Drive Time
GM’s Greenest Car Yet
Come along on our test drive of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt.
By Jessica L. Anderson, Associate Editor, Kiplinger's Personal Finance
February 5, 2010
In the world of green machines, the terms miles per gallon, gas pedal and even transmission don’t apply. With the Chevrolet Volt, you’re talking kilowatt-hours and accelerators, and there is no transmission -- the electric motor sends power directly to the wheels.
The four-seat Volt is an Extended Range Electric Vehicle (E-REV) that boasts 40 miles of pure, emissions-free electric driving. After that, a range-extending gasoline engine kicks in to drive an electric generator.
Electricity is used to power the Volt at all times (hybrids, and even plug-in hybrids, rely on both the gas engine and battery for full power). All told, the range is expected to be 300 miles.
Behind the Wheel
I recently had the opportunity to take the Volt for a spin. After all the build-up, I thought there was no way it would live up to the hype. Boy was I mistaken.
In the automotive world, concept vehicles usually never see the light of day -- only the lights of the auto-show floor. While they’re meant to inspire future designs, production cars rarely keep the futuristic flair built into concepts.
For three years, GM has teased us with concept versions of the Volt, and the almost-final Volt, although not as sleek as the original concept, keeps lots of concept cool.
That’s especially true inside the cabin. The center stack looks as if it belongs in a cockpit and features a seven-inch display screen and iPod-like touch controls for climate, media and more. Smaller details, such as door inserts with futuristic designs, reinforce the illusion.
For all its forward-looking design on the inside, the Volt doesn’t reach too far on the outside. The exterior is fairly conventional, but sleeker and sharper than anything in Chevy’s current lineup. It’s not an easily identifiable design outlier, like Toyota’s Prius. It walks the fine line of being different without being too different.
On the road, the Volt surprised me with its tight handling and good road feel -- although acceleration isn’t especially quick, despite GM’s promise of instantaneous torque. Operation is nearly silent in electric mode, and it’s plenty quiet even when the range-extender kicks in. Top speed is 100 miles per hour.
The Volt has some cool techie features, such as feedback on how to improve energy efficiency based on your driving habits. An OnStar mobile application for smart phones displays the car’s charge status and lets you set times for grid-friendly charging, when electricity rates are the cheapest. (Using a traditional 110-volt outlet, the battery will charge completely in eight hours; it takes three hours with a 220-volt outlet.)
You can also use a phone to start the vehicle remotely and warm or cool it using power from the grid rather than deplete the battery after you get going.
Steep Price Tag
GM hasn’t announced prices yet, but the Volt is likely to be in the $35,000-to-$45,000 range. Although the car has some premium standard features, such as a rear backup camera and heated leather seats, the steep price may be a deal-breaker for some.
But you get a couple of discounts. First of all, operating costs will be lower than for gas-engine vehicles. With the cost of electricity averaging 10 cents per kilowatt-hour, the Volt operates in electric mode for about 2 cents per mile. With gasoline at about $2.85 per gallon, a traditional car that gets 30 miles per gallon costs about 10 cents per mile to operate.
In five years you’d save $5,840 compared with a gas-engine car, assuming you drive no more than 40 miles per day. Add to that a $7,500 tax credit that Volt buyers will be eligible for and you may be able to slice more than $13,000 off ownership costs.
Production on the 2011 Volt will start at the end of the year. GM hasn’t announced production numbers, but is says it plans to build “thousands” in the first year.
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Reader Comments (5)
Posted by: Bob at 02/05/2010 10:48:40 PM
You are right!!! A $35,000-$45,000 price tag is the deal breaker. At that price, the higher auto insurance costs and high car payments make the $7500 tax credit not sound so great. I could buy one of several current small cars for around $16,000 that get good gas mileage, drive them 200,000 miles on $4/ gal. gas and still be money ahead. Detroit had better get over the idea of making it on high margin luxury cars as fewer and fewer Americans can afford to buy them. While I believe wholeheartedly that electric cars are the way to go, it will only work if they are marketed in the $15,000-$20,000 range. If we are to make a difference in reducing energy consumption and reducing CO2 emissions, we need to make the new electrics as affordable to as many consumers as possible.
