Addressing the Volt Questions
By Christopher Barger
Director, GM Global Communications Technology
We’ve certainly noticed the attention paid by readers of this blog and FYI to the Chevrolet Volt. Obviously, we’re thrilled with the enthusiasm around the vehicle and the many questions we continue to get about it. I also know that you’d like those questions answered, especially right here. In the spirit of making this as much of a dialogue as we can, we asked Nick Zielinski, Vehicle Chief Engineer for the Volt, to take a look at some of the most frequent questions on FastLane about the car — and to give the best answers he could to them at this time.
Can we answer everything in detail right now? No — for reasons I think Nick addresses in this session. And since there’s still a lot of work to be done, there’s probably a lot more questions to ask as well. But the team is very ready to answer everything we can right now and engage your questions — and we hope to be as open as humanly possible about our work on this vehicle. So here’s a next step in that process: Nick Zielinski answers some of your questions about the Volt.
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Will it run on the best of the gaseous fuels available in the United States Now?
LPG!
No other Fuel available, I mean Available now, can do what needs to be done in our cities and that is clean our air locally. Los Angeles, CA needs LPG vehicles to get out of its Pollution problem. GM be bold, step up, and give California and the Nation the best choice of alternative fueled vehicles Dedicated LPG cars, trucks and SUVs
Chris,
Thank you for taking time to answer some of our questions. I appreciate your candidness and look forward to hearing more in the future.
Keep up the good work!
Frank
The video is a great way to communicate especially when we get to look at the car! The answeres were general and did not say anything we did not already know. I hope there will be some new closer to reality concepts for the Volt shown at the Fall 2007 auto shows!
I think it should be the GM Volt and become a boutique brand like Saturn. So you have the Volt V1, Volt VX, Volt Electra – in other words – a family of cars.
I can’t wait to hear about he choice of motor and drivetrain layout!
Good idea to put an engineer on here to share why the Volt isn’t in production yet. Although, I will say “good enough” might be better than technically elegant re the comments on lithium ion batteries. By the time LI batteries are at a point where they meet the requirements, the window of opportunity may have passed with a new technology in other areas. Maybe not. GM needs some PR wins and getting this out the door as good enough might be a better approach.
To me, the most important point is how you maximize green technologies to bring the product to market. If that is too expensive, you need a “retirement” program for the car which is green. In other words, this auto is going to have alot of environmentally unfriendly components. Including some type of end of life disposal program to ensure it is disposed of in an environmentally friendly way is important.
Thanks for the update on the Volt development. Another question. Is development in line to have a fully functioning Volt prototype available for Jan 2008 Detroit Auto Show? As fully functioning, I mean with batteries, Elec Engine, IC Engine, Generator, etc. Something that can drive on the road.
Despite what GM has done in the past (crushing the EV1s, watering down the fuel efficiency of the Astra, admitting they’re not bringing any of the Triplets to the US), I’m still extremely hopeful for the Volt.
If you produce the Volt (and, as my latest issue of Mother Earth News says, that’s a big if) I will probably buy one over the Prius. Unless of course it doesn’t get comparable gas mileage to the plugin hybrid that Toyota has planned for a similar timeframe.
Thank you for addressing some of the questions about the Volt. I do have a few technical questions regarding concerns that I would have as a consumer.
As someone who works on his own car and is familiar with the logistics of parts and costs associated with it, how specialized are conventional serviceable parts going to be on a car like this? Are things like brake pads, tires, and belts going to be as readily available as they would be for a more conventional vehicle? What about certain procedures like changing the oil and air filter?
Secondly, what kind of solution do you see for people that might do as you say they will, which is NEVER use the gas engine. Gas does go bad, as does oil and so forth. Am I right to assume that there will be automatic system runs? Most standby gas generators for facilities like hospitals and homes have an automatic weekly test to assure that the engine gets properly run in order to avoid corrosion in the piston cylinders and keep things like bearings, seals, and so forth in proper working order. To have a car that never uses the engine seems like a potential liability. Are there methods being developed to preserve fuel? Certain metal alloys and chemicals can be used to preserve fuels for long time periods. Might I suggest a 2-tank fuel system where perhaps an audible ‘beep’ alerts the consumer when the small tank is filled. This way a person who is using their car as a daily driver with known distances can have enough gas in reserve to use in case they need it, but won’t have a mass of fuel that will potentially go bad before it is used? If they plan on taking a long trip, perhaps they could then fill the compound tank system fully.
