Chevy Volt

I just can't believe how the govt can keep handing out money like this. $7500 tax rebate + car charger (probably a couple of grand), all just to get people to switch to getting power from the electric companies and further overload the decrepid electric grid. I wouldn't be supprised if the energy compaines started charging EV-owning customers more for power since they would be locked in to high cosumption due to their transportation needs.

Also, what is there about the Volt that would make me want it? Prius and Insight are cheaper (nearly half price). The only thing I see as a plus to a potential buyer is that it comes with a decent battery warranty. But then again if the rest of the car falls apart then what good is the warranty. I really like to see some real world maintenance cost figures for the expected life of the vehicle.

Big Brother will give you the charger for free (first 4,400 customers) but there is a catch....

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However, the charging station doesn't come without a price. There is a privacy trade-off.
As part of the deal, the Department of Energy will be granted access to monitor the charging stations' use. This is part of a 15,000-car study to determine the habits of electric car owners and how electric cars and high-voltage home-charging stations adopted on a large scale might affect the electrical grid. The data will be used for electrical infrastructure planning, according to General Motors.

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http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-20008016-54.html

I think Nexus has figured it out! ;-)

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Originally Posted by Nexus Flux

Also, what is there about the Volt that would make me want it? Prius and Insight are cheaper (nearly half price).

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The Volt only drives the wheels with an electric motor. The supplied gas motor only generates power for the electric motor when the batteries are depleted. Conversely, the Prius and Insight send power to the wheels using both the electric and gas motors.

In short, the Volt is an electric car with an on-board generater in case you deplete the batteries.

The Volt provides the benifits of an electric car without the worry of running out of batteries.

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Originally Posted by jrj512

The Volt provides the benifits of an electric car without the worry of running out of batteries.

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It also provides them a great test platform to work on their all electric drive train... what they use to provide it power ( gas/diesel generator, hydrogen fuel cell, Mr. Fusion™ ) can be swapped in easier at a later date.

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Originally Posted by jrj512

The Volt provides the benifits of an electric car without the worry of running out of batteries.

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What Jimmy said. We often drive 55 miles each way across the metromess to visit friends on the other side of town. Couldn't do that in a Leaf unless we brought an extension cord, I guess (and had 20 hours to wait for it to charge on 110V :roll:). With a Volt I could have all the benefits of an electric only daily commuter without having to worry about range if I decide to go somewhere further away.

I'm sure the Leaf works for some people, but something that only has a 100 mile range (under best circumstances) and then requires a lengthy recharging stop before you can go further is useless for my driving patterns. I can use the Volt just like any other car, and I'd rather pay $33.5k for a real car than $22k for a limited range toy.

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Originally Posted by Dave04

It also provides them a great test platform to work on their all electric drive train... what they use to provide it power ( gas/diesel generator, hydrogen fuel cell, Mr. Fusion™ ) can be swapped in easier at a later date.

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Yep.

They only used the rather large 4-pot in the current Volt because they did not have the budget for a new engine specifically for this. However, they are now working on a very small and efficient task-specific engine for the next generation Volt.

You mean like the small gas or diesel generators that every jobsite has? It's not like this small, efficient generator problem is a new one.

I am intrigued by the Volt but ya question a few things.

• Chevy's website says - Electricity is an extremely affordable way to power a car - the average American pays less than 12 cents per kilowatt hour. In other words, if you drive 40 miles or less that could work out to be about a $1.50 a day. And that can add up to big savings.
  
• Chevy's Website also says - Will I always get 40 miles on an electric charge?
  No. Like any electric vehicle, Volt's electric miles per charge will vary. Like all vehicles, electric vehicles are less efficient in extremely hot or cold temperatures. In addition to outside temperatures, use of features like air conditioning and heat, personal driving style, additional cargo in the vehicle and the age of the battery will affect the electric range.

But at least here in North Texas we don't live in a extremely hot climate where we would need to use features like air conditioning. ;)

At 15,000 miles a year I'm figuring you would need to charge the Volt at least 375 times a year at $1.50 so it would cost ya $562.50 in just electricity. Have they figured out the math yet on what it gets for gas mileage when the generator is running?

BTW. $350.00 a month on a Chevy lease (With $2,500 down) seems a bit high compared to this:

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Lease a 2010 Prius for $199/Month for 36 Months $1999 due at lease signing* Excludes official fees, taxes and dealer charges. No security deposit required.*

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http://gulfstates.buyatoyota.com/Spe...x?series=Prius

My electric is < $0.09/kwh btw.

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Originally Posted by goofygrin

You mean like the small gas or diesel generators that every jobsite has? It's not like this small, efficient generator problem is a new one.

