GM-VOLT : Chevy Volt Electric Car Site

This week in Dudenhofen Germany, Opel gave assurances that the Ampera was “on track” for production in the fall of 2011, hinted at pricing, and once again opened the door to a Europe-based production facility for the vehicle in the short term.

Stateside, the very first pre-production Ampera came to life as it rolled off the line in Warren, Michigan on Friday April 23rd. Andrew Farrah, who is also Vehicle Chief Engineer for the Ampera, marked the occasion by also saying, “We’re right on target for producing the Ampera for European markets later next year.”

The Ampera is the sister car to the Chevy Volt for Europe, and therefore it will only travel in kilometers; it has a range of “up to” 60 of them on electric power, and over 500 with the aid of a small gas engine once the 16 kWh battery is depleted.

At some point during the press junket nefarious ‘company sources’ reared their ugly head again and said the Ampera will likely cost about €40,000…or as we are fond of expressing prices here at GM-Volt, $53,000 in US dollars.

To be fair you have to allow for a number of factors to get a realistic translation of what a car priced in Europe would likely sell for on US shores. (VAT allowance, EUR/USD pegging, source of supply/labor, etc)

I won’t go through that calculation specifically – it would be needless long, and the end result would be several readers gouging their eyes out and submitting claims to our legal department for damages, but by my estimation 40,000 Euros on a Ampera works out to around a $34,000-$36,000 price point in the US.

Nick Reilly, who is Opel’s CEO, also mentioned this week that while the Ampera will be built in the US and imported into Europe, GM still plans on European production at some point.

In a statement to a German weekly (WirtschaftsWoche) he said, “The first Amperas will come from the USA next year, but it is our aim to build the car in Europe as soon as possible. We have not yet decided where that will be.”

It is interesting that the focus is on the where it will be built and not the when, previously when a Magna-GM deal was in the works for Opel, the notion of a European made Ampera was put almost on permanent hiatus, with our own sources at GM-Volt.com predicting that Ampera production in the near term to be “minimal.”

Both England (Ellesmere Port) and Germany (Bochum) have expressed an interest in producing the Ampera at their factories, and have bid up GM in a effort to green light production in their countries. I would think that the statement from Mr. Reilly signifies a not-so-open solicitation for the two regions to come back to the table with refreshed incentives, and if they are good enough, Opel will make a decision to build.

Given the current state of GM’s relationship with Germany (and its laborers) after the Magna deal fell through…and Germany’s own pre-election struggles coming to terms with the bailing out Greece (and potentially a good portion of the Eurozone), I think this is a case of Opel seeing how much support they can ring up from England with this project. /the dream of a European made Ampera lives on

After releasing some conceptual art a couple weeks ago, the public got its first chance to get a “taste of the future” from Opel in person at the Geneva auto show. GM bills the Flextreme GT/E as giving customers the ability “to enjoy zero CO2 driving emissions Opel-style “while illustrating that size doesn’t matter.”

As reported earlier at GM-Volt.com, the Flextreme GT/E is based on the same Voltec powertrain, featuring the same 16 kWh battery pack, 1.4l 4-cyl engine for extended range driving as the Volt, but with a slightly larger electric drive unit, rated at 120 kW. This is were the similarities end.

Seeing it in person, the Flextreme GT/E is big. Really big. In fact it is 4762mm long, (almost a foot longer than the Volt) and its wheelbase is over 114 inches, thats Cadillac STS territory, and it is just as wide. Like the Volt, and despite its size, the Flextreme seats four.

In the US, this E-REV would be classed at the very top end of the large family/mid-sized car segment, but in Europe, (where it would be theoretically sold) most cars in this segment are much smaller, it would certainly be classed as a full-size or large car. (The Volt at 4,500mm is right on the cusp of being a mid-size in the US…one mm less, and it is a compact).