As far as solar panels, I can agree that having a solar panel on the roof would never fly. But I can see how they could be used to further their electric-only mileage. In certain climates, this could be a real possibility. I live in CA and my truck sits in a blazing, sunny parking lot at work for 11 hours a day. A 75 watt trickle charger solar panel could possibly recharge the batteries a good deal, perhaps adding 10 miles or more to the final trip. I would also investigate partnerships with solar panel makers to develop optional house kits where the roof of a home could be used to help recharge the car. People will do this anyway as they are already doing with older Toyota Rav 4 electrics. By enabling an easier distribution of such systems might not be as widespread, but it could be a potentially lucrative business venture.
Lastly-I feel that you’re on track with the decision to focus this technology on smaller cars. I would fully focus on the target consumer, which I’m sure you are well aware of as leaning heavily in the more liberal, metropolitan stereotype. Indulge your designs into what you see with other hybrids. The Prius is funky looking. But it screams “hybrid!”which is why it outsells every hybrid by a big margin. Purposely design the aesthetics of this car to cater towards these consumers. Perhaps create a number of alternative designs ranging from earthy, edgy looking designs to something in the euro-chic metro look. But perhaps take that step one more level and design a secondary alternative a model that has appeal towards a more generalized populace: Make a ho-hum, pleasant looking car that most people will simply like because it is comfortable with the added bonus of it being fuel economy.
Anyhow, I look forward to seeing what your final product will be.
Nice work! Zielinski looks like a guy that knows what he’s doing.
It’s almost enough to make me optimistic about the Volt coming to production, despite GM’s dismal track record in getting awesome concepts to market.
Just don’t let the beancounters undercut him.
I don’t think you all have any idea how many Volts you’ll sell if it’s a remotely decent product.
An American-made, well-built, high-mpg car with decent styling and at least halfway decent performance?
You’d sell them as fast as you could make them.
If it outperformed the Prius in looks and mpg, and even came remotely close in terms of reliability, GM would be back on top within 6 months.
How about a Volt Roadster? The Solstice and the Sky are selling pretty well, and I bet the Volt Roadster would sell even better.
Nick and Christopher,
Thanks for this extra information. This is a great example of a large commercial company responding to the inquiries, needs, and questions of customers.
I really appreciated watching the video and learning that this vehicle will be produced and that you may be looking for test drivers or other market research participation which I would also be VERY interested in.
The comments on range are very appropriate. If you look at most commuters, they do travel approximately 40 miles to and from work.
For me this would be the perfect vehicle that matches my needs from the commuting, energy efficiency, cost savings on gas prices, convenience standpoints.
This type of vehicle will do wonders for GM’s profile in the “green” community as well.
Again, this makes me very excited to have GM focusing on this category of vehicle so that sales don’t go solely to the Toyota Prius.
Please execute and continue to progress forward along the lines of the showcar. It has appropriate styling. Modern, yet, practical.
Sincerely,
Eric
Thank you all for the update! My enthusiasm is for the engineering of this vehicle, so it’s always good to hear it from an engineer!
My 1998 Ford Ranger is is getting a bit creaky, and when it goes, I’m hoping to have a 3-way decision between the Volt, the Volkswagen Jetta TDI SportWagen (B100), and the Toyota Prius. Without these novel drivetrains, I would not have even considered buying a new vehicle!
Comment on the E-Flex platform being primary for smaller vehicles. I agree that that should be initial plan. Only I really like the Saturn Aura and if E-Flex could support a vehicle the size of the Aura, that would blow away sells on Accords and Camry. The Saturn Aura E-Flex Line could become the number one family car.
Now I have some questions for you regarding the Cobalt.
Are you cancelling the 2008 MCE and if you are, how do you plan on staying in business when you continue to ignore the hottest segment of the industry?
Motor trends current issue called the Cobalt an also-ran compared to the Civic during their small car comparo and didnt even choose to include the Cobalt because it wasnt considered competitive anymore with the best of the class-Civic, Mazda 3, and now Sentra.
What is with you people!? The Cobalt needs to be improved NOW, not wait until its replacement drops by in 2 years.
Thanks very much for taking the time to talk to us about the Chevy Volt! I want to buy one!
1) The premium cost for the Chevy Volt is understandable. Hopefully congress will provide a new tax rebate for highly efficient and plug-in vehicles.
2) What if there is demand for 250,000 or more Chevy Volts per year? I hope the production rate will be scalable!