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Yep, it's just that easy. GM should hire you.

Looking at the specs for the Coulomb Technologies CT500 charging station (240V), it draws 7.5 kW of power.

Hypothetically speaking, let's see what this works out to.
Assuming it takes 4 hours for a full charge, that's 30 kW. Assuming the owner charges it nightly, that's 10950 kW per year. At 12.5 cents per 1 kW, that works out to $1368.75 per year.

For the same cost, one could buy 463.98 gallons of premuim at $2.95 per gallon. That works out to just a little over 42 tanks of gas for my car. Seeing how I go through about a tank of gas a week, that's about 42 weeks worth of gas. The Volt seems to have an edge up on the old RSX. But then again, I could buy cheaper gas, drive nicer, and use the highway (I drive 95% city). Also that assumes the Volt buys no gas throught the year, thereby capping it at 14600 miles per year max.

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Originally Posted by Nexus Flux

Looking at the specs for the Coulomb Technologies CT500 charging station (240V), it draws 7.5 kW of power.

Hypothetically speaking, let's see what this works out to.
Assuming it takes 4 hours for a full charge, that's 30 kW. Assuming the owner charges it nightly, that's 10950 kW per year. At 12.5 cents per 1 kW, that works out to $1368.75 per year.

For the same cost, one could buy 463.98 gallons of premuim at $2.95 per gallon. That works out to just a little over 42 tanks of gas for my car. Seeing how I go through about a tank of gas a week, that's about 42 weeks worth of gas. The Volt seems to have an edge up on the old RSX. But then again, I could buy cheaper gas, drive nicer, and use the highway (I drive 95% city). Also that assumes the Volt buys no gas throught the year, thereby capping it at 14600 miles per year max.

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Another way to look at it is that the Volt will get about 40 miles from that charge. 40 miles x 365 days is 14,600 miles. Say you would get 30 MPG in your alternate car, so you would require 487 gallons. 487 gallons at $2.95 is $1436.65. So, the Volt is cheaper. However, it is not cheap enough to pay the premium, but that is part of being an early adopter of a new technology. Remember how much those fools paid for early cell phones and usage?

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Originally Posted by jrj512

However, it is not cheap enough to pay the premium, but that is part of being an early adopter of a new technology. Remember how much those fools paid for early cell phones and usage?

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So your saying to buy the Prius?? ;-)

Oh yea and when you Volt needs gas it wants premium fuel only! ::Banana::

http://www.autoblog.com/2010/07/28/2...s-premium-gas/

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Originally Posted by Nexus Flux

Looking at the specs for the Coulomb Technologies CT500 charging station (240V), it draws 7.5 kW of power.

Hypothetically speaking, let's see what this works out to.
Assuming it takes 4 hours for a full charge, that's 30 kW. Assuming the owner charges it nightly, that's 10950 kW per year. At 12.5 cents per 1 kW, that works out to $1368.75 per year.

For the same cost, one could buy 463.98 gallons of premuim at $2.95 per gallon. That works out to just a little over 42 tanks of gas for my car. Seeing how I go through about a tank of gas a week, that's about 42 weeks worth of gas. The Volt seems to have an edge up on the old RSX. But then again, I could buy cheaper gas, drive nicer, and use the highway (I drive 95% city). Also that assumes the Volt buys no gas throught the year, thereby capping it at 14600 miles per year max.

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According to Wikipedia, the Volt's toal charge capacity is only 8.8 kW of energy.

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The Volt's 375 lb (170 kg), 220-cell lithium-ion battery (Li-ion) pack is anticipated to store 16 kW·h of energy,[1][86] but will be restricted (in software) to use only 8.8 kW·h of this capacity to maximize the life of the pack. It will only be allowed to charge to 85% of full capacity and to discharge only to approximately 30% SoC before the engine cuts in and maintains the charge near the lower level. When the vehicle is plugged into a charger the battery SoC is restored to 85%.

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Assuming you completely depleted the charge every day, it would cost $1.10 a day to charge the Volt. That's $401.50 per year in electricity. In my wife's case, she would be more likely to average <= 50% charge per day (her total daily round trip commute is 10 miles), so her annual electricity cost would be ~$200. Actually less, because we're on an electric co-op and pay a lot less per kW.

BTW, by the math above your car only has an 11 gallon gas tank? Is that correct?

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Originally Posted by altiain

BTW, by the math above your car only has an 11 gallon gas tank? Is that correct?

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Yes that's what I used in my calculation

Here's your electric car Jerrett... ;)

http://www.teslamotors.com/roadster