gaming’
(I know 3 computers…I’m a bit of a nerd I guess).
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Apr 5th, 2009 (1:18 pm)“Did you know 9% of the last 30 days visitors to GM-Volt.com were from Canada? Eh?”
Welcome, Canadians! I knew that our board was international, but it’s nice to hear that they are such a good “chunk”.
Statik, I know you’ve said where you live in Canada, but I have zero memory trace of it. I need to know to find your place for the cookout you mentioned a ways back. Since Lyle was prescient enough to post a map (for all of us “there’s really more than America out there???” folks) I’d love to see how far apart we are GEOGRAPHICALLY. We already know about our mild difference in views (g).
Be well,
Tag
PS If a Canadian buys a car IN the USA, do they pay taxes in the US and Canada too?
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Apr 5th, 2009 (1:22 pm)Sounds good, get that VOLT on the road up here!!
Hey Fritz, when will the mass marketed under $30,000 VOLT Second Gen be ready for Canada??? I’m hoping for 2014 / 2015 !
GO FRITZ(Live long & Prosper!), GO EV!
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Apr 5th, 2009 (1:55 pm)Statik:
Only three computers? That doesn’t qualify as nerd. I have six, most of them running Linux, and many of them in various states of busted. BTW, could you define “hoser” and “Chesterfield” for those of us in a deprived culture?
Just a note to GM marketing department. Don’t spend so much time “educating” and “developing” infrastucture. According to U.S. DOE, our existing grid can handle 165 million plug in hybrids with no upgrades as long as they are charged at night. And, if you include a package of about a dozen compact fluorescent light bulbs gratis with each Volt sold, the whole package will be energy neutral. Here in Idaho the average customer uses about 1000 kWh of electricity each month. Full range use of the Volt would represent about 300 kWh (8kWh x 30days x slight inefficiency fudge factor for charging circuits).
So one would get a 30% increase max of electrical usage if no conservation efforts were made. Install about a dozen compact fluorescent light bulbs and many customers will save as much electricity as their Volt will use.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (2:00 pm)Hopefully the Canadian diversion won’t increase the wait time for the midwest to get some Volts delivered. If the waitlist is honored, I should have mine by January at the latest so August is fine for delivery to Canada.
EDIT: Edit function works fine for me and I’m lot logged in on the forums…
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Apr 5th, 2009 (2:07 pm)#35 Tag said:
“Did you know 9% of the last 30 days visitors to GM-Volt.com were from Canada? Eh?”
Welcome, Canadians! I knew that our board was international, but it’s nice to hear that they are such a good “chunk”.
Statik, I know you’ve said where you live in Canada, but I have zero memory trace of it. I need to know to find your place for the cookout you mentioned a ways back. Since Lyle was prescient enough to post a map (for all of us “there’s really more than America out there???” folks) I’d love to see how far apart we are GEOGRAPHICALLY. We already know about our mild difference in views (g).
Be well,
Tag
PS If a Canadian buys a car IN the USA, do they pay taxes in the US and Canada too?
====================
I’m just outside of Toronto, on the east side…pretty close to GM’s Canadian HQ.
As for buying a car in the US, we have to pay whatever the state tax is (so it pays to choose the right state), and then you pay the duty/GST (5%) coming across the border (provided we do a ‘fancy dance’ and skip it through Alberta).
#37 said:
Statik:
Only three computers? That doesn’t qualify as nerd. I have six, most of them running Linux, and many of them in various states of busted. BTW, could you define “hoser” and “Chesterfield” for those of us in a deprived culture?
Well..if can count my laptop and iPod that would be 5
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Apr 5th, 2009 (2:24 pm)“Statik:
Only three computers? That doesn’t qualify as nerd. I have six, most of them running Linux, and many of them in various states of busted. BTW, could you define “hoser” and “Chesterfield” for those of us in a deprived culture?