3) I believe the Volt you showed was a 4-door sedan model, but I think a 5-door sporty wagon (like the Pontiac Vibe) would be a better choice. People will be buying the Volt for its environmental, efficiency, and energy independence aspects — they will not be “style buyers.” So, offering a vehicle in the greater utility form factor makes more sense. (It has worked for the Prius.)
After watching "Who Killed the Electric Car" I swore I would never ever buy a GM product… but I’ve just been won back!!! Everyone can use a USA made PLUG-IN hybrid and this looks cool too! Tell the middle-east to keep their evil oil – at least some of it! Here are the questions keeping me up at night!!!
Nick;
Thanks for responding- it’s very interesting.
I have a question you didn’t answer: will there be a power takeoff on the Volt? I ask because I live an in area where the power can often go out in the winter time in sub zero weather. Being able to run a cable into the house to run the furnace in an pinch would be great, and I would think a serious selling point in the snowbelt.
It doesn’t seem that it should be that difficult– as I understand it, the Volt can be changed off 110AC, so why should it not go in reverse?
Also, here’s another snowbelt suggestion while I’m at it: put a timer in the car so that the heater can turn on at a certain time in the morning to warm the car up, and thereby do it with line voltage, and not deplete the battery range. Interior cabin temperature is really just another form of energy storage.
Thanks!
Mr Zielinski,
More questions for you, if you feel inclined to further respond:
Mr Lutz says the Volt will have a three-cylinder gasoline engine that is capable of getting 50 mpg when the battery has been discharged to below 30%. Your early projections guess at a battery weight of approximately 400 lbs.
Question: What kind of mileage would that car get if you took out the 400 lbs of battery, and just let the engine run a generator to power the electric motors at the wheels? It seems that without that deadweight, it would get a lot more than 50 mpg.
Question: What kind of mileage would the car get if instead of a three-cylinder gasoline engine, you were to use a small, three-cylinder turbocharged diesel to power the generator or alternator that powers the wheel motors? I’m guessing you’d be looking at something in the range of 75-80 mpg (or more).
Question: Since GM now has no cars with a CAFE of even 40 mpg, wouldn’t it be a worthwhile to develop in parallel with the battery-powered Volt a turbocharged diesel-electric hybrid version as a backup in case the battery technology doesn’t pan out as planned?
Regards,
Gary Dikkers
As an engineer I have to ask: If your electric vehicles become sucessful and are mass produced, how do you plan to handle the load requirements placed on the power grid for all these new vehicles? Have you been working with he government to consider this problem? Or is there sufficient capacity to handle all these vehicles?
it’s going to be a huge battle when the next Prius with 100 mpg mileage is released in 2009. you better come up wit the volt at that time, or you would lose huge market share. i will definitely get the volt for the rear wheel drive. you should also equip the car with a two-pin socket which is easier to plug in than a three-pin. Solar panel roof is a great idea to recharge the car in the middle of the day instead of pluggin in everyday. Also make it a coupe and sedan version. without a sedan version, i dont think u can compete with toyota. in the end, it is pointless if u cant compete with toyota. and make sure u clean up the retiree healthcare benefits mess this summer by setting up a union-managed industry-wide VEBA fund.
Beam me up, Scotty!
Hi everyone. Thanks for the enthusiasm and for all the follow up questions!
I wanted to level-set… since there’s so many questions coming in, I know people will want to continue getting answers (or at least the best ones we have at the moment).
I hope that everyone also understands that the Volt team’s busy trying to get the car ready — so we have to be mindful of that when trying to get time with them to answer more questions. Also, since the traditional product lifecycle of a car is measured in years, there’s not always going to be “new” answers to questions in a period of just a few weeks.
That said, I/we agree with you – we need to be out here staying engaged and listening to you and trying to answer your questions as best we can. So right now we’re thinking that we’ll keep doing this, we hope about every 6-10 weeks or so depending on what questions you have and whether we can answer them well enough to everyone’s satisfaction right now.
So please, if a couple of months go by and you haven’t seen a new video up from Nick, don’t think we’re ignoring or abandoning this idea. We will keep doing this, I assure you! And if we don’t get to your specific questions, I apologize in advance; we’ll do our best to get to the most frequently asked or some of the best ones.
Christopher Barger, 6?4, 9:10 AM:
It’s nice to see someone from GM actually responding to these thoughtful questions and suggestions. Thank you.
I’m sure you noticed the May sales reports. Toyota Prius 9th largest selling car in the U.S. According to the L.A. Times, “Sales of its Prius almost tripled from a year earlier.”
