GM-VOLT : Chevy Volt Electric Car Site

Besides the four seat Chevy Volt compact car that will lauch at the end of the year, there is evidence GM will shortly be unveiling a seven seat Voltec microvan. It is unknown at this time if that car is production intent. Voltec is GM’s name for the extended range electric car platform the Volt uses, allowing 40 miles of gas free driving followed by unlimited gas-generated range.

Diversification of Voltec technology into different vehicle types is the hope of many enthusiasts who would like to see the technology in other platforms. Commonly the idea of a Voltec large truck or SUV is proposed. It appears, however, GM has no plans to attempt that at the present time.

Alan Taub is GM’s Vice President of R&D who replaced the recently retired Larry Burns. In a new interview with the British publication Autocar, Taub discussed the idea.

“With battery technology as it currently stands, extended-range vehicles that are larger than the Volt — luxury saloons, trucks and SUVs — aren’t really possible,” he said. “They would simply be too heavy to be efficient.”

Hydrogen fuel cells are apparently GMs plan for larger trucks.

“For those types of cars,” says Taub. “Fuel cells and biofuels are the future.”

Taub also notes Voltec cars cant be too small either.

“Ironically enough, the E-REV powertrain won’t really package in a much smaller car than the Volt, either,” he adds. “So expect them all to be between four and five metres long.”

Taub sees the cost of fuel cell cars and precious metal content to diminish significantly over the next decade.

“Fuel cell technology is looking much cheaper today than it did a few years ago,” he said. “Within 12 years, we’re expecting an average family car powered by a hydrogen fuel cell to be as cheap to produce as one with an internal combustion engine,” he added.

Taub believes the battery will one day replace the combustion engine “when it comes to small cars…absolutely.”

For larger vehicles and trucks though “the advantage you gain with an electric powertrain becomes less significant than the weight penalty associated with fitting enough batteries to run it.”

This will be true for the foreseeable future he believes “until the next big leap forward in battery technology after lithium ion.”

Source (Autocar)

Nissan will begin deliveries of its LEAF pure electric car in selected US markets at the end of this year.

We didn’t talk much about this car until early last year when it was unveiled.  The car represents Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn’s vision for the future of his company and his belief that demand will be strong.

Though both Nissan and GM state we should not compare the LEAF and the Volt because they are in different categories, comparisons in the media are rife and frankly, inevitable.  Both cars will compete for sales to the early adopters and represent the country’s first steps off of oil.

Despite its arrival in the public eye a full two years after the Volt concept, Nissan has approached the LEAF’s launch quite differently from GM and now appears considerably ahead in transparency over the purchase process. The company has been signing up interested hand-raisers on their website, http://NissanUSA.com, and as of today report more than 115,000 in the US have registered.  In contrast, this site has registered just over 51,000 handraisers, and GM’s official site, anonymous sources indicate, has around 41,000.  There may also well be some overlap between the two Volt lists.

Today Nissan will begin accepting refundable $99 reservation deposits on the $25,280 LEAF, giving those on their early adopter list priority. Only those who had registered on the Nissan site by today will be able to register.  Open registration starts on May 15th. The car will not roll out nationwide until 2011.

Emails from Nissan will go out between 1PM and 6PM ET today giving registrants an exclusive link to place their deposit by credit card, configure their car, answer profile questions and to indicate their dealer of choice.

Yes we are Volt fans here, but I suspect many among us may also be on Nissan’s list. After all despite a one month earlier launch date, and two year earlier unveiling, GM has yet to release the Volt’s price or its intention to reward early supporters by allowing an early purchase option of the car.  Also, some among us may want both a Volt and a LEAF for their two car household.  Availability of both cars should be limited for most of 2011 anyway, so getting one’s hands on either may be a challenge.

So are you the LEAF list and reserving your car today?

Its hard to forget the intense buzz that GM’s 230 mpg announcement brought with it on that warm August day last summer. It was GM-Volt.com’s highest traffic day of all time with over 100,000 visitors hitting the site, and this author actually flew out to Detroit for the press conference.

230 MPG is what then-CEO Fritz Henderson said the Volt would achieve in highway driving.

The announcement brought a lot of controversy and some vitriolic complaints but in fact its calculation was simple and practical.

If the average driver used the Volt over a fixed period of time, say a week, and drove less then 40 miles per day most but not all days, recharging at night, he would use a certain amount of gas. That number is then divided into the miles driven over the same time period. In that scenario, 230 is what the average driver according to national statistics would achieve.

That approach is different than how MPG is conventionally calculated, and hence the controversy. However, considering the unique operational behavior of the Volt, the method, which was under preliminary consideration by the EPA at the time, seemed reasonable.

However, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal, the public backlash has caused the EPA to reconsider.

Citing anonymous sources, WSJ writes “the agency is in the midst of finalizing that formula in a way that will deliver more down-to-earth mileage ratings.” GM-Volt high level sources also confirm the 230 MPG rating is expected to change.

“We’re working with EPA staff on testing of labels that will provide meaningful information to the consumer,” GM spokesman Greg Martin said this told the WSJ. “What we’re finding is that the Volt and electric vehicles defy conventional mileage labels.”

An EPA spokesperson said a final decision on how electric vehicles will be rated has not yet been made.

So what will the final number be? We’ll have to wait and see, but somehow I don’t think this post will receive 100,000 readers.

Source (WSJ)

It is hard to believe how far they have come. Just four and a half years ago Aptera (then Accelerated Composites) introduced us to a three wheel, 330 MPG hybrid concept, priced at around $20,000. At the time of the announcement, the prototype was “approximately half completed,” but would be fully completed in a couple months, with production up to 1,500 cars in the first year, and full production running in 2 to 3 years.

