Highlights From This Week’s Volt Media Update
On Tuesday, Nov. 17, members of the Volt team gave an update to media on the development of the vehicle. I’m sure you’ve seen some of the stories by outlets such as Autoblog Green, CNET Green Tech and GM-Volt among many others, but we thought you might like to listen to the podcast of the conference call and see what was presented during the update. We’ve also included a quick text recap below. -Phil Colley, Advanced Technology and Environmental Communications
Vehicle Chief Engineer Andrew Farah began the update by saying there is less than one year to go before the start of regular production for the Volt. The goal is to build a great vehicle for the customer and have the Volt be much more than a battery on wheels.
Here are some of the highlights from his presentation:
- GM has teamed with LG Chem to produce a great battery cell for the vehicle. It puts the team in a position to meet customer expectations and to use this technology to make vehicles beyond the Volt.
- Inside the Volt’s battery are cells, which are grouped together into modules that are grouped together into battery packs – or, the T-shaped objects that actually go into the vehicle.
- The Volt is meeting energy power requirements and is now balancing issues such as safety, regulations and customer satisfaction with other issues such as performance, durability, packaging and vehicle design.
- The team has completed the pre-production build process and is in the process of testing the vehicles. Some are being tested around the clock 24/7.
- The team has built all 300 packs for the Volt and the results have been excellent.
- There have been more than 250,000 miles of testing on the pre-production and mule vehicles. Some of the highlights of this testing include hot weather testing in Death Valley, mountain testing at Pikes Peak and a 65% calibration drive.
- Everything is not perfect on these drives, but there are not any problems that will not be handled before production. This is not unlike any other challenges that come with developing a new type of vehicle such as the Volt.
Engineering Group Manager Bill Wallace then gave a battery update:
- There are 50,000 cells available for testing and to date, none of the cells have failed in the tests.
- Pack development is lining up with overall vehicle development and both tracks will meet with the start of production in November 2010.
- Battery cells go through 150 tests, including cell crushing, cell overcharging and cell life cycling.
- There are three major battery modules (groups of cells) inside the pack and they are tested to measure pressure, stress and high dynamic impact, among other things.
- The battery pack itself undergoes more than 20 different types of tests, including corrosion, crash and life cycle use.
- The team learned that the battery is well protected inside the vehicle and the cell abuse tests have shown the cells to perform as expected.
- Since the vehicle is so quiet, noise is an issue and the team is working on ways to reduce ambient noise when the vehicle is in motion.
The team then opened it up for questions:
- In response to a question about how much the internal combustion engine will be started, Andrew Farah mentioned that the Volt is designed to be your only car and even though you can drive up to 40 miles on pure electric energy, the engine needs to be available when you exceed that range. He believes most people that have a Volt will have engine run once a month at minimum because of normal use.
- The Detroit-Hamtramck plant is in the process of being retooled and new equipment is being moved in. The plan is to do the next build of the vehicles at the end of March.
- The tweaks to the battery chemistries are very small. The adjustments are mostly in the life of the battery. It’s a challenge, but also a great asset for the vehicle.
- The battery pack weighs about 200 kgs. Future versions of the Volt will try to reduce that weight, but it is not impacting any of the goals in the vehicle’s development.
- GM continues to work with the University of Michigan. The school offers a special curriculum on energy storage systems and there is an ongoing intern program that works with GM. There are some students who have been hired who work on the charging system or in the battery lab.
- In cold-weather, the Volt has an electric cabin heater to provide comfort. At certain temperature levels, the engine will start to help warm the battery. Heated seats provide good bang for the energy buck.
- The biggest challenge in testing is hot-weather storage of the vehicle. Currently, ten years of battery life is the norm, but some people could get more battery life depending on the climate where they live and their driving conditions.
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The battery pack itself undergoes more than 20 different types of tests, including corrosion, crash and life cycle use.
We are waiting with bated breath, what are the results of the crash tests? If a Volt is in a high-speed head-on crash, will the battery case rupture scattering its contents across the crash scene?
If the battery’s contents are scattered across the crash scene, how does that affect the first responders? Will they need any special training or equipment to handle fires, or do decontamination?
At certain temperature levels, the engine will start to help warm the battery. Heated seats provide good bang for the energy buck.
Can you be more specific please? At what “temperature levels?” Why can’t you say something such as, “Below 45^ F (or whatever), the engine starts to warm the battery.” If I live in northern Minnesota, will I be at a disadvantage owning a Volt?
Since the vehicle is so quiet, noise is an issue and the team is working on ways to reduce ambient noise when the vehicle is in motion.
If the vehicle is already so quiet, why are you trying to reduce the noise? Do you mean the lack of engine noise is an issue since people won’t hear it coming, or do you mean the wind, tire, and road noise is annoyingly noticeable since there is no engine noise to mask it?