If the Volt team doesn’t mind, I’d like to handle this one.
There’s already sufficient power in the grid to cover the needs of several million plug-in cars. Demand for electricity goes through daily and yearly cycles. The lowest demand is overnight and the highest is during the day.
Since most Volts and other plug-in cars will be plugged in overnight, we’ll be using spare capacity to charge our cars.
Thanks so much for your time answering questions about the Volt. I LOVE the idea of having a solar cell to trickle charge the battery…but I hope you can make it look good as well!
Great job on this topic! Keeping your customers engaged by answering questions and posting follow up comments will only increase people’s interest in participating here.
Now for a question-Any thought to using the aluminum chassis from the zo6 to produce another EV1, which could be sold until the volt is feasible for production?
Hey gtjeff:
Aluminum chassis – I love it. “Simplicate and add lightness” -Clarence “Kelly” Johnson.
A guy here in Bellflower has a little electric car made in Canada. I can’t remember the name at the moment. It has an exquisite, obviously hand fabricated aluminum chassis. The aluminum framed seats must weight about 10 lb. each. It has a fiberglass body – I still remember your comment about the composite panels on the Vue.
Alas, it has lead acid batteries, and a range of about 30 miles at 35 mph, but boy is it cute.
I thought the video segment would be more of the same, but Mr. Zielinski was pretty informative regarding the technology behind the Volt. His inability to answer te business side is excusable. Overall, I came away pleased.
Wow! I can’t wait until this car gets built. I would like to thank Mr. Zielinski for answering questions about this car. I realy hope chevy makes this vehicle. This is the best idea chevy has had in decades, keep up the good work and put this car into production. The sooner the better.
Mr. Zielinski (and Mr. Barger) –
I am very happy to see you providing a response to questions raised, on this blog and elsewhere — a blog should be a dialogue like this, not just a ping from GM followed by a bunch of echoes from us. I’d like to offer one specific question, if I may, for the next Q&A session: what are the odds that “E-Flex” will be flexible enough to include an all-electric variant?
You, and other GM representatives, have referred to the possibility that many drivers of the Volt would never need to use gasoline, since a 40-mile all-electric range is plenty for the majority of daily driving. You refer to the combustion engine (E85, gasoline, (bio)diesel) as an “insurance policy” against the need to go farther than 40 miles; how about, instead, a larger battery pack to go, say, 80 miles, or over twice the average daily commute/errands driving? The EV1 with Panasonic lead-acid batteries, not even NiMH let alone lithium, had this kind of range a decade ago, in my experience; in addition, the larger battery pack would not need to be discharged as deeply in typical use as a 40-mile pack would. Thus it seems that you could relax the demands you must otherwise place on the battery, which should help get the first models of the vehicle on the road sooner. This would also avoid the problems pointed out by edvard above with a combustion engine that wouldn’t be used very often by this kind of driver.
I listened to Bob Lutz’s NPR interview on June 6th (iTunes podcast), and he specifically mentioned that the Volt is being designed as an around-town car for regular commuting and errands, and not so much for long drives. This is what most people call a “second car,” but of course since most people in the typical two-car household don’t drive cross-country nearly as often as they drive cross-town, it deserves to be called the primary car. This is precisely the kind of use that a pure battery-electric vehicle is ideal for!
Of course, somebody is bound to ask, “what if you forget to plug it in? what if you do need to drive cross-country?” Well, then, buy a Volt with the combustion-engine “insurance policy.” But the only insurance policy most people are required to have is liability insurance; nobody forces you to buy, say, trip insurance before a vacation. For those of us who think we have a good enough grip on our driving needs not to want to lug around a combustion engine that will be of no benefit to us, and that will only cost us money and time for smog checks and whatever mitigation measures are needed for “stale gasoline,” why not offer us instead the option to substitute the “insurance policy” of a larger (and, as noted above, probably longer-lived) battery pack? Again, this should help you get the E-Flex system into showrooms more quickly; and need I mention that introducing (and actually selling, not just leasing) an “EV2″ will wash away the bitterness and skepticism engendered by GM’s handling of the EV1?