But what of the range and spec forecasts? Since announcing the GT/E, another GM EREV (Cadillac Converj) was cancelled, and part of that reason was that range would have be halved due to the performance requirements and additional amenities, therefore you would expect a projected electric range on this car to be not dissimilar, maybe even less. (both use the same electric drive unit)

Not so. And here is where the line between concept and reality gets blurred. GM claims this car has the same 40 mile electric range as the Volt, can sprint from 0-60 in the 8 second-ish range, and of can go faster than 200 km/hr…all the while rolling on 195mm, 21″ tires. Yet the Converj could only go 20?

Working from what we know from the Volt, these performance specifications seem highly unlikely. The only place where the Flextreme has it over the Volt is the drag coefficient, which is a sparse .22 (which is helped by some very conceptual vertical fins that pop out when the car is travelling over 30mph to extend the tail). Side note: It also has no side mirrors…those pesky things are always messing up the drag.

For its part, Opel suggests the new concept “expresses its mission of offering accessible German engineering,” and is the “logical next step in Opel’s unfolding strategy for the electrification of the automobile”

From looking at the design and spec, logically I would say the first buyer of the Flextreme GT/E would come from the planned ‘mega city’ of San Angeles in the year 2032…and the glove box may or may not contain 3 mysterious seashells with instructions for people of that time on how to use them.

[View with PicLens]

GM has released the details and images of its upcoming new Voltec concept car which will be premiered at the Geneva Auto Show in March.

The vehicle is called the Opel Flextreme GT/E.  Readers may remember the initial Opel Flextreme small crossover concept from 2007.  The new vehicle is a large sleek muscular sedan that has a 0.22 coefficient of drag.  Clearly GM learned its lessons on revealing electric show cars with very high drag coefficients (wink).

Like the Volt, it is a 4 seater.

“The Flextreme GT/E concept shows the shape of things to come from Opel,” says Frank Weber, Vice President, Corporate and Product Planning. “Bold, expressive and highly efficient, it represents the product strategy we will apply to all our future vehicles, large and small, across all market segments.”

Yes thats the same Frank Weber who led the Volt’s development before being promoted to VP of Opel.

The Flextreme’s grille is sleek and trapezoidal, and although allowing some air flow, it is partially covered with a translucent divider. The Opel emblem extends doubling as the car’s charging port.

The rear doors are hinged, and there is a glass roof that automatically darkens in sunlight to keep the cabin cool.

At high speed, a retractable rear wheel wind spoiler extends to improve aerodynamics pushing air to the rear of the car.

The Flextreme’s Voltec propulsion system is the same as in the Volt/Ampera aside from a slightly more powerful electric motor.

It uses the same T-shaped rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack and 1.4 L gas engine/generator. It delivers 37 miles of EV range and a total range of 300 miles. It has a top speed of 125 MPH and will do 0 to 60 in under 9 seconds.

Average fuel economy is reported as 1.6 L/100 km (147 mpg US), with CO2 emissions of less than 40 g/km.

The vehicle is not being considered as a fanciful concept, but rather expected to become a flagship vehicle for Opel, whose future in Frank Weber’s hands is decidedly electric.

We’ll learn more when the car is revealed at the Geneva Auto Show on March 4th.

Source (Opel)

We have known for a long time that the Chevrolet Volt is only the first car of a lineage of future vehicles that will be sold not only in North America but globally.

In 2007 GM revealed an Opel Flextreme small SUV concept, and in 2008 they revealed the Cadillac Converj concept.

These cars like the Volt depend on the Voltec propulsion system, which is a primary electric drive with a combustion engine generator to extend driving range.

GM has also shown two concept cars in which a hydrogen fuel cell was used as a range extender. This included an early Volt variant, an later the Cadillac Provoq concept.

There is evidence GM is about to lift the curtain on a new as-yet-unseen Voltec vehicle.

It will be unveiled at the Geneva Auto Show on March 3rd.  A teaser image has been released and appears above. Notice the slick “Voltec” logo on its very unusual grille.

GM/Opel aren’t revealing many significant details about the car yet, or whether it will be production intent.  This is all GM will say publicly at this point:

Concept car gives clues to Opel’s future environmental direction

Opel will premiere a concept car that embodies much of the company’s future thinking in terms of design and engineering.

