Hello and Happy Holidays to all my friends at GM-Volt.com!
Thursday had to be one of the most exciting days ever for me, I’ve taken many new car deliveries over the 46 years of my life but nothing ever like this, The first ever mass produced electric car. After learning that my Volt was scheduled to be delivered on December 14, 2010 from the shipper (due to my dealer’s geographical location it would be the very first stop) I also received these exact words in an email from Cassens Transport:
Thank you for contacting Cassens Transport.
It looks like this vehicle shipped yesterday (12/13) at 12:26.
It is on a load of 9 units with the first drop being in Dover, NJ.
It is 580 miles so, depending upon traffic and weather, I would hope it would be delivered today or maybe tomorrow.
Needless to say I almost passed out! I was to be the very first Chevrolet Volt customer to receive his car! I quickly notified my Sales person Roy Serif with this great news, a few hours later he told me that the media will be at Ayres Chevrolet to cover this historical event. On the mooring of December 15, 2010 we all know what happened Mr. Kaffee took delivery of his new Chevy Volt! Ok I will admit that my story may not be as exciting as Mr. Kaffee’s (no prius to trade in here just a 2002 Toyota Tacoma Pickup) anyway my car did arrive at Ayres Chevrolet Dover, NJ at about 11:50am just after the media blitz a few miles down the road. The driver was still gleaming with excitement from all of the media attention he received there. He did say he had received a call while on the road with orders to stop at Denville, NJ first and not Dover, NJ.
On Thursday, December 16th after picking my son up from school we headed to Ayres Chevrolet and at 4:41pm I took delivery of my 2011 Chevrolet Volt from Sales Consultant Roy Seif. I must say that this was one of the best Auto purchasing experiences I have ever had. The people at Ayres where top notch!
It’s a very cool car, and I noticed the refinement and attention to detail GM has put into this car. Yesterday I let a good friend of mine take it for a drive, he is an electrical engineer. After taking him for a drive I pulled over and let him take over, he asked If we could take it on the highway so we did (rt. 78). Then wile on the highway I said to him hey do you realize you are going 90mph! (speed limit is 65) he said sorry no I did not it felt more like 60-70 to me!. He couldn’t believe how quite the car is and said you better watch your speed in this car as you will be easily fooled on just how fast you are moving. After we got out of the car he said wow America finally got it together I want one.
The engine never came on at speeds up to 90mph
And hey after getting your hands on this car it won’t matter if you’re the very first or not you will be all smiles regardless.
Best of luck to all my GM-Volt.com friends with your Volt Deliveries
This entry was posted on Sunday, December 19th, 2010 at 8:14 am and is filed under Launch, Volt Nation. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
-8
Dec 19th, 2010 (8:27 am)seriously no CS mode (or is it called mechanical assist or something now?) up to 90mph?
+13
Dec 19th, 2010 (8:28 am)I think that that BMW, Mercedes, and Audi, are the ones who need to have their ears perked up. And you can bet even more performance is stuck in the Voltec drive-train just itching to get out.
+17
Dec 19th, 2010 (8:30 am)We are finally among the few, lol. I got mine yesterday and I am ecstatic! We’re got some great years ahead of us with this car.
#218
+2
Dec 19th, 2010 (8:32 am)Merry Christmas to you… congratulations and have fun with it. I wish they were available in MA and my budget were better. Waiting inpatiently for my delivery day.
+16
Dec 19th, 2010 (8:38 am)Me Here,
As long as the battery has charge the internal combustion engine does not turn on. Even at speeds up to 90mph. In this situation the electrical generator acts as a second electrical motor to boost power to the wheels. But again the gas engine does not come on.
The gas engine only comes on when when the battery state is low and under high load situations to assist.
+20
Dec 19th, 2010 (8:44 am)What no lama ?
Tom
+4
Dec 19th, 2010 (8:48 am)Congratulations Airton and thanks for posting! Hope you have many great experiences with your new Volt!
Dec 19th, 2010 (9:15 am)A good read about an exciting car. Keep the evolution of the revolution going.
Dec 19th, 2010 (9:18 am)Looks like good material to start an OWNER FAQ with.