Well..if can count my laptop and iPod that would be 5″
Ok, 4 including a laptop qualifies. But that iPod really needs to be replaced with a Nokia n810 in order to be purist.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (2:29 pm)If the Volt becomes a niche car, GM will have to sell fuel cell cars
soon instead. GM has to produce at least 100 million fuel cell
cars and soon. If GM doesn’t do this, GM is going to collapse.
There are 137 million some odd cars and trucks in the U.S.
alone, now consider how many vehicles there are in the world.
The Volt gas/electric hybrid is a step towards fuel cell cars, not
a solution. The battery in it is too expensive and GM should
seriously consider a smaller one. With a 30 mile range and a
place to plug in at college, I could commute without using gas.
Some countries are big on natural gas powered cars, but
methane is more dangerous in terms of global warming than
CO2. You can get further stripping the hydrogen off of
methane and using it as a fuel.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (4:47 pm)America Junior is 575VAC. I dont think their infrastructure is ready
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Apr 5th, 2009 (5:33 pm)-15 isn’t cold? Yeah right..
Maybe for like AB/SK/MB in the dead of winter, but for the majority of the population, -15 is extremely cold (it was quoted in F, remember.)
-26 is pretty much unheard of for southern ontario, probably around the coldest in southern quebec, and maybe interior of BC.
If it gets any colder, it’s for a few rare days, and not sustained.
The normal winter temp here is probably like -10 to -15.
If you’re in AB/SK/MB with -45 temps, the volt will still be a step up from your current ICE
I plug in the car not to help it start (it’s fine on it’s own), but to help fuel economy.
I lose like 6MPG in the winter from cold starts. If I plug in, I only lose about 3MPG average. Well worth the like $0.25/day electricity, as it saves me a lot more in gas
Oh, and I figured this was the approx release time a ways back.
They always like to release things to us about 6months-1 year later
and jack up the price by a good chunk (regardless of how the exchange works out)
If you watched the canadian version of the volt commercial, it said in fine print, “coming in 2011″, versus the american one said “coming 2010″
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Apr 5th, 2009 (7:10 pm)Mike Robinson #19
I don’t think people in cold regions will be impressed with
the Volt, especially if they get to test drive a fuel cell car.
————————————————————————–
Mike, you need to do a lot more study about alternative fueled vehicles.
Fuel cell cars always get excellent reviews from test drives.
Fuel cell cars are great if someone gives you the car, and gives you the hydrogen. Although hundreds of working fuel cell cars are now in existence, none are for sale because the price would be prohibitive. Same with the hydrogen. There are no hydrogen wells. Hydrogen is a very expensive manufactured product that takes large amounts of energy to produce.
Fuel cells are the energy solution of the future, and always will be,
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Apr 5th, 2009 (7:14 pm)I’ve been plugging in vehicles since I was a toddler (for my mother), it’s a skill learned very early in Canada.
We also have heated garages (not igloos) and electrical outlets in most parking lots (at work).
——————————————————————-
Question: The block heater circuits in workplace parking lots. How many amps are they rated at, and how many amps do they draw when in use?
I would think plugging in a PHEV would draw a lot more current.
1. Would the existing circuits handle the load?
2. Would the employers who are currently willing to pay for a trickle of current to keep engine blocks warm also be willing to pay for the heavier power usage needed to charge up a PHEV?
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Apr 5th, 2009 (7:19 pm)To clarify, it wasn’t particularly cold (apparently -10 to -15), the cars were stored indoors overnight, battery testing was not the primary task and they broke a motor mount.
———————————————————————-
If GM can make a product that works well at -15, I am sure they will be happy. If the car does not work well at -25, that does not cut down the potential market very much at all. I would estimate that well over 95% of the North American public lives in places where most years never get that cold.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (7:38 pm)Mike wrote:
The Volt gas/electric hybrid is a step towards fuel cell cars, not
a solution. The battery in it is too expensive and GM should
seriously consider a smaller one. With a 30 mile range and a place to plug in at college, I could commute without using gas.
