GM-VOLT : Chevy Volt Electric Car Site

Honda has finally jumped into the ring with its very own pure EV production offering.

At the LA Autoshow, the Japanese automaker unveiled the Honda Fit EV concept.  The electric version of the popular car will have lithium ion batteries and a 100 mile driving range.  More importantly, Honda is committed to bring the vehicle to market.  It will go into production in 2012 for both the US and Japanese markets.

Styling will be based on the current Honda Fit and likewise has room for 5 passengers and cargo.  The production model will differ in appearance to the concept shown this week.

The vehicle’s high density coaxial motor is the same one that’s used in the Honda Clarity fuel cell vehicle and will offer a top speed of 90 mph.  Honda say the 100 mile EV range is based in the US LA4 cycle and will actually be reduced to 70 miles after EPA adjustment.

The Fit EV has three driving modes; normal, sport and economy which were derived from the settings of the current CR-Z hybrid.  Economy mode will increase range by 17% compared to normal mode, and 25% compared to sport mode.  In sport mode the car will accelerate similarly to an ICE Fit with a 2.0 L engine.

Like other EVs the Fit EV will have a driving  efficiency coaching gauge on the dash and an alert telling the driver to turn off accessory loads like AC for when range become critically low.  The Fit EV will also offer connected features like satellite navigation and a charging station finder as well as mobile apps for remote charge monitoring, notification alerts, and remote cabin conditioning.

Charging from depleted to full is expected to take 12 hours at 120-v and 6 hours at 240-v.

In addition to demonstrating the pure EV, Honda also announced it would begin producing a plugin hybrid as well in 2012.  Though no vehicle was displayed, the drivetrain was outlined.

It will consist of two electric motors, a gas engine, and a 6 kwh lithium-ion battery.  Three driving states are utilized; electric only, combined gas-electric and gas engine only.  The vehicle will be capable of from 10-15 miles electric only, with a top pure electric speed of 62 mph.  The engine is a 4-cylinder 2.0 L Atkinson with CVT.

To support these electrification efforts Honda will begin an advanced technology demonstration program later this year in which Google will be a partner.

Though a little late to the party Honda has finally admitted electric cars are a good idea, a long cry from the CEOs denouncement of GMs plans for the Volt back in 2007.  Now all the top five US market automakers have officially announced production electric car programs, and a world without oil moves closer still.

Source (Honda)

Shortly after their recent stock sale, General Motors announced it would be spending $40 million on clean energy investments across America.

The company said its goal in doing so was to reduce carbon emissions by eight million metric tons over the next few years.  The eight million ton value is the same amount of carbon dioxide produced by electricity use in nearly 1 million US homes, and is the same amount 1.7 million acres of pine forests can absorb.

More saliently, it is also the same amount of carbon dioxide the 1.9 million Chevrolets expected to be sold in 2011 will produce.

As such,  the funding for this initiative will come specifically from the Chevrolet brand and will be spent over the next 3 to 5 years on various projects that “promote energy savings, renewable energy, responsible use of natural resources and conservation in communities across the United States.”

Funds will be awarded through third-party non-profit organizations such as the Bonneville Environmental Foundation based in Portland, Oregon.

Projects to be considered for funding may include the following:
* Providing energy efficient technology such as smart energy sensors and solar panels to schools and other community-based facilities in need of upgrades to decrease carbon dioxide emissions and reduce heating bills.
* Supporting wind farms and solar projects that deliver renewable energy to the grid and also help family farms increase their revenues per acre.
* Capturing flammable methane from community landfills that delivers clean energy to the grid and improves local air quality and safety.
* Contributing to forestry projects throughout America.

“GM has made great progress in reducing our environmental impact, but we know we can do more,” said GM CEO Dan Akerson. “Chevrolet’s investment is an extension of the environmental initiatives we’ve been undertaking for years because the solution to global environmental challenges goes beyond just vehicles.

“This is an opportunity to connect with Chevy customers through clean energy projects that directly impact them,” he added.

A website has been set up to help explain the program: http://www.chevycarbonreduction.com/

Chevrolet has also produced a Tim Allen-narrated TV commercial called Spaceship Earth promoting the program and starring guess which car?

The Detroit Hamtramck (DHAM) plant where the Chevy Volt is being built has been busy turning out cars for some time.  Initially these were known as validation builds but eventually evolved to saleable builds, meaning they are as final as consumer production cars will be.

For a while these saleable build have been used as captured test fleet cars, initially for GM employees and most recently for me and other members of the Volt advisory board.

Reports are surfacing from Chevrolet dealers, however, that GM has already begun to produce cars that are going to actual consumers.

A report in the Detroit Free Press notes that a Volt allocated to a customer of Puente Hills Chevrolet was completed on November 9th.  Henna Chevrolet in Austin, Texas reports that one of their customer’s cars was built on November 10th.