Also, don’t forget the other engine-on condition, winter warm-up when a plug isn’t available.
+2
Dec 19th, 2010 (9:28 am)Exactly. It’s an electric motor PLUS an ICE. There is no reason to run them sequentially all the time.
Volt SS!!
+15
Dec 19th, 2010 (9:30 am)Congratulations, Airton! I used to be jealous, but I picked my Volt up Saturday! I am having the exact same experience as you. Effortless acceleration, silence, smoothness and significant levels of coolness!
Looks like I have the 1st saleable Volt in Maryland. Today I’ll let my daughter drive to work and then some more test drives for family and friends.
Thanks for your posts! So far, everything is working just fine. Center Display reads 0063. Kinda cool for now!
Drive safely!!
Dec 19th, 2010 (9:36 am)Congrats Airton. Very nice story indeed.
Good luck with your Volt.
+2
Dec 19th, 2010 (9:54 am)From the article:
He did say he had received a call while on the road with orders to stop at Denville, NJ first and not Dover, NJ.
Reminds me of Ford trying to orchestrate the order of the 1,2,3 finishers of the 1966 Le Mans race. I would love to see GM try to match that for the USA, using Voltec technology.
+15
Dec 19th, 2010 (9:55 am)What we are seeing here is the power of word of mouth. These first customers and their family and friends become PHEV evangelists. Their impressions and good will toward Volt and electrified transportation will resonate with thousands of other people. Who in turn will be motivated to test drive their own Volt, Leaf or Tesla /EV.
With the Volt experience leading the way; demonstrating the quiet, smooth comfort and power of state of the art EVs – millions will come to know that electric drive vehicles have arrived. And while they sell for a premium right now – the interest and acceptance of thousands of new owners will drive economies of scale and the cost will drop.
Congratulations to all the new Chevy Volt owners taking delivery in 2010! And of course to the immaculate GM-Volt Team. They said it would never happen.
+12
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:00 am)Congrats for the Blessed Event and thanks for the great article! It looks like this Christmas season is going to be extra special for some folks, and that must really be a thrill!
I still think that all of the factors will align to have GM announce significantly higher production numbers, and hopefully a bit faster roll-out in other states. I’m definitely looking forward to spotting a Volt “in the wild” (though ironically, I’d probably need to go to a city to see it)(LOL).
Merry Christmas,
Tagamet
+7
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:12 am)For the benefit of everyone, those impressions must continue to be shared.
Study the past, noting what success stories don’t include on-going discussions about everyone experiences. It’s an essential part of pushing progress forward.
+3
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:22 am)90 MPH? I think there are some bragging right to be had for the first Volt speeding ticket, not that I’m advocating law breaking.
And highway only. 40-in-a-30 won’t cut it.
+5
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:23 am)Congratulations to all you lucky guys and gals that already have your volts.l need kleenex to read all your stories. Thank Lyle for all you have done for all us volt lovers.
Can’t wait to be able to buy one up here in the canadian snow country.
Wish we could tack a couple of small electric motors to the rear wheels to have on call all wheel drive…would be neat.
Merry Xmas and happy holidays to all our volt fans….and even the leaf and prius fans
KEEP THE VOLTS COMING !!
+4
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:26 am)Congratulations Airton!
I know the folks at Ayers – they are good people – I’m glad to hear you had an excellent experience. The VOLT is a ground breaking vehicle, and every step of the way GM needs this vehicle to shatter people’s perception of what American Cars are capable of, along with riasing the bar on what consumers should expect from their ownership experience.
We will deliver our first VOLT on Tuesday – it will be fun!
Go VOLT!
+4
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:27 am)Ok, fellow Volt owners….. Party at Tag’s house next week???
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:28 am)I’m waiting for my ship to come in.
My Volt is supposed to be on it.
+4
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:29 am)Me Here,
The VOLT will go up to 100mph in all electric mode or CS mode. It is only when the battery is depleted, and the car is in CS mode traveling over 70mph, that the whole ‘generator assisting the drive wheels’ takes place. In reality, this will happen in a very small percentage of driving.