Some countries are big on natural gas powered cars, but
methane is more dangerous in terms of global warming than
CO2. You can get further stripping the hydrogen off of
methane and using it as a fuel.
————————————————————————–
Mike, you have several misconceptions about alternative fueled cars, which probably explains why you think fuel cells are a good solution:
1. “The battery is too expensive”.
There is no way that fuel cell cars are more economical than PHEVs. The cost profile for producing a PHEV is well understood, and it is clear that you will be able to buy a PHEV at retail for about $40k within a couple of years. Fuel cell cars would have to sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars. That is why no one is trying to sell them, or gearing up to do so, even though they know how to make them. In addition, hydrogen is prohibitively expensive.
2. “Some countries are big on natural gas powered cars, but
methane is more dangerous in terms of global warming than
CO2. ”
You are correct that natural gas is mostly methane. But natural gas burning cars do not emit methane, they emit CO2.
It is true that you can make hydrogen by stripping the carbon out of natural gas. But the result is a high temperature stream of CO2.
While countries may be “big” on natural gas cars, no country has come anywhere close to having as many natural gas cars on the road as gasoline cars.
3. With a 30 mile range and a place to plug in at college, I could commute without using gas.
The Volt is designed to provide effective commuting for most Americans without the need to plug in during the day. This is crucial, because there is not national infrastructure of plug in spots, and if we built one, day time charging would over tax the grid.
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Apr 5th, 2009 (7:51 pm)Once again, we Canadians get screwed.
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+1
Apr 5th, 2009 (8:14 pm)Being a Canadian – I have to say – my next dog sled will be electric…
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+1
Apr 5th, 2009 (9:44 pm)Lets get the volts on the road in Toronto!
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Apr 6th, 2009 (12:05 am)2011… the good news for me, that’s late I may have other choice… the bad news for GM, it may not be them… competition can be a b….ch.
I may have to go shopping for a new car after all, 2 years is a long time…
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Apr 6th, 2009 (7:01 am)
Apr 6th, 2009 (8:05 am)
Apr 6th, 2009 (11:15 am)Great news! Can’t wait for it to hit the wet coast. Our electricity is hydropower & makes the volt a instant winner. Don’t worry about our grid my American brothers we sell you electricity to help prevent rolling black outs on your west coast , I think we got enough to keep the batteries charged. Would be so coooool if we could see completed volts at the Vancouver Winter Olympics this coming winter, just think of all that exsposure , it’s global eh !!!!!!!!
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Apr 7th, 2009 (1:30 am)Statik you sure you don’t want to get off the Chesterfield to go make me a Ceasar?
louis the Volt will handle those Quebec temperatures, but you’ve got to pour a bottle of ‘Fin du Monde’ into the fuel tank first, and then rub some Oka cheese onto the battery connections before driving!
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Apr 7th, 2009 (3:13 am)Tom Harwick:
——————————————————————-
Question: The block heater circuits in workplace parking lots. How many amps are they rated at, and how many amps do they draw when in use?
I would think plugging in a PHEV would draw a lot more current.
1. Would the existing circuits handle the load?
2. Would the employers who are currently willing to pay for a trickle of current to keep engine blocks warm also be willing to pay for the heavier power usage needed to charge up a PHEV?
——————————————————————-
Answers:
1. Standard 15A-120V outdoor circuits could handle a block heater and interior car warmer or two block heaters … about 1600W.
2. Interior car warmers were discouraged to allow two block heaters on the same circuit without popping the breaker.
3. Charging a PHEV? In Alberta, an oil company would probably discourage it, but a wind farm developer would definitely encourage heavier charging current … especially if it used V2G smart grid technology.
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Apr 7th, 2009 (2:07 pm)August 2011?? That’s ok, I’ll get one for my birthday then, right?? Right??