Thank you for answering our questions Mr. Zielinski. I am still confused as I know many are as to why GM is still focusing on larger vehicles and letting Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Hyundai and even VW as well as other foreign car manufactures run away with the small economical car market (50 mpg or better) with out even a scuffle from you. (Cobalt needs a redo already its stale) Why not put the Volt out now and do a recall when you get the longer life battery, make it able to be retro fitted into the already in production car so you can capitalize on the buzz on the car now. NASA has been doing this for years. The systems and batteries you have in the car as it sits now work do they not? Get some of the market share back from Prius. There is some suggestion I really liked. The five door sport option…I would use that. The timer or remote start that would use plugged in power to warm up or for those “California People” cool interiors (heated/cool leather seats, steering wheel, de-ice or defrost windows) on those cold mornings here in the north east. I am not able to garage my Volt. It will be covered with snow. That would help a lot to get me on the road faster and not use any of my precious battery life. I know you want to do this thing right. But you could actually take a lead on this one and leave them scrambling to catch up to you, not the other way around. I do not want to lease the thing I want to keep it. I talked to several people that had one of those leased EV1’s and they all said they loved them and they did not want to give them back when they had to. You can do all the recalls you want to upgrade or change something on it but let me keep it. I would love to be a test driver. I want to be put on the list to buy or get production information if there is such a thing. What ever happened to those EV1’s are they still around or did you scrap them all?
Jack –
A few of the EV1s were kept by GM for research, a few were gutted and given to university automotive engineering departments, a few were gutted and given to museums (I think the one in the Smithsonian is the only intact one) — but the vast majority were trucked out to GM’s desert proving grounds and unceremoniously crushed. Do a Google search on the phrase “EV1 Death Row” and the top two links will be to the homepage of the EV1 Club with photos of the crushed cars, and to a page on my website with photos of a bunch of EV1s (and S-10 electric pickups) parked at a GM facility in Van Nuys awaiting their fate.
after reading how my state,PA.,now does not have enough fuel tax money to build and repair the roads and bridges what is going to happen when we cut back or even cut out using gasoline and diesel to fuel our vehicles?
This maybe a dumb question?
I assume; front wheel drive.
why not a split axel in the rear like the vette.Instead of disk brakes-put a pully at the drive shaft on both sides of pumpkin direct to gen.Or like the m/cycle chain or belt drive off the wheel it self with guard to keep the dirt out.Split the shaft in the rear put in a pully. I would like to see this one built Butch
Motorman said:
Motorman,
Never fear, ethanol will come to the rescue.
You won’t hear them say this, but one reason so many state governments support ethanol is that increasing amounts of ethanol in motor fuels will also increase fuel tax revenues.
Adding ethanol to motor fuels decreases mileage and increases the total gallons of fuel burned, increasing taxes collected.
There is even anecdotal evidence that Minnesota’s ethanol mandate has increased by more than 10% the total number of gallons of fuel their drivers burn, with of course a corresponding increase in fuel tax revenue.
As that old saw says, “Follow the money.” That is especially true when it comes to corn agribusiness and the ethanol fuels industry.
Cordially,
Gary Dikkers
I am a public transit person right now, because I feel that there is no reasonable “green car” out on the market at the momment. I wish to buy an electric car, I do like the style of the volt, but I would also love to have the sky car as an electric car (something sporty). You should give an option to have all of your vehicles with these new technologies.
I love the solor panel option, GE has great new tec on this and therefore you should consider looking at their products. I know you said that you are already in partnership with them for the volt, so it isn’t a big leap.
The end recycle idea is good too. And as a consumer I would rather have a bigger battery then have any combustion motor weighing me down.
Sooner is better then later!
Nat
I’d really like to see a development process that includes a “battery only” option on the volt, utilizing the space saved by an ICE for more batteries and longer range….it’s a simple offering as the rest of the R&D is straight from it’s current design configuration.
Thanks for the update. I am very optimistic — for the first time in decades — about GM’s position in the marketplace. If the Volt is as good looking as the concept is, it should blow the doors off that wretchedly ugly Prius.
Chris,
Thank you for keeping GMs loyal customers informed. We’re all biting our nails in anticipation of e-flex. Many of us miss the EV-1, but we know that timing is everything and NOW is when demand meets technology. It’s magic time! In an effort to best use lessons learned from past experiences, I have attached a link to the EV1 Club “Wish List” for your reference. I hope this is helpful. http://ev1-club.power.net/wishlist.htm I can hardly wait for you next post. Can we please get the B100 range extender in the US? I’d also like the option of just adding more batteries instead of the range extender. Thank you.
Nick,
Dig into this yourself, all of the way to ground level. It will be well worth your while. Otherwise, you will have missed the golden opportunity to do what was intended. Do whatever it takes to make the Volt rear wheel drive. Run, don’t walk.
Adventureguy