According to GM the new Chevy Volt will achieve a modest 230 MPG. The Extended-Range Electric Vehicle will be able to propel passengers approximately 40 miles on a single charge and roughly 300 miles with the help of a small gasoline powered engine.
“The Chevy Volt is designed to move more than 75 percent of America’s daily commuters without a single drop of gas. That means for someone who drives less than 40 miles a day, Chevy Volt will use zero gasoline and produce zero emissions”.
Due to be released sometime between 2010 and 2012, the new Chevy Volt will be a very popular vehicle. I am sure that many of you remember the ill-fated GM EV1, General Motors notorious electric vehicle of the 1990’s. The EV1 was a 100% electric car that could travel anywhere from 50 miles to 75 miles on a single charge, depending on the batteries, and there were a lot of batteries. The EV1 was only available to lease, it was eventually disbanded and ended up costing GM somewhere around $500 million. The EV 1 was costly to make and not practical for traveling long distances. It also did not share a platform with any other GM vehicle.
This is where the Volt comes in. GM has addressed all of these issues in the new Volt. It shares a platform with the Cobalt and HHR, it travels further and will be available to purchase, not just lease. The Volt has a lot of promise, but I wouldn’t get your hopes up yet.
There have been many attempts to make the hyper-fuel efficient vehicles. Some of which have been sponsored by our government. The Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles produced the Ford Prodigy, Chrysler ESX-3 and the GM Precept. All of these vehicles were prototypes and were never meant for production. Now, we are able to see one of these vehicles enter the production phase.
This is an exciting vehicle, but 230 MPG? Can this be true? The EPA has yet to release their final assessment, so until then… Enjoy the 230 MPG dream. (related links)
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