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Archive for the 'General' Category

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Volt Chief Frank Weber Going to Opel

October 30th, 2009 | Posted in: General with 96 Comments

Those who follow the Volt closely know Frank Weber has been a key figure.
He is the German-born engineer with the job of Volt vehicle line executive, making him as the leader of the Volt program, reporting to the VP level.
I have had the chance to interview and meet Frank many times.  His precision, attention to [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 96 Comments

Final Integration Chevy Volt Rolls off the Assembly Line

October 10th, 2009 | Posted in: General with 131 Comments

October 9th, 2009 marked the end of another chapter in the Chevy Volt’s development.
The 74th and final integration vehilce prototype version of the Chevy Volt rolled off the assembly line at the pre-production operations plant at GM’s Warren Technical Center campus.
Those following the Volt story closely will remember the countdown clock chief engineer Andrew Farah [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 131 Comments

Zenn Motors CEO Announces Change in Company Plans, Says EESU Development Remains On Target

September 23rd, 2009 | Posted in: Battery, General with 139 Comments

Zenn Motors is the Toronto-based electric car company that was founded by Ian Clifford.
To date the company has only produced low volumes of low speed neighborhood electric vehicles, but had been planning to introduce a highway capable electric car called the cityZENN.
Zenn has based its future and that car on a partnership with EEStor, which [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 139 Comments

GM Announces Brand New Compact Buick Crossover Plug-in Hybrid

August 6th, 2009 | Posted in: General with 257 Comments

Today things just got more interesting.
Besides the Chevy Volt, GM has been developing a 2-mode plug-in hybrid vehicle program since 2006. Originally set to debut in 2010 as a Saturn VUE, that particular vehicle was dropped along with the sale of the Saturn brand.
That didn’t stop the development though. A few weeks ago GM-Volt.com [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 257 Comments

Canadian Government Gives $10,000 Chevy Volt Subsidy, Angers Toyota

July 17th, 2009 | Posted in: General with 235 Comments

On Wednesday Ontario Canada’s Premier Dalton McGuinty announced that the Ontario government would provide buyers of plug-in hybrid vehicles a rebate of $4000 to $10,000 dollars for cars purchased after July 1, 2010.  A $7500 tax credit exists for the Volt in the US.
McGuinty said “we want to make it easier to buy green cars,” [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 235 Comments

Cash For Clunkers Bill Passes Congress but Volt Could Arrive Too Late

June 19th, 2009 | Posted in: Financial, General with 120 Comments

The value proposition of the Chevy Volt could change further. People tend to be fixated on its sticker price, but the complex nature of the vehicle and its interaction with the national economy, government, and natural resources really have created a moving target for the Volt’s price.
GM will not confirm pricing until May 2010 [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 120 Comments

Pontiac Goes, GMC Stays, Chrysler’s on the Gallows Pole

April 25th, 2009 | Posted in: Financial, General with 96 Comments

The end game for Chrysler is fast approaching, like the edge of a cliff.
The US government has given Chrysler until this Thursday to either complete a merger with Fiat or enter bankruptcy. Reports indicate that the government has already begun preparing for the bankruptcy proceedings, and that even if a deal is reached, bankruptcy [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 96 Comments

GM VP Jon Lauckner on Current Chevy Volt Production Status

February 13th, 2009 | Posted in: General with 119 Comments

I recently had the chance to speak to Jon Lauckner. He co-conceived the Volt with Bob Lutz and is GM’s VP of global program management.
What is the current state of mule development?
Frankly, its complete. We’ve built all of the cars that we intended to, around 33 or 35, and we are done with [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 119 Comments

Breaking: Tesla Expects to Receive $350 Million in Government Loans to Build Model S Sedan and Will Unveil it March 26

February 11th, 2009 | Posted in: General with 108 Comments

California-based Tesla Motors is a pioneer in the electric car arena. They first brought the 2-seat electric Roadster into production in late 2008 and now have over 200 cars on the road.
The company is known to have inspired Bob Lutz to start the Volt program.
Tesla also has had plans to build an electric sedan [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 108 Comments

GM Chooses LG Chem to Supply Chevy Volt’s Lithium-ion Batteries and Will Build the Packs Themselves

January 12th, 2009 | Posted in: Battery, Converj, General, Public Opinion with 175 Comments

GM first announced in the summer of 07 that they had chosen two supplier teams to compete against one another to build the Chevy Volt’s battery packs. From an initial field of 27 applicants, LG Chem and Compact Power Inc were one team and A123 Systems/Continental were the other.
We began hearing rumors as early as [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 175 Comments

BREAKING: Bush Approves Loan to GM: The Chevy Volt Dream Lives On

December 19th, 2008 | Posted in: Design, Financial, General, Politics with 233 Comments

Today is truly a historic one for the US automotive industry, and for the dream of petroleum independence and the Chevy Volt.
After weeks of intense political wrangling and nail-biting financial drama, US President George Bush has agreed to grant low interest loans to GM and Chrysler.
As he just announced those loans will be sufficient to [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 233 Comments

Driven to the Brink GM Vows to Build Volt No Matter What, Chrysler Shuts Down All Vehicle Production, and Merger Talks Resurface

December 18th, 2008 | Posted in: Design, Financial, General, Original GM-Volt Interviews, Politics, Production with 109 Comments

The drama of the end game seems to be picking up steam. Despite early reports that the Bush administration would announce loan plans to GM by Wednesday, still no word. Most recently, White House press secretary Dana Perino said “there’s nothing new on the auto front.”
President Bush discussed the topic on Wednesday on [...]

Posted by: Lyle with 109 Comments

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