DHAM Plant manager Teri Quigley declined to say how many customer cars have already been built.  GM initially planned to have the Volt launch ceremony on November 11th which was changed to November 30th based on the timing of the IPO.  This suggests that true consumer cars are being made, but that GM won’t announce it until the launch ceremony.

In fact I have noticed my own Chevrolet Volt order is showing up as code 3800 on the Chevrolet tracking site, has a VIN number, and is described as having been built on November 9th and awaiting shipment.

Besides only waiting for the launch ceremony, EPA labeling may be another  hold up on shipping.  GM’s VP Tom Stephens told Automotive News the Volts won’t be shipped until the EPA label arrives.  Those labels are actually finally expected to come “any day,” he said.

After the announcement of the big three car of the year awards, it is likely Volt demand will continue to skyrocket.  Stephens confirmed demand is already shaping up to far exceed capacity.  ”What do you hope for if you’re in the manufacturing business?” Stephens said. “To always have more demand than you can supply. They always say that’s a good problem to have. That’s the problem that we have right now.”

He even confirmed earlier reports that GM has already asked LG Chem to increase lithium-ion cell production so as to supply more cells than initially were planned.

GM’s chief of marketing Joel Ewanick also told reporters just how quickly demand is growing.  He said the number of Volt handraisers Chevrolet has signed up now exceeds 220,000, up from about 70,000 in the late summer, and he points out aggressive marketing and advertising hasn’t even begun.

What we longstanding supporters have long known is finally coming true.  GM has a huge hit on their hands, and a great way for the country to start reducing petroleum consumption.  In fact in my first 9 days of driving the Volt I have covered 568.1 miles, and used only 3.22 gallons of gas, for a total fuel economy of 176 mpg.  And the driving of this car is more splendorous, refined and limitless than I could have ever imagined.

Source (Detroit Free Press), (Automotive News), and (Reuters)

The Chevrolet Volt is on a remarkable roll. Two days ago the little car that could took home both the prestigious Motor Trend and Automobile magazine cars of the year awards.

Today GM jumped back into the stock market with a 6% rise in shares, making it the largest IPO in US history.

And now before the shares have even had the time to come back down, the Volt took home its third coveted automotive prize. It was named the 2011 Green Car of the Year by the Green Car journal.

The Volt beat out a host of the latest hybrid and electric cars including the Nissan LEAF. It is the first time in history an electric car was awarded this prize.

“This has been a long time coming,” said Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of Green Car Journal and editor of GreenCar.com. “The electric vehicles that were test marketed in the 1990s tantalized us, but were without a solid business case. What a difference a decade makes. Now, Chevrolet has stepped up with an all-encompassing package in its Volt extended range electric car – a car deserving of the title 2011 Green Car of the Year®.”

A strong factor leading to this decision has to do with the Volt’s unique ability to allow owners to drive most of the time on electricity and to do so without range anxiety.

“The Green Car of the Year® award validates the Chevrolet team’s promise to deliver a practical electric vehicle,” said Joel Ewanick, VP, U.S. Marketing, General Motors. “The Volt’s a transformational technology that will lead our industry into a new age of vehicle electrification.”

Besides the Nissan LEAF, the Volt also beat out the Ford Fiesta, Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, and Lincoln MKZ Hybrid.

Onwards and upwards. Can the Volt score a grand slam an take North American Car of the Year? We will soon know.

Source (Green Car Journal)

For those of us who have closely followed the Chevrolet Volt since its debut at the 2007 NAIAS Auto Show, we have also been forced in a sense to follow General Motor’s financial ups and downs almost as intently.  As the General goes, so went the Volt.  No GM.  No Volt.

It is no secret that many of us were firmly in the “GM is not going to make survive” camp, despite then CEO Rick Wagoner’s confidence in the company, but we all hoped somehow that  the Volt project would come to fruition before the company perished.  Unfortunately, when the housing market (and greater US economy) collapsed, the auto market went along with it, and sped up the bleeding on the American car institution’s balance sheet…and sure enough, our worst fears where confirmed as the company pled for loans to avoid bankruptcy over the holiday season of 2008, before eventually filing for bankruptcy in June of 2009.

However, what happened next was one of the most controversial, but also one of the most successful, incidents of government intervention into private business of all time.  Despite many personal opinions (including my own) that the government should not interfere so significantly in the bankruptcy process, GM was cleared of their debt, given an infusion of working capital, and reborn anew.

Today marks GMs return to the open market.   Once again the ticker symbol ‘GM’ will take its place on the New York Stock Exchange.  And it is quite a return indeed…the largest IPO in US history, passing that of Visa’s $19.7 billion sale in March 2008.