The shear silence of the VOLT and the refinement of the ride is most remarkable!
Go VOLT!
+3
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:39 am)Yesterday dealer in Los Angeles County area called me and asked $5000 premium for Volt. That’s insane.
-5
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:41 am)Congrats ! It must be a heady feeling.
First I thought Olivier was posting here because of “The first ever mass produced electric car.”
You should modify that to “The first ever mass produced plug-in hybrid car.”
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:52 am)Airton, Thank you for sharing the news. The details are fascinating and I will guess the age of the dealership (Gearhart Chevrolet – 1929) may have been a factor in the switch. It is wonderful that you are the first customer here at GM-Volt and congratulations for that honor. You even beat Lyle to the punch as his vehicle was last off the carrier.
Thank goodness your friend didn’t exceed 90 mph, as the Volt can speed to 100 mph on EV power and does not need the engine to do it. What a car! With such glowing comments from everyone who is driving the Volt, it could go down in history with owners saying “it’s the best car I ever owned.”
Thanks again for the photos to help us share in the excitement of that great day. The past week, filled with excitement and frustrations will long be remembered. The best is yet to come, and for many it will be a range extended electric drive into the country for Christmas dinner at grandma’s house. May you and your family enjoy your Volt and the holiday season.
+3
Dec 19th, 2010 (10:54 am)I was thinking the same thing. No llama no sale.
+3
Dec 19th, 2010 (11:14 am)Happy Holidays to your family Airton. Owning a Volt is a very big deal for the kids as well. My son keeps asking,”Volt for Christmas?”. I think he had the best line of all yesterday when he looked over my shoulder as I double clicked GM Volt dot com. He asked, “Is that a goat?!” I replied, “No, it’s a llama”.
Enjoy your new Volt. And give your son a hug for me.
NLNS
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (11:15 am)Yeah, 102 in a 70, that’s the ticket.
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (11:15 am)Hitting 90 mph already? So much for ‘breaking the car in’….
And thank you for helping put to rest the myth that only old farts buy Volts. Congrats Airton, and may your boy never own an ICE car as his daily driver – only as part of a collection of automotile relics from the past.
+2
Dec 19th, 2010 (11:18 am)Having your son in the photo reminds me of my brother’s Chevy from 1963. An Impala SS convertible that he used to take us in to get ice cream (yes, ice cream in the car!). Chevy was on it’s way to building a million Impalas a year during those heydays.
I hope that his future memories in the Volt become good ones and a trip for ice cream is more common than a trip to any gas station.
A million Volts, EV’s, PHEV’s, and even FC’s, a year, will be here soon. Our future choices of cars to drive just made a gigantic leap forward today.
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (11:22 am)The popcorn machine does it for me, I think I like NJ.
+4
Dec 19th, 2010 (12:00 pm)I’m still thinking about Statiks article from yesterday, he started it off by saying he’s been accused of being glass half empty. Well, regardless of the headline of his article it was still glass half empty. Statik, I think people are ready for electric cars, the cars that will come out in the next ten years, including the Volt aren’t Prius’. And like the number of Prius’ sold grew each year, the number of electric cars sold will become exponentially greater. If we know anything about human nature it’s that most people want what the other guy has as long as it seems better, and if companies keep making great electric cars, and I believe the Volt is a great electric car. They’ll sell as many as they can make.
Congrats on getting your Volts guys, i’m jealous.
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (12:09 pm)History has shown that this leads to only once outcome. Short-term profit at the expense of customer loyalty and eventually a lot of unsold product which requires heavy discounting to move. Hope your dealer is the exception.
A dealer explains his rationale for the “premium”
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2009/05/5k-camaro-surcharge-a-domestic-dealer-fires-back/
Dec 19th, 2010 (12:29 pm)Thanks for sharing and enjoy the ride!
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (12:34 pm)___________________________________________________________
Top photo says it all!
___________________________________________________________
+2
Dec 19th, 2010 (12:40 pm)This is an interesting point because it highlights a fallacy which is all too common among some EV advocates. That error is in assuming that that an EV must have 100% of its electric power coming from a battery. Not only the 100% requirement not a requirement, it’s not a requirement that an EV have a battery at all.