And yes, some of us do live in Alberta, where it does get -40 in the winter, so it’s nice to hear that if I leave my volt plugged in, maybe i can set it to heat the batteries and the cabin (and rear defrost, mirrors and the seats also??) at 7am, so when I’m ready to go by 8, everything is nice and toasty warm.
That would be sweet. Oh, and I’m in Grande Prairie for those mapping out the Canadian contingent here. Look in north west Alberta, you’ll find it!!
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Apr 8th, 2009 (4:39 am)Nah, I think I’ll stick to my dog teams……don’t have ta plug the mutts in, just feed em some cold polar bear meat.
Ter
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Apr 10th, 2009 (11:24 am)Statik, you need to buy that Volt in New Hampshire if it’s made available there… No sales tax!
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Apr 14th, 2009 (2:40 pm)______________________________________________________
Educate the Canadians!
GM needs to avoid the situation of a bunch of Canadian’s perplexed on how to plug in ther purchased VOLTs for charging.
Further, there may be a danger of the Canadian VOLT launch bringing down the Canadian power grid system.
There is a solution….
Before launching the VOLT in Canada, GM needs to send Britta Gross (Director of ElectricVehicle Infrastructure) and her “Team” to Canada to make sure those Canadian’s get educated about EV infrastructure. Perhaps Static could help Britta translate her message in “Canadian Speak”.
If we American’s need infrastructure education I would believe the same would apply for our Canadian friends.
______________________________________________________
Electric Cars + Nuclear Energy = American Energy Independence!
______________________________________________________
There may be a danger of the Canadian VOLT launch bringing down the Canadian power grid system???
How do you figure that? The Power Grid in Ontario and Quebec is Ideal for EV’s. Most power is produced through large scale nuclear or hydro. Since these installations aren’t normally shut down during the evening/night due to cost and logistics most of the power generated during that period is bled off and wasted. Evening/night is the ideal time to have an EV plugged in for charging so we would be using power that would normally be wasted anyway and we wouldn’t have to upgrade the grid by adding capacity. We wouldn’t be paying anymore for electricity than we normally do now. Go educate yourself.
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Apr 27th, 2009 (5:09 pm)+1
Dec 4th, 2009 (7:31 pm)AMERICANS ARE SO ARROGENT, AND THEY SPELL LIKE TODDLERZ.
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Mar 1st, 2010 (1:57 am)Gimpy is right. Americans know next to nothing at times when it comes to other countries. Do you know how many Canadian comedy shows have proven Americans to be completely ignorant about the rest of the world?! It’s a total joke!
For Pete’s sake… the USA still uses Coal to produce electricity. Talk about backwards.
And where do you think the USA gets the largest portion of its imported energy? They get it from Canada; one the world’s largest producers of natural resources and energy. In fact, Canada produces way more than it uses. The majority of Canada’s produced energy (including electricity) is exported to the USA.
And remember that big black out that affected most of the Northeastern & Midwestern United States, and Ontario, Canada, in August 2003? Well, that was caused by a massive power fluctuation that affected the New York State power transmission grid! [The USA and Canadian power grids are connected.] The grid in New York is so out-of-date and overworked, that they caused a black-out in a sigificant portion of the Eastern half of 2 of the worlds largest countries.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northeast_Blackout_of_2003
To those cocky Americans who don’t think much of Canada, read the following article from your own country’s “Energy Information Administration” website, and educate yourselves:
http://www.eia.doe.gov/cabs/Canada/Background.html
The only reason why the Volt is not being released in Canada yet is for obvious reasons. GM has to make 100% sure that the vehicle will stand up to Canadian Winter conditions as well as other Canadian standards set by the Canadian Government. If you think its the power grid, just think of how much more natural resources and as well as modern, clean, renewable energy Canada has in comparison to the USA. The Canadian power grid is far more better off than its USA counterpart; both environmentally and technologically.
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