Archive for the 'Financial' Category
Update: EnerDel’s Chairman on the Cost of the Th!nk Lithium-ion Battery Pack
One of the unknowns in determining how much the Volt or any electric car should cost, is determining the automaker’s cost for the lithium-ion battery.
A number that has been put forth by experts in the field is $1000 per kWh installed in liquid-cooled pack. If this were true, the Volts’ pack would cost $16,000. [...]
Popularity: 7%
GM on June Sales: Asia Doesn’t Have a Monopoly on Fuel-Efficient Vehicles
On July 1st, GM released its June 08 sales figures. Due to a tightening economy, consumer credit squeeze, sky-high oil prices, and plummeting truck demand it was widely expected that GM would experience a greater than 20% drop in June sales compared to the year prior.
It turns out, all the automakers but Honda and [...]
Popularity: 21%
Ford Calls the Chevy Volt a Hail Mary Play
Ted Miller is Ford’s senior manager of energy storage. He outlined to Bloomberg News Ford’s cautious approach to plug-in vehicles.
Balking at the idea of what GM has done with the Volt he said "if there’s going to be a true plug-in hybrid market, we’re going to be there. It’s just that that’s a huge [...]
Popularity: 38%
McCain Praises Development of the Chevy Volt
Today Republican Presidential candidate John McCain toured the GM auto plant that makes Chevrolet Cobalts in Lordstown Ohio. He told workers there among other things that he supports government investment in producing future electric cars.
He also is reported to have praised the development of the Chevy Volt.
He told the workers, “we can lead [...]
Popularity: 35%
GM CEO Rick Wagoner Tells Obama About the Chevy Volt and Gives Financial Assurances
GM CEO Rick Wagoner attended a forum with Barack Obama and other automotive executives and academics today at Carnegie Mellon University.
Obama asked automakers how the next President could help them through the current crisis.
Wagoner asked for help with research funding to develop advanced batteries and vehicles.
Per the article:
Wagoner sounded a note of optimism, noting GM’s [...]
Popularity: 40%
GM Requests $7000 Tax Credit to Chevy Volt buyers, McCain Offers GM $5000
GM VP of global program management Jon Lauckner met with a congressional caucus last week and indicated his hopes for government help in getting people to adopt the Volt.
He said:
“What we favor is actually a sliding scale depending on how much battery you have on board. When I talk about $6,000 to $7,000, we’re [...]
Popularity: 45%
Plug-in Cars May Substitute Dependence on Foreign Oil With Dependance on Foreign Batteries
One of the most compelling and important advantages of switching our fleet to plug-in electric cars like the Chevy Volt is being able to break this countries dependence on foreign oil. As oil supplies become tighter and demand increases the detrimental effects on economy and quality of life become clear, as the current oil price [...]
Popularity: 41%
GM Pauses on Future Truck Development as it Faces Unprecedented Economic Challenges
In following the Volt enthusiastically, one cannot help being struck by the significance of GM’s current financial challenges.
The company had been in the midst of a turnaround effort when VOLT was first introduced. Since then many significant economic hurdles have been presented. Not the least of which is the rapidly slumping sale of trucks and [...]
Popularity: 41%
Lutz: GM to Build 10,000 Volts in First Year and 60,000 in Second Year
Besides price, another question that we often debate is how many Chevy Volts does GM actually plan to build.
Since the concept was first announced in January 2007, three numbers that come up in the press most often are 10,000, 60,000, and 100,000.
Two of them have come up again.
In discussions I have had with Mr. Lutz [...]
Popularity: 48%
Lutz: $40,000 is Breakeven Price for the Chevy Volt and First Generation Will Not Make Money For GM
A new interview with Bob Lutz taking place yesterday has been published in the Seattle Times. The article outlines GMs plans for the Chevy Volt as well as electric cars in general and contains some interesting comments from GMs vice-chairman and product czar.
Lutz indicated his enthusiasm for electric cars saying “we believe profoundly in [...]
Popularity: 58%
GM May Offer a 20-Mile Range Version of the Chevy Volt
One of the best things about the Volt is being able to drive without gas for most of one’s daily driving needs. It is clear though, the 40-mile range lithium-ion batteries are going to be expensive, limiting how low GM will be able to sell the Volt for.
In a new interview, Volt vehicle line director [...]
Popularity: 62%
GM May Acquire Hybrid Battery Supplier Cobasys
GM has had to recall 9000 NiMh battery packs, made by Cobasys, which are being used in the mild hybrid versions of the VUE, Aura, and Malibu.
This represents one third of the entire fleet. The reports of battery failures apparently began surfacing in December, when drivers became aware of them via dashboard indicators displaying [...]
Popularity: 53%
Recent Posts
- Update: EnerDel’s Chairman on the Cost of the Th!nk Lithium-ion Battery Pack
- GM Marching to a New Beat: Expect Mutiple Volt Versions
- Exclusive: Interview With EnerDel Chairman Charles Gassenheimer
- Wall Street Journal Opinion - Chevy Volt Just a Political Tool
- GM on June Sales: Asia Doesn’t Have a Monopoly on Fuel-Efficient Vehicles
- Artist’s Estimation of the Production Chevy Volt
- Should GM Skip the Volt and Just Make More Efficient Gas Cars?
- Continental Says Chances Good of Getting Volt Battery Contract
- Lutz Explains Why the EV-1 Can’t Simply Be Reintroduced
- Ford Calls the Chevy Volt a Hail Mary Play