An EV is a vehicle powered by an electric motor. It doesn’t matter how the electrons are produced. They can be produced by burning gas or natural gas at an electric power plant or in the car. (Producing the electricity at a central power plant isn’t necessarily more desirable than producing it at the car. For example, you’ll produce far less CO2 burning natural gas or biomass at the car than by burning coal at a central power plant). The only thing that matters is that you’re using electrons and a motor to power the car. Once you understand that the electric drive train makes a car an EV, you understand the Volt is every bit as much an EV as the Leaf (except for the tiny amount of torque that comes from the ICE but that’s too minor to worry about). Both the Leaf and the Volt are EVs. They’re just different subspecies. A Leaf is a battery electric vehicle and the Volt is a serial hybrid. A Honda FX Clarity is likewise an EV, only it creates the electricity to drive the car from hydrogen.
Just one big happy, or not so happy I guess, EV family. LOL
Dec 19th, 2010 (12:47 pm)Reading about people getting their cars is a lot of fun. ChuckR had his delivery covered by his local TV station. He thinks he came off nerdy but I think he was “engaged”. In case you missed it here’s the cite:
http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/money/dc-area-customers-take-home-keys-to-chevy-volt-121710
+13
Dec 19th, 2010 (12:53 pm)Ok just one more time
-4
Dec 19th, 2010 (12:54 pm)I am a physicist at Groom Lake NV airbase and work in continued refinement of zero point energy systems in many flying vehicles we use today for many classified objectives. When our government decides to have a full disclosure and declassification of this data in the near future, we will avoid the coming oil crisis that is intent on world economy destabilization. This technology will eliminate any need for oil, gas, coal and electric batteries.
We have refined this energy usage over the last 37 years for use in forms of transportation of automobiles and aircraft and are ready to meet all of the world’s energy needs if our political construct can move forward to enable a new way of life for all of the people of this earth. It has not been easy for our government to move forward at any reasonable pace due to disclosure restraints it has imposed on itself to protect the economy from a possible immense failure by its citizens knowledge that we have are not alone in this galaxy and we are now emerging new members of a larger community of beings of people that span the entire galaxy that is constantly being explored by them helping others as they have been helping us here on earth. I eagerly await the day of disclosure so we can end these years of painful discourse and join our friends from above in a common new peaceful stage of development so we can emerge into the galaxy with mankind as a co partner in all exploration activities in the next century. Please keep a open mind and rest assured this day is coming within the next 4 years as the presidents latest executive order will provide immunity for all military and scientific personnel who come forward and testify and reconciliation with all the unknown will become known to all.
Dr R, H******
Dec 19th, 2010 (1:02 pm)Congrats to you Airton! It’s great to see Volt’s being delivered to happy customers.
join thE REVolution
Dec 19th, 2010 (1:08 pm)Congratulations Airton! I am totally jealous, but it is the good kind of jealousy, where you are happy for the other guy. It will be a great experience with the new Volt, fun to drive and fun to show to other people.
Dec 19th, 2010 (1:09 pm)Dr R, H,
Can’t wait 4 years for this news to come out, at least now I am not thinking about Christmas morning any more.
Dec 19th, 2010 (1:09 pm)LeoK… Could you please private message me in the forums on this website? I’d love to chat with you about a car my friend’s looking for. My name there is ClarksonCote, just like it is here.
Thanks!
join thE REVolution
Dec 19th, 2010 (1:15 pm)Nice try on rewriting history… Shame on you…
The Wall Street Journal differs with you
http://online.wsj.com/video/test-driving-chevys-hybrid-the-volt/623033AA-2106-4757-BE48-0F22F721F0F8.html?mod=googlewsj
I’ll take the word of 2010 SAE International president Andrew Brown, Jr., Ph.D. when he characterizes the Leaf as a “pure electric vehicle”. A descriptive he does not associate with the Chevy Volt.
Many PROFESSIONAL AUTO JOURNALIST have come to the conclusion that the Volt is a Hybrid vehicle driven primarily by an electric motor because it used two fuel sources for propulsion.