Posted by: Nomen at 02/05/2010 11:44:28 PM
Only 40 miles on electric and only a 300 mile range with the gas assist, you've got to be kidding. On top of this you get to drag out the heavy duty extension cord every night and put it away in the morning. As I look at the new cars I wonder, why do modern passenger cars have to be in the 1.5 -2 ton weight range?? My 55 Chevy had a real frame, a cast iron engine, steel bumpers, very little plastic and weighed less than most of the mid sized cars currently on the road. My old 65 Volkswagen beetle weighed 1720 pounds. If we really want efficiency, we need to stop pushing 2 ton vehicles down the road that seldom carry more than one or two people. It seems like all the auto companies are trying to extract premium prices for exotic technology that delivers very little in return. So much more should be possible. With the current technology available, we could all be driving multi-fuel turbine electric cars right now.
Posted by: J. Wilson at 02/07/2010 05:42:45 PM
I am excited about the idea of an electric vehicle, and I can't wait to get my hands on one. But I promise you this: it will not be a Chevy Volt. Chevy had a chance in the late 90's with the EV1, but like idiots they scrapped it to make more money off their gas-guzzler, enviro-disaster behemoths. Since the vast majority of their vehicles have always had abysmal reliability and performance records, I am not about to drop the money for another shoddy GM product. I think electric vehicles are the way to go, but the smart money is on Japan or Germany.
Posted by: Limoman at 02/11/2010 06:48:01 PM
1. cost btwn $35-$40,000 2. They loaded it up with "standard Premium Options"? What does that mean? They're forcing you to take them and pay for them want them or not , right? A common trait going on with all cars lately..just to boot comissions and profits.. I wan to meet the Suckers whoare willing to pay $40,000 for a Compact car and then try driving it on the Hwy at 70 mph with the big riggs.. Try driving it in 90 degree Temps..with A/c On and see how long it last now.. try about 50-60 miles recent stories say.. It's a glorified Electric Golf Cart not intended for the Hways, Right? I sure hope so.. Cna buy the same 4 cycl model for $20,000 Less... Now divide that $20,000 into say $3 gal gas = 6,666 gals of gas Now x 36 mpg that 4 cycl gets = 239,999 miles You can buy 2 of those 4 cycl models for the price of the one Volt.. Right? It will be a Novelty Car at best.. Buy a Chevy Malibu , 4cycl instead and invest the other $15k-$20k and you'll be far better off .. Ave $17.5k invested in Global Bond Fund ave 10% apy? Doubles every 7 yrs..about the time you want to dump your car and have $35k to buy a New one..by then. Europe has had the right idea.. Ford Diesel's! they get 45-50 mpg..! Double what gas Cars are getting and if that doesn't impact Oil Imports? I don't know what will... Oh, 1 more thing? If we went to majority Diesles? Bet the Price of Gas would drop like a Bomb.. Then Diesel Price will go up, since it is all due to Supply and Demand right? Same will go the way of Electric .. Sure pay China the $ to Build our Windmills.. It creats more Jobs, right? Sure, for China! and when wew need Less Electricity from the Unjtility companies, wanna bet they will just Raise the price for it, to keep their profit margins Up? They're already doing it with our conservation we're doing now..Paying the same for Less...
Posted by: Limoman at 02/11/2010 06:54:52 PM
Our Bail out $ at work.. and keeps the Unions Happy as well..That's what this is really all about.. Will we Bail out GM again? After comming out with a 300 HP Camaro? and not offerring it in a Stanard V6 and $ cycl modles like they used to? They still have Muscleheads in charge living in the 60's..