I am very excited about this vehicle. Of course there is a lot of worry about the price when it hits the lots. at 40,000 this car will sell better if they all come fully loaded. navigation, leather, heated seats, keyless start, xenon bulbs, etc. A prius with all of this equipment is over 30,000 so if the goverment has a tax rebate of 7000 this puts this car right in the proper value equation. If this car comes in at 40k with manual cloth seats and hubcaps and tops out over 50k then it will fail for any sort of mass market vehicle. This is a halo car for GM and should offer at least everything that the Chevy brand has to offer as standard equipment.
Also on this note all the Chevy cars should have an availble Navigation system. Not having that offered on the Malibu is ridicolous, this is becomming common car technology, should be on the Cruze too for that matter as a top level option. You can get it on a Civic or Corolla, i dont think this is killing their Acura and Lexus sales. Yes yes i know it has OnStar, and while that is a great technology its not the same at all, it needs to have both to set it apart.
Keep up the good work GM your product portfolio is comming together. Now just fill in the blanks on the little things.
For safety, if the vehicle is so quiet – will there be a beeper installed so when the vehicle is placed in reverse, there is an audible tone emitted so pedestrians know the car is moving backwards?
Volt=fail
Who in their right mind would want to buy a car like the Chevrolet volt for 40k, when you can get any other better looking car for less. These guys are going to put the usual “save GM a lo of money” package on these cars, and suckers will fall right into the trap. Its going to have cloth seats with plastic bolt on hub caps, a tacky plastic interior, an underpowered stereo system, close to no horsepower or torque, a battery that will need to be replaced every couple of years(because people will leave it plugged into the wall and ruin it.), and a big plastic body kit. That is what you get from the ‘new GM’. They have been doing this ever since the millennium hit. (some cars were even like this in the 90’s.) They are going to keep ripping people off until they go into retirement. The new Buick Lacrosse, Lacuerne, and Enclave are all rebadged Chevrolet’s. the buick’s are made just as cheaply as the Volt. Not only does the new Lacrosse look terrible, its also a bad buy. Why would you get a tacky looking old persons car, when you can get something that looks better and is a lot faster? None of the cars that “new GM” offers are good. They get the worst reviews by all major news media, and people turn down their new cars everyday because they are made so cheaply.
Take a new Cadillac for example. Each model from this brand costs at least 50k base. Now you add on extras and end up with even more cash out of your pocket. Why buy a Caddy and spend all that money, when you can buy a Chrysler or a world class car like BMW for less? You are overpricing your merchandise and building it poorly so that you can make the biggest profit. (thats what the people on wall street should do, not the American auto industry, and especially not GM.) You have already lost me as a loyal customer. And you continue to loose 300,000 people each day. So until the GM CEO’s step down from office and everything goes back to the way it was, you will continue to lose money until you run out. And when that day gets here, (which will be soon), I guarantee that the American people wont pay another dime to keep you running. Because not only have you gotten rid of all your best brands(Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Saturn, SAAB), but you continue to listen to the people in China instead of listening to the people that are keeping you afloat right now in America. And ever since you killed your best brands, your sales have dropped dramatically. You will learn your lesson soon…..
Wow Mr. negative… Nice commentary; most of it cluelessly false.
Who in their right mind would want to buy a car like the Chevrolet volt for 40k…
PP~
You do raise an interesting question. At a probable price of $40k, why did GM brand the Volt as a Chevy instead of as a Buick or Caddie?
The Volt would seem to be priced above the typical Chevy demographic. My sense is also that the people in the Chevy demographic are less interested in being green and not as likely to invest in new eco-technology.
It is also going to be tough to get the Buick/Caddy demographic to consider Volt wearing the Chevy bow tie. Many will consider buying a Chevy below their socio-economic status.
Were I GM, I would have branded the Volt as at least a Buick and targeted it at a higher demographic level, and then put a Chevy badge on a lesser model as economies of scale and future battery development bring the price down.
I wonder why they didn’t brand the Volt instead as a Buick Electra? Seems a natural to me. What name could be better for an electric car?
What will be the Volt’s mileage once the range-extender ICE kicks in? I’ve head in the 40-45 mpg range. Is that correct?
When are you going to stop the false claims of 230 mpg for the Volt?
What the Volt will be able to do is go about 40 miles on a freshly-charged battery, and then, once the ICE kicks in, get about 45 mpg.
That is a far cry from 230 mpg. Why do you want to get people’s hopes up with your 230 mpg claim, when you know perfectly no Volt will be able to go 230 miles on one gallon of fuel? (MPG does mean miles PER gallon, remember?)
You are already on to something great, why do you want to exaggerate it?