Please provide any sourcing you have besides your opinions and GM marketing materials to validate your opinions.
For those who support the Volt, misrepresentations of it’s capabilities will serve it poorly in the long run.
+3
Dec 19th, 2010 (1:24 pm)Show us how the Volt can possibly move without the electric motor, and the debate should be over on that. It moves very handily, without the ICE.
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (1:25 pm)Airton Azevedo posted this in his article “The engine never came on at speeds up to 90mph”
Good enough in my book to call the Volt an EV. But seriously I am not going to try and rewrite the dictionary just yet. If I had any say in it I would call it a hybrid, but I don’t have much say in new words being created for the English language. Just listen for how many people say, “Google it” instead of “Search it,” Google is not a verb in my book.
Dec 19th, 2010 (1:40 pm)Congrats Airton!!
I am jealous as I am of all the current Volt owners and soon-to-be owners of the car, as I will be waiting until 2012 before I can get one.
I would be interested now there are owners out there with them to find out the long term reliability and TCO of the car, what are the maintenance bills, how much fuel have you used over lets say 12 months, that sort of thing, obviously this will take time but it will be interesting to hear from all the Volt owners their experiences with the car over the next few years.
Dec 19th, 2010 (1:47 pm)Congrats !!
I got a question : on “The engine never came on at speeds up to 90mph”
I assume you had enough charge and above 90 mph, the engine supplements the torque. It will be great is you can shed more light on the assumption.
Dec 19th, 2010 (1:54 pm)Yes take it. Very astute observation. One question though. Will Dr. Brown’s conclusions hold up if you remove the word pure and just write electric vehicle? I don’t want to quibble over inane, details do you? Lets use the resources we have to help folks get off oil, instead of arguing over the smallest verbal slights of hand.
Dec 19th, 2010 (1:56 pm)Unni,
Thank you, the battery was somewhere in between 50 and 100%
the car was also in “sport mode” and in the “L” position (for the extra regen)
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (2:04 pm)What a great family event over the years: “Every time mommy or daddy buys gasoline, we’ll take you out for ice cream within the week.”
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (2:19 pm)I called Volt an EV until that minor thing cropped up. Now I call it a hybrid, just like its official designation by EPA.
+6
Dec 19th, 2010 (2:27 pm)Any car that can go full speed for many miles on electricity alone – that’s an EV. If you remove the gas engine from the Volt, then it would be a pure EV. If you add the range extender back, then it’s a range extended EV. Either way, it’s an EV.
But don’t take my word for it. Here’s an article from Tesla motors:
http://www.teslamotors.com/blog/evolving-landscape-evs
“Many people have criticized GM for spinning the issue and calling the Volt an EV with a range extender, and not a hybrid. Those people are usually surprised when I tell them I agree with GM 100% on this. Although the technical terminology of series hybrid has been in existence for over 100 years, the marketplace has redefined “Hybrid” in such a way that I think it misrepresents the key differences between the platforms. You might argue that the average Joe won’t understand the difference between series and parallel hybrid systems if you were to tell them about it but I can assure you that they will understand the difference when they get behind the wheel.”
.
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (2:30 pm)I don’t mind calling the Volt a hybrid, or a plug-in hybrid, or a series hybrid, all of which it is, or even a parallel hybrid which it once in a great while is. The important thing is the performance and what type of fuel it takes to delivery it. Every report is that the performance is outstanding. That is good enough for me.
I think I know about that llama thing. That’s a prompt to the Sheik of Araby to start thinking of what he will be rideing when he finds his jackass dealer is out of stock. The world is starting to take delivery now on tomorrow’s car today, and only a century belated.
BIG BTRY
+3
Dec 19th, 2010 (2:36 pm)My most hearty congratulations to you and your family, Airton, for selecting the very gift that will keep giving for countless years to come; one that will result in reduced oil consumption & air pollution as gifts to your fellow residents all over planet earth; one that certainly many hundreds, no thousands, on our 53,300+ “want list” here at gm-volt.com wish they could have also given to their families this Christmas… and to illustrate these sentiments, here’s a photo featuring that superb gift and the two signature colors (red & green) of our fast-approaching holiday:
+2
Dec 19th, 2010 (2:47 pm)Here’s the problem:
If you remove the gas engine from the Volt, it will work just fine for around 40 miles of range.
