As a headline, I have to admit that my first thought was "Thank god someone is building a real electric car instead of a faux-environmental car like the hybrid". But if you actually read an article about the car, you find the Volt is limited to ~40 miles on a single charge and then a gasoline motor takes over. So this car is being marketed (rather well I may add) as a full blown electric car when it is, in fact, a hybrid. The only difference between the Volt and existing hybrids like the Prius and whatever the Honda rip off is called is the fact that the Volt uses only electricity for the first 40 miles then runs exclusively off gasoline after that (how much that matters depends on each person's driving habits).
In order to really adopt any sort of alternatively fueled vehicle (electric, hydrogen, or even nuclear powered), the performance measures (speed, range, cost, etc) must be on the same level as the petroleum powered cars we already base our lives around. An electric car that only has a 40 mile range will not fulfil our needs as a people. I can't even get from DC to Baltimore on that. Now if I could just pull over after those 40 miles and fill back up like I do with gasoline, that would work but that is not the case. You have to charge the car for hours to get the charge back to maximum. So sorry GM but your "electric car" ain't gonna cut it for (BTW what happened to your real electric car from the early 90s? The EV1 I believe? Bet you are regretting scrapping that about now. If you don't know what I'm talking about please watch Who Killed the Electric Car?)
Now let's shift gears in regards to GM. My next issue with GM comes from the following text from the same Volt article:
Plans also include doubling the current size of Buick's showroom from three vehicles to six within 24 months. In addition to an SUV crossover hybrid announced last week, GM is preparing a small crossover SUV and midsize and compact sedans.
Buick?!?! This is the same brand that sells 36 cars per year per dealer (or 3 cars per month per dealer). The only brands that have lower figures are Rolls Royce, Isuzu, and Ferrari which are MUCH smaller operations). Buick has been a dying/dead brand in the US for quite some time now for their market segment is the AARP crowd who are either losing their driver's licenses or their lives entirely (not exactly an ideal target market).
Now I have to admit that Buick is setting records in China in terms of sales numbers but that doesn't mean diddly here in the US. Buick dealers are dying in this country, why not make Buick a China only brand like with Opel in Europe? Eliminate the costs to keep US dealers going but keep the huge sales numbers in China.
So, let's back up and take a look at the bigger picture. GM is back to making bad choices after coming out of bankruptcy. No matter how rosy of a picture their marketers paint, the company is still making downright stupid choices and producing crap cars, this time with the government's (aka our) money.
Update: It was just published that the Volt will cost ~$40,000. Who is going to pay that for a poorly equipped, semi-electric American car?
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