The answer is that those who will buy this car are the same who bought the Prius when it came out. There is a specific consumer who buys cars for their technology. When the Volt hits the market, it’ll be the only one of its kind. The fact that the Prius is about the ugliest car on the planet yet sells very well is proof that technology can trump looks. I’ve seen the Volt in person. It reminds me of a Honda Civic. In other words it is tasteful.
Secondly, where are you getting the some of GM’s products are re-badged, such as the Lacrosse? The Lacrosse is a totally different car with a drivetrain developed in Germany, an interior designed in China, and the exterior designed in Detroit. I met the designer in Detroit. He looked like he was in his 20’s. So in my opinion, the Lacrosse represents the kind of cars GM should be building.
Lastly, if GM went back to the way it was, they would be done for. They used to build absolute junk. Their cars in the 80’s and 90’s, and even early 2000’s were jokes. Not so anymore. I think they’ve done a better job of getting out of making cars for strictly Midwesterners and Southerners and now make cars that are generally pleasing to a wider consumer market. This they need to continue because the largest car markets- the east and west coasts- are not as friendly to their brands.
Edvard,
What exactly did your response have to do with my questions for the Volt team?
My comments were intended for ‘PontiacPower’. Not sure why it was attached to your questions.
The 230 MPG figure come from the EPA standard testing for plug in extended range vehicles. The formula is start with a full charge, drive 45 miles, plug in till full recharge, and repeat until tank is dry. Take full millage driven and divide by gallons used.
Does it make since? Not really. But it is what goes on the sticker. Until the law changes.
Also if they tweeked the batteries so they did 45 miles on a full charge, the Volt would have infinite MPG per they’re rules.
Does it make sense? Not really. But it is what goes on the sticker.
Of course it doesn’t make sense. And of course GM will continue to use it as long as they can get away with it — and as long as gullible people will believe it.
GM needs to announce their mileage figures for the Volt as a function of total energy consumed*, not as a function of volume of liquid fuel burned per an EPA schedule that is some bureaucrat’s arbitrary guess.
___________________
* kWh, joules, or Btus. People will just have to learn that a gallon is a unit of volume and not a unit of energy.
Wade,
I don’t know why you want GM to use a completely unrecognizeable yardstick to rate the economy of it’s vehicles when the EPA is the builder and developer of the single recognizeable yardstick in the industry -and the one used by the EPA to measure the overall impact of the vehicle on the planet.
Your complaint isn’t with GM it’s with the EPA.
David–
Because using a unit of volume (gallons) to measure the fuel efficiency of a car that uses electric motors at the wheels is bogus. The correct unit for measuring electrical energy consumed is kilowatt hours (kWh). The sooner Americans start learning that the better.
Trying to kludge together some driving schedule for combining electrical energy and gallons of liquid fuel only gives GM and the other makers of electric cars the chance to be misleading in their marketing.
You are right through about the EPA, they should take the lead and get this mess straightened out.
David,
Miles per gallon is not a good way to measure the efficiency of a car that uses two different sources of energy for propulsion.
That 230 mpg figure is pure flim-flam because it doesn’t take into account the electrical energy the car consumes.
GM has professional engineers and scientists on staff and surely they know better. Perhaps GM’s new CEO will take his advice from the scientists that work at GM and not the marketeers.
Help save GM and turn the Saturn product line back into Pontiac. They were essentially the same before they pulled the plug. They never needed Saturn but I think they will find out soon that GM really screwed up killing them both. You would have:
Cruze-G5 (Built in Lordstown)
Turn Vue into Torrent (built in Equinox factory. some rebadging required)
Turn Aura into G6 (no changes required since they are built in same plant)
Build Solstice (no changes required since they are built in same plant)
G8 (no changes required)
Firebird (build alongside Camaro)
I dont care about China, In fact this turns most honest Americans off. I cant afford Cadillac and you cant sell $40K Chevys!
JPT~
Don’t forget the Vibe. That car was one of the highest quality cars GM built over the last 3-5 years.
what we need here is a car manufacturer interested in makin cars for the north american market .. gm is dosent care about us.. they only care about the asian markets. i work in the auto parts industry and i could lose my job any day now……… i wood never ever buy gm
For the Volt, How’s Life After 40 (Miles)?
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/22/automobiles/autoreviews/22-chevy-volt.html?hpw
A version of this article appeared in print on November 22, 2009, on page AU1 of the New York edition.
There are 50,000 cells available for testing and to date, none of the cells have failed in the tests.
Wow, that is impressive. No failures out of 50,000. Even one failure out of 50,000 would be a 99.99998% success rate.
When are you going to ask Jay Leno to let you run a Volt against the Focus BEV on his “Green Car Challenge” course?
There is a lot of buzz about this vehicle. I’m excited to see how it does and think it will be a good seller. However, is GM concerned about price? It appears to me that GM vehicles are selling considerably higher than their counterparts.