Nice but wouldn't drive it, I'll take my 8mpg's

 

Um, you're an idiot if you think global warming doesn't exist. It's a fact that it does exist. Now, whether or not humans have effect on it has not been proven or dis-proven.

 

In what, did u buy a Lambo? Forget boats & hoes. W/. a Lambo, you'd have all the hoes. If you're into that sort of thing. j/k

 

I like the idea, and wouldn't mind having a coupe like the cadillac converj concept rolling on the voltec drivetrain for a DD in the future, but there is some serious fuzzy math going on here to get to the 230 MPG figure. This is not to put down GM's technology, just to try and educate people on the meaning of the 230 MPG number. Let me explain, the EPA tests on a 11 mile urban cycle, under those tests the Volt has 40 miles of range from being purely electric, and the other 11 come from the operation of the supplemental FlexFuel generator. During the 11 miles of operation, the generator consumed .2217 gallons of fuel. If you add up the math of it all, you would need 4.51 recharges, and 1 gallon of fuel to get you the 230 MPG.
That's how I have seen it explained.

Another thing to take into account, GM said that they estimate it would use 25 kWh of electricity over 100 miles of ELECTRIC mode driving. Well, that's fine and dandy but the $$ figures they threw out there don't make sense. Let's just assume some figures, I will use my typical driving habits (what I would drive this vehicle at least) as an example: I drive about 32 miles round trip to work 5 days a week + about 12 miles of weekend driving for errands. That equates to 172 miles per week, @ 52 weeks per year = 8,944 miles annually. So for the 8,994 miles driven, 2,248.5 kWh of electricity would be consumed charging the vehicle. At my baseline rate annual average of $.1157 that would equal an extra $260.15 to "fuel" the vehicle.

That is an AWESOME FUEL BILL, but wait, curb your enthusiasm, I live in the state of Kalifornia. Electric rates have been de-regulated, and with that, baseline consumption allocations have been reduced to the point where, if you run any sort of Cooling or Heating to cool below 85, and heat above 64, IN MY HOUSE, you will run right through the baseline allowance! So, now I have established that in order to recharge my vehicle I will be utilizing more than my baseline allowance each month, lets run the numbers on the tiers PG&E uses (Note, all rates have been averaged for a year). 101-130% of basline allowance gets you $.1388 per kWh, 131-200% of baseline allowance gets you $.2575, and 201-300% of baseline allowance gets you $.3755. Now, my total annual basline allowance is 5,009.2 kWh, I already use all of the baseline for my house, as well as the 101-130% catagory for the existing loads in my house, as well as have already tried reducing consumption to the best of my abilities.

With that in mind, were into the second tier over baseline (the 131-200%) would be 3,506.44 kWh, which when allocated annually would cover the 2,248.5 kWh to charge the volt. So, that 2,248.5 kWh @ .2575 will cost $579.98, really not bad for the near 9,000 miles traveled, but I live in a 1,200 square foot town house, and during a minimum of 4 months of the year I get into the 201-300% category just using my A/C unit, yes I have had it serviced. That means the actual electrical rate used to charge the volt will be even HIGHER than what I have shown here, that is, unless you do not use your A/C!

I forgot to mention, my total consumption is around 7,300 kWh per year, for Two people! The California Average per capita hovers around 7,500 kWh per D.O.E. research, other states in the nation see as high as 15,000 kWh per capita! So my specific power consumption density is about 48% of your average Califonian, and I am still bumping the 131-200% rate to charge the Volt on a Good weather month! Think about all the poor bastards whose households actually use 7,500 kWh per capita already, keeping in mind basline allowances adjust for square footage of residence as well as climate zone.

It's Nuts I tell you!

To add a comparison to this long *** post, I have a daily driver '94 Acura Integra that gets me an average 29.7 mpg, over the 8,994 miles I travel for work/errands annually @ $2.70 per gallon I net a $817.63 fuel bill. In fuel costs alone the Volt would save me $237.64 annually, from an increase in my electrical bill of $579.98. That's not even taking into acount the amount I would have to pay for the car payments, the increased registration costs, and increased insurance costs!

I'll keep my 1994 Integra, for now!

 

No, your an idiot if you fall for it. It's not global warming, it's not global cooling. What it is, is global cycling. It has done it for many, many years, well before anyone we know was walking this earth. A friend of my Dad's collected old news papers. He had a news paper from New York back in the 1850's. The news paper reported that the temperature never dropped below the 70's all winter long. Some of the worst snows we have had was I believe in the 1930's or 40's. They were crying warming last year, and we had the coolest year on record since the 1950's I believe. It's what the earth does, nothing we can do is going to have an effect on it. Volcano's and cow's cause more polution every year then any other source combined. I don't see environmentalists equipping cows with catalytic converters. Study history in depth, you will be amazed at how much of this HYPE, is simple normal stuff the earth does, that we have no control over.

The polar caps aren't melting, they are shifting. A co-worker just got back from Alaska. He said one of the greenie weanie's was asking the Park Rangers global warming questions, and getting very upset by his answers. The Park Ranger offered to load him up and take him to show what was really happening. He said that yes, some ice is melting, but within 150 miles, the ice was thicker than record. It's funny they don't mention that online or in the media, that doesn't help line their pockets.

I am definitely against useless smog and polution. I don't want to trash where we live. I don't like being in some city's that are hard to breathe in. But that's were it ends.

 

Yay. everybody save money!

That's the same kind of thinking that my GF, Sister, and Mother use when they go shopping and come back and say "look at all the money I saved on (item)". Then I think in the back of my head, well, you actually have less money than you started out with, and if you didn't actually need the item, you haven't "saved" .

 

MMMM, Ho's in a Volt, that'll get you're motor running!

 

Its not a bad looking car, but i still wouldnt buy it

 

Looks decent from the front. The concept car looked a lot better until they changed the rear end to look more like a stupid Prius.

 

america wants Big, Ugly, room for the whole family, I Feel Safe In, SUV.
the meaner the front looks, the better the sell.
how did one woman put it, todays cars look like their made out of tin foil when their in a wreck, how can i feel safe in tin foil.

i love the specs in the artical, 230 mpg and a 300 mile range, should tell you how big your gas tank is.
it is sad day when your lawn mower takes more fuel then your car to mow your yard.