EV range and cost-effectiveness: Chevy Volt versus Toyota Prius plug-in hybrid

[larry4pyro]

"Plug-in success will ultimately be driven by cost effectiveness and nothing else"

This article discusses the relative merits of cost verses EV range. It makes several good points. However since I am biased towards the Volt and don't think all the comparisons were fair, but interesting reading never the less.

Article at the following link:

http://www.hybridcarblog.com/ev-rang...lug-in-hybrid/

[bonaire]

Thing is, it's not about cost (at this time). Widespread success - yes, I agree it comes down to cost. Initial success is already out there - a Gen-1 volt can be purchased. That is a success for anyone buying one. The Volt is not built to save customers money. Buying the Volt instead of keeping a good, already existing and paid-for car is a bad monetary decision. If your lease is up and you need a new car (buy or lease) then the Volt could make monetary sense. If you buy a car for enjoyment and want a high-tech, leading-edge vehicle - that's a Volt. If you want to cut down on importing oil and have lower cost-per-mile as you do it, the Volt is for you. People do not buy vehicles for cost-effective decisions alone. CorvetteGuy here on this site definitely can speak to the passions people have for certain cars which make no monetary sense at all.

Plug-in will become commonplace due to the efforts to build the Volt, various other hybrids and various Plug-in solutions. Plug-in success is entirely up to how efficient and widespread Lithium-based battery technology is developed. NiMH couldn't do as well to build-out a prolific EV market due to energy/weight ratio. Worked for the Prius hybrid design but would fail for an EREV.

What these writers fail to do is discuss passions and political decisions when talking about efficient-cars. We know they write about econo-boxes for people who want to "save money" by getting high mpg. Why not consider them "people who want to use less foreign oil" as well? That wouldn't come up in an article about a Cruze Eco - but might regarding a Prius - and does when BEV and EREV are discussed.

[jsmay311]

"Plug-in success will ultimately be driven by cost effectiveness and nothing else"

There's probably a lot of truth in this statement, generally speaking. But it doesn't apply to everyone. It's more cost effective for most people to buy a Corrola than a Prius, but lots of people buy Priuses anyway.

Fortunately, as battery costs come down, each mile of range will cost less and less.

[DonC]

This is most probably an example of a misguided engineer writing a complete pile of cr@p. It's wrong. Not merely in a small way but in a huge and impossibly complete way. No one cares about efficiency or a cost-benefit analysis. If this were true the Insight would outsell the Prius. Isn't happening. The Prius sells more because it gets the best MPG and people who want the best MPG will pay for it.

Bob Lutz in this book deals with this issue directly. He talks about how the hybrid engineers explained to him ad nauseum why no one would want a serial hybrid because a serial hybrid was, gasp, LESS EFFICIENT than a parallel hybrid. Then they wanted the Volt to run the gas engine every ten minutes to keep the battery optimally charged. He sums up the entire sad experience with the engineering empire, which is directly applicable to the guy writing this article, as follows:

Undaunted, they droned on about "maximum efficiency", thus demonstrating yet another instance where extremely intelligent people could not grasp a very simple concept: the customer wants forty full miles of blissfully silent, fuel-free electric driving.

I don't give a rat's @ss about terminal efficiency. If I did I would never have bought any of the cars I've owned. And I don't think I'm unique. Misguided souls can babble on about whether the PIP is more efficient but at the end of the day you can't get out of parking garage without the engine coming on. Who wants that?

[JamesMcQuaid]

"Plug-in success will ultimately be driven by cost effectiveness and nothing else"

The purpose of an unqualified and over-generalized statement (such as this) is not to describe or explain, but to advance an agenda or point of view. With numerous plug-in vehicles entering the market over the next two years, you can be assured that they are here to stay. As such, the plug-in vehicle is a success.

Bonaire is exactly correct in pointing out that cost equations do not motivate purchase decisions. I did not select the Volt solely for economic reasons (although predictable cost of operation is very appealing). The environmentally friendly aspect of the Volt was not the primary consideration in choosing it (although it certainly was a positive). Nor did I opt for the Volt simply because I will no longer be contributing to the erosion of America's national security.

For me, the most compelling reason for driving the Chevrolet Volt is the driving experience itself. The Volt provides performance beyond that of other affordable, highly efficient vehicles (such as the Prius).

Ironically, the unqualified and over-generalized statement may end up becoming true. This will be the case if Iran is finally successful in provoking a catastrophic war. Thanks to North Korean assistance, they will have a functioning nuclear weapon later this year. Consequently, Iran is already starting to throw its weight around like a drunken bully, and in July announced that they had pre-targeted U.S. forces with ballistic missiles.

Don't wait too long to get your Volt...

[bonaire]

Though this may not apply to the article from the OP, there seems to be some competition coming from other fronts in 2012. Mazda 3 will be refreshed with some new "SkyActiv" moniker for engine and transmission (6-speed auto) which seems to bring it up to 40mpg or better. The Honda Insight 2012-13 is rumored to have higher mpg than the Prius now.

All the better to cut down on oil usage. It'll be nice to see a lot of 35-50mpg cars on the road including EREVs. Maybe a few BEVs scattered around out there too.

[WVhybrid]

I don't think anyone making a choice between a BMW and a M-B ever worry about maximum efficiency. If that was the only decision, then everyone would buy a Honda Civic. A lot of people buy Civics, but most people don't. The Volt is an iconic car, and has features that can't be counted in your bank account (like its silence, its great handling, and its reliance on Made in USA electricity) that make it attractive to a lot of folks.

WVhybrid

[therfman]

Simply put, the volt is the iPad of the automotive world. While it achieves the same results as technologies that preceded it, it does so in an entirely new way, and that alone is reason enough to buy one for a segment of the population, myself included. It's not all that rational, but many decisions aren't rational ones. Otherwise, ww would indeed all be driving Honda Civics (which, BTW, has been the best selling passenger car in Canada for many, many years now)

Over a million people bought an iPad on the weekend of its original launch. Nobody knew what they would do with them (or even could do with them) since they were so new, but they still bought them because it was the newest, most groundbreaking thing out there. Right now, the Volt is in the same situation.

My fear is that something newer and more technologically advanced will appear on the market before GM makes enough Volts to satisfy early adopters, and as a result it never get the momentum necessary to get others to notice.

[Raymondjram]

Consequently, Iran is already starting to throw its weight around like a drunken bully, and in July announced that they had pre-targeted U.S. forces with ballistic missiles.

Don't wait too long to get your Volt...

I am still waiting for my Volt.

But if everyone here is in fear being a target of Iran's missiles, just move down to Puerto Rico and bring your Volts!