If you remove the gas engine from the Plug-in Prius, it will have a top speed of 62 miles per hour (on level ground), and it will take FOREVER to get up to that speed. In other words, the Plug-in Prius isn’t viable without a gas engine. Gasoline is still necessary for normal daily driving.
That’s a huge difference. And more cars of both types will be produced. So consumers need a way to differentiate between them.
As an example, a Vespa and a Harley both have 2 wheels and a gas motor, but these are different vehicles, so the Vespa is called a “Motor Scooter”, and the Harley is called a “Motorcycle”. Other companies make motor scooters, and other companies make motorcycles, so the market has come up with two different names for these types of vehicles.
Dec 19th, 2010 (2:51 pm)I’m comfortable with the media calling the Volt either an EREV or a plug-in hybrid. It’s when someone really screws up and misrepresents the vehicle that I get really irked.
For example, recently the CBC news here in Canada aired a story in which it was stated that the Volt can run for 40 kilometers on battery power alone (i.e., as opposed to 40 miles, not the same thing). Some commentators, such as David Letterman and Rush Limbaugh, were not even aware that the Volt’s range could be easily extended well past 40 miles, and confused the car with pure EV’s like the Leaf…inexcusable…
In any event, it’s great to see patient EV enthusiasts taking ownership of their Volts. I’m expecting to see the early beginnings of a “paradigm shift” sometime around 2015-ish. That’s just about when car prices will begin to come down significantly and peak oil hits.
Sincerely, George, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada….go Volt!!
Dec 19th, 2010 (3:23 pm)Wow, a new *definition* of “bitter sweet”! I know I’d have a fully-orgasmic experience (metaphorically, of course), but I also think that the last one leaving would hear a single gunshot (just kidding, but you get the point).
THANKS!
Be well and Merry Christmas!,
Tagamet
/for example, there is another NEW OWNER post up now and the Volt “socket commercial” just came on TV!
Let’s Just Get Enough VOLTEC Wheels On The Road!!
Dec 19th, 2010 (3:33 pm)Congratulations!! Looking forward to my turn.
CHEVY VOLT: American-made, American-FUELED. End the Middle-East takeover.
Dec 19th, 2010 (3:35 pm)Well-said, and from your lips to God’s ear.
Be well and Merry Christmas!,
Tagamet
Let’s Just Get Enough VOLTEC Wheels On The Road!!
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (3:52 pm)The E-REV confusion is causing occasional readers to post the same question or comment almost daily. GM needs a logo for this technology quickly. Now I understand why GM has insisted that the wheels spin by electricity, because it does and word “hybrid” confuses the issue.
If the “H” word is asked in comparison, here is what I will say. “This is not a gas hybrid, the Volt is an electric hybrid, totally electric up to it’s top speed of 100 mph for 25 to 50 miles.”
Better comments leave out the “H” word:
The Volt is an Electric Car with an attached generator to continue to power the car electrically and with fuel after the battery runs low.
The Volt has a top electric speed of 100 mph.
These are just a few comments we need to have under our belts when people ask questions. And don’t argue the issue, there are some who will remain negative when fuel is $10 a gallon.
Dec 19th, 2010 (5:01 pm)40km is less than 25 miles….the Volt is capable of TWICE that under the right conditions….and then it seamlessly switches over to a pretty good gas engine so you can just continue to travel as far as you want.
Why is this concept SO hard for the airheads in the media to understand? Rush Limbaugh especially should be ashamed. His words and demeanor lead people to believe that he is some kind of super genius….but I think he is just another media “dope” if he cant grasp this idea. Apparently, he thinks he is SO SMART…and so above everyone else…. that he cant be bothered to do a little research and discover just how great the VOLT is….and what a benefit to the world this technology will be when sold in large numbers. I have not personnally heard him denigrate the Volt…I rarely hear his voice as I’m way too busy working and trying to survive in this horrible economy. I get enough ignorance on the news at night.