The recently upped price of the IPO at $33/share, is still $10 light of the $43.67 average transaction price the government needs to break-even.  It is thought that GM, under the government’s first hand picked CEO, Ed Whitacre,  have intentionally priced the offering below expected market value to create a sense of continued success long after the IPO has come and gone.

However in so doing, the government has backed away from earlier plans to vacate the company as soon as possible, and looks to gain back initial losses when GM has fully realized its value at some point in the future.  Reportedly, that delay did not sit well with promises that  Mr. Whitacre had made, or had been promised, and that continued government involvement was one of the main reasons why he has stepped away from leading the company.

Still, GM has many reasons to be pleased with the way things have turned out since leaving bankruptcy in July of 2009.  While market share has expectedly dropped with the closure of Pontiac and Saturn, GM has been able to retain an average transaction price north of $33,000 per vehicle in North America, with a much higher margin thanks to new efficiencies and an absence of crippling debt on the balance sheet.  Things have also gone incredibly well of late in China, South America and many other regions of the world for GM.

GM just posted a Q3 profit of 2.1 billion dollars, bringing their yearly rake up to $4.77 billion, and is coming to market trading at 8 times this year’s earnings (based on the first 3 quarters income), roughly the same as estimates for Dearborn rivals Ford Motor Company.

Is everything perfect now?  Not hardly.  Daewoo, who actually makes a quarter of every GM product sold is functionally bankrupt without cash from the mothership.  Opel was also a mess at the time of bankruptcy, and it (as well as Europe itself) has gotten much worse since…it looks like second to last former CEO Fritz Henderson was right to keep to the plan to sell if off, and the decision to retain Opel would seem to be the one major blemish on Mr. Whitacre’s record in his brief stint as CEO.

So should you invest in new GM now?  Sure why not, it is now as healthy an automobile company as any right now, and should ride on market sentiment alone for a good stretch.

The better question is, “is it a good, stable, long term hold?”

The only facet of the government sponsored bankruptcy that is really troubling is the fact the GM under the Troubled Asset Relief Program, can carry forward losses racked up by company before bankruptcy to be used to offset future tax liabilities…$45 billion worth.  Not only was this unnecessary (and against accounting principles), this gives GM incentive to overstate profit for its (and the government’s) own gain.   We also have to see how Opel and Daewoo unwind themselves from their current situation.  It will certainly take many billions of dollars to right those ships, and the financial accounting waters are far too murky to get an adequate feel for the situation still.

Overall however, General Motors and the US government have done an almost flawless job turning things around, and in marketing the new company.   They both deserve all the credit in the world.  Many jobs at the company (and at hundreds of suppliers) have been saved, as well as the American institution itself.  GM’s recovery has really turned into a symbol of the hopes of the country it was founded in.

Will GM live up to the current hype behind it?   Probably not.  Will GM continue to be a profitable auto maker with a bright future for success?  Most definitely. /and that is plenty good enough

It’s auto show time again, and time for GM and the other automakers to strut out some of their R&D and design handiwork.  Don’t forget that’s how the Volt itself was born so sometimes these concepts are worth a close look.  Automakers also gauge consumers response to determine whether to actual build these vehicles, something else that happened with the Volt.

At the LA Auto Show, GM has unveiled what it is calling the Cadillac Urban Concept car.

The vehicle is an example of  a diminutive city car that could be used in tight highly populated urban environment where parking spaces are small and hard to find.  That idea is married with the luxury features and accouterments expected in a Cadillac.  Furthermore the drivetrain is a highly efficient hybrid one.

The vehicle seats four and has scissor doors for easy egress and ingress.  The doors extend outwards and rotate forward when opened with a push of a button.  The interior is spacious and lathered in high tech surfaces including touchpad screens instead of traditional analog gauges.  Premium leather seating with copious head and leg room is provided along with a large windshield and twin skylights to maximize airiness.

It has a razor sharp high tech design profile and is only 151 inches long with a 97 inch wheelbase and sports 19 inch wheels.

The propulsion system is a concept version of the eAssist next-generation mild hybrid design GM recently disclose it was building into the next year Buick LaCrosse.  In this case that hybrid system is mated to a 3-cylinder 1.0 L turbocharged engine, very similar to the one initially conceived for the Volt.

With this configuration and considering the vehicle’s size shape and weight, GM is confident it could achieve 56 mpg in the city and 65 mpg on the highway.  GM even confirmed its confidence in these numbers based on “extensive prototype and production experience.”

“The Cadillac Urban Luxury Concept celebrates its scale with intelligent, innovative content that makes it unique regardless of its size,” said Clay Dean, Director of GM North American Advanced Design and Cadillac Brand Champion. “It has a small exterior footprint, but is roomy inside.”

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