Using green innovation and alternative propulsion, the concept is proof that size and comfort do not need to be sacrificed for a vehicle to be environmentally efficient.

More details on the concept car will be revealed in due course.

According to GM spokesperson Rob Peterson “the Opel is simply a concept that showcases the potential of the Voltec system.”

Can’t wait to see.

Opel Trixx EV Concept

General Motors is putting its best foot forward with the Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric car.

From their experience with the EV-1, the company has decided a 40 mile pure EV range with a gas range extender is the best solution for mass adoption, allowing the most gas-free driving while at the same time eliminating range anxiety and the need for charging infrastructure.

However, many car companies are choosing to produce pure EVs. Which approach will gain greater public appeal is unknown at this early stage, though the next few years should clarify things.

Thus GM isn’t resting on its heels but is continuing to study a pure EV launch in the US.  They have already joint ventured with Indian electric car maker REVA to produce a pure electric Spark for the Indian market this year.

Vice chairman Bob Lutz was reported as saying an electric Volt would be easy to build.  “Once you’ve done the Volt, pure electric is trivial,” he said. “You just leave some parts out.”

Pete Savagian, GM’s director of hybrid and EV engineering recently admitted that GM has “been studying (the BEV) internally really intensely.”

“Since we see electrification as the long term evolution of the auto, and there is so much going on in the industry,” he told GM-Volt.com. “We study various electrified vehicle options on an ongoing basis to evaluate the merits of how such a vehicle might perform in a particular market and segment.”

When asked specifically about a US pure EV Chevrolet Marketing director Jim Campbell said “thats not something I have a lot of comment on.”

“Its possible but we haven’t made a commitment on it one way or another,” he said.  “Were looking at a whole range of possibilities and that could be a possibility in the future.”

Though vague about the US market, GM’s electric plans for Europe are now more concrete.

In a recent statement on their five-year plan, Opel anounced it would be spending €11 billion to develop advanced technology vehicles.  Included would be the launch of  ”an extended-range electric vehicle in addition to the Ampera,” and “pure battery-electric vehicles in smaller-size segments.”

Opel President Nick Reilly indicated GM will be unveiling a new green car concept at the Geneva Auto Show next month.

“Using green innovation and alternative propulsion,” Opel told Auto Car the concept “is proof that size and comfort do not need to be sacrificed for a vehicle to be environmentally efficient”.

It was long thought that shortly after the Chevrolet Volt went into production in Michigan that a plant would open in Europe to produce the Ampera.

The front runner for this plant had been the Ellesmere Port plant in the United Kingdom, given the strong backing of the state government, and their willingness to subsidize the project to protect jobs.

On Tuesday, however, the Magna consortium reportedly decided it will not produce the Volt’s cousin at this time, and that the reason for this decision is that they feel demand will not exceed the amount of investment needed at this time.

In a report first brought forth by British media, it was said that Magna did not shut the door on ever producing the Ampera in UK, but felt it would not likely again consider that as a option until 2015 or 2016 in the project’s 2nd generation; although a mystery Vauxhall ‘source’ later said that demand, “rather than the launch of the second-gen model, will drive the decision on timing.”

As of now the plan is to export the Ampera/Chevrolet Volt from the DHAM facility in Michigan indefinitely. Naturally, this may cause a strain on capacity and availability of the Volt going forward both domestically and internationally if demand has been underestimated.

Vauxhall’s unofficial-official stance from “sources” on this leak (according to autocar) was:

“There has categorically been no decision on where European production of the Ampera will take place, but in order to justify production at any European plant there will need to be sufficient demand…Obviously we would like to see it built at Ellesmere Port as the Ampera is underpinned by the new Astra. It would make sense”

According to our own GM “sources” here at GM-Volt, Ampera production volumes will be “minimal” anyway. One has to wonder if this development could cast doubt on whether the Ampera reskin of the Volt will indeed happen at all.

One unintended advantage to GM because of this development, is that the recent major devaluing of the US dollar against most major currencies has made exporting cars a much more profitable business. Provided that trend continues, any US made-European sold Voltec vehicle, should be profitable.