Maybe they can grasp “SUPER HYBRID” as a term to explain the Volt?
-4
Dec 19th, 2010 (5:50 pm)This attitude is somewhat typical for drug addicts.
http://articles.latimes.com/2006/apr/29/nation/na-limbaugh29
Dec 19th, 2010 (5:52 pm)Well if you want to engage in the most tiny of quibbles OK. Like I said, we don’t necessarily have one happy EV family — lots of marketing BS being swallowed and regurgitated. But just so you know I can be as ridiculous as you’re being I’ll leave you with this. When your battery goes flat and you have to push your Leaf to the side of the road there won’t be a motor driving the wheels so obviously the Leaf isn’t a “pure” EV. (That’s stupid for all kinds of reasons but it’s right on a par with what you’re coming up with here).
However, your claim that EPA agrees your torque argument is simply a factual mis-statement, which is unlike you. For starters I’m not sure the EPA has designated the Volt as anything. Secondly, and more importantly, the EPA would never consider the torque issue since under its tests accelerations aren’t hard enough and the speeds are high enough to induce a situation where the ICE would transfer any torque to the wheels through the small motor/generator. Since in the EPA’s world if it doesn’t happen in its tests it doesn’t happen, that means the torque transfer doesn’t occur. The fact is that the EPA will undoubtedly categorize the Volt as a plug-in hybrid because (a) it’s a hybrid and (b) it plugs in. No mystery here and no need to start reaching for a slim argument relating to torque transfer.
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (6:03 pm)This is a great point. You can see why GM had to come up with EREV rather than just calling the Volt a serial hybrid. Whenever someone says the Volt is a hybrid it’s usually followed by the words “just like the Prius”, which of course is completely absurd.
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (8:10 pm)Hey, folks. Daily reader rare poster. Just wondering where the usual haters are. You know who you are. Those who have tried to bash the Volt and in general have tried to sow distrust and disallusionment within the ranks. Where are you now that the vehicle is available and people are loving it? Where are your comments saying that the Volt isn’t viable, that the Volt won’t delivery on GM’s promises? Oh, too soon. Suck it all you all that said the Volt would never be. Looking forward to 2012 when I can afford one of my own.
+1
Dec 19th, 2010 (8:13 pm)Dr R, H,
A diiferent flavor of troll no doubt…… Me thinks he thinks he’s a starman LOL. To all the new Volt owners a warm (and slightly) jealous CONGRATULATIONS!!! The wait has been long but well worth it.
Dec 19th, 2010 (8:18 pm)
Dec 19th, 2010 (9:54 pm)They’re out there, here’s a google list http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4TSHB_enUS315US325&q=chevy+volt+fraud+
I can save you some time. “gummint motors gummint bad gummint bad less than 40 MPG! Al Gore is fat.”
I hope the correspondents on this site take the time to post some holiday “Told You So”s out in the crap-o-sphere.
Dec 19th, 2010 (11:12 pm)if you cant get info on your volt on myvolt.com then go to chevroletconnects.com-mine was built 12-15 and in transit !
Dec 20th, 2010 (8:36 am)GM can make a lot of money suing radio stations and news casters for slander or misrepresentation of the Volt. Each erroneous broadcast is costing GM potential sales and tarnishing their image.
NPNS!
Dec 20th, 2010 (10:15 am)Actually suing might be taking it a bit far. But calling the ombudsman and explaining how a reporter is getting it wrong and pushing them to make an on the air retraction would be a good idea.
Dec 20th, 2010 (11:30 am)Congrats Airton!
Rich sent me this link- What a great Christmas! Your son has gotten so big- and he is adorable as always! Best of everything to you guys.
Dec 20th, 2010 (2:14 pm)The Revolution has begun, what a great pic of you and your son. Not only is this a great car to get back and forth to work and run daily errands it has a huge benefit of decreasing our demand for foreign oil and hopefully rendering the Middle East are relevant. Too many of our sons and daughters have paid the ultimate price for our lust for black gold.
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