Well, I guess they haven’t come that far after all.

Aptera starting taking customer’s deposits long ago, promising deliveries in late 2008. When that didn’t happen, they reassured customers that everything was still OK with the company, but production had been pushed back to October 2009. They also noted that customer’s deposits were safely tucked in a escrow account, fully refundable if requested. However, they were also offering customers the ‘opportunity’ to convert to a non-refundable deposit (that they could use as they pleased) in exchange for some future incentives discounts. Lucky day!

As we know, no vehicles were produced by October 2009, and Aptera, possibly punch drunk from missed deadlines at the time, just issued a more ambiguous ‘it is coming sometime in 2010′ release. That is until now. Finally, those locked in deposit holders will get a date they can expect their cars! Right? Nope.

Production is now scheduled for 11 months after…wait for it…after they go through a couple more rounds of funding. /behold the white flag has been waved

Related to the funding issue, Aptera originally sought some $75 million in ATVM loans, and had reportedly been turned down because of its 3 wheeled configuration that made it ineligible. But thanks to couple self-interested members of Congress, that benchmark was changed, and now Aptera has now come back to the table, but with a $184 million dollar request fresh in hand. I am assuming they have now realized it is expensive to build cars.

The new loan application is a long shot at best, there is still the sticky point of being considered viable for the term of the loan, which at 25 years, is probably 20+ years too long, even by Aptera’s own admission. According to CEO Paul Wilbur, “Aptera can only compete thanks to federal loans,” and those funds should get them through the next five years. /foot meet bullet

As for the car itself, this week we got a look at the new-new production intent Aptera 2e, a freshly reshaped homogeneous blob of its former self. This new, less appealing version of its former self also now apparently only gets 200Wh/mile, up from a estimated 80 Wh/mile.

Current information gleaned from the demonstration drive (no test drives please…come back in May) in Carlsbad, CA this week put the expected range at 100 miles from a 20 kWh pack from A123; but then again maybe it will get “nearly 200 miles” according to a conflicting press release from electric motor producer Remy International a day later. This is the kind of thing we have grown to expect following this car.

Looking for insight into the specifications, pricing and delivery of the 2e, you will find that
Aptera’s site is mostly full of tidbits like “…two carefully placed cup holders will welcome even the most enormous cup of Joe,” however it does reference the fact the car will offer “over 100 miles per charge” if you dig deep enough into the reservation system.

Currently, I am at a loss as to the reason for this car to exist at all. It made marginal sense when it was to come to market as a relatively inexpensive 2 seat alternative to the Tesla roadster in 2008, but now with the Nissan Leaf committed to delivering its own 100 mile BEV to customers later this year at $25,000 (after rebates), and with the Chevy Volt/Mitsubishi i-MiEV both also moving product in North America in 2011 ahead of the 2e, why would one buy a Aptera 2e? Maybe to cement your Über-nerd status with your peers at UC Berkeley? Seems like a small demographic to sell to.

If Star Trek is a good indicator of the future, at least the 2e will be in production by the year 2250. /sounds about right to me

A GM design patent has revealed a sketch of an MPV similar to the Chevrolet Orlando microvan, only smaller with Chevy Volt-like design cues.  Volt lead designer Bob Boniface’s name is associated with the patent.

Reports also indicate that GM will be unveiling a Voltec-powered crossover concept at the Shanghai Auto Show next week.

Put the two together and the odds are high that GM will be unveiling a new Voltec microvan next week.

The Chevrolet Orlando is capable of seating seven and is built on the same compact delta platform the Volt is.  As long as aerodynamics and performance are appropriately tuned, suggested in this design, the vehicle could be readily made an extended-range electric car.

That GM has been studying this possibility comes as no surprise.  In August, outgoing GM vice chairman Bob Lutz confirmed to GM-Volt.com “we are actually studying the adaptation of Volt technology to the upcoming Orlando.”

A launch date for the gas-powered Orlando has not been announced.  When and whether GM plans to bring a Voltec-powered version to market remains unknown.

The image below is possible a leak of the car sitting next to the Orlando.  The fact that the car is smaller with a more aerodynamic Volt-like front end suggests it is not simply a conceptual exercise but has a strong chance of being put into production.  Press days of the Shanghai Auto Show begin Friday.

Source (GMI)

GM has formed a joint venture with Indian carmaker Reva to develop an all electric version of the gas powered Asian Chevrolet Spark.  This vehicle is a plain vanilla, considerably differently styled car than the upcoming North American gas powered Chevy Spark.

According to a report by Just-Auto, development on the e-Spark has been going to plan and the first prototype cars will be built by the end of this year.

Reva CEO Chetan Maini says, “the model likely will be launched in the Indian market in the first quarter of 2011″

Volumes will be low. “GM would manufacture 5,000 units annually of e-Spark initially,” said Maini.

This vehicle is a low-cost car with quality and safety features only applicable to the Indian market.  It is not intended for sale in the US.

However, according to a top executive, GM is studying bringing a pure electric car to the US market.

GM’s director of electric cars, batteries, and hybrids Micky Bly, says GM expects demand for pure electrics to remain low and thus the car would not be given its own unique vehicle platform.

It would be considered a commuter car or urban car with up to a 100 mile driving range, and likely will apear as a version of either the Chevy Aveo, or more likely the North America Chevy Spark slated to arrive in 2012.

I asked GM spokesperson Brian Corbett what “studying” of a pure electric car actually means.

“We continually review applications of our current and potentially future technologies,” said Corbett. “If there is a market for the technology, where is it, when would it be ready to debut, which vehicles and brands would offer it.”

“It is product and portfolio planning,” he said. “You’ve got to be ready, and you’ve got to get it right.”

Source (Edmunds) and (Autoblog)