Volt mileage

[sweetbmxrider]

can you even rate an electric motor in miles per gallon?

[HeadlessNorseman]

you guys are also forgetting that electric motors are much more efficient at powering a vehicle, at energy conversion, at producing power, etc. Its not like they are just moving the fuel burning to a different time/place like in a hybrid. Electric motors make peak torque at 0 rpms, can be revved very high because they have one moving part, and are about 80-90% efficient at energy conversion compared to the 10-15% of a gas motor. And by also running the gas motor as a generator, at a constant rpm and load, instead of powering a car, you are making it that much more efficient as well. 230 mpg "average" is very conceivable. Even if it doesnt end up that...100, 150? still fine with me

[BurninrubberGT]

isnt it impossible to judge the mpg for a car like this?

[NastyEllEssWon]

Originally Posted by Tsar

And just like I said before I do not know anyone who does less than 40 miles per day

i drive less than 100 miles a week

[Savage_Messiah]

Originally Posted by Tsar

And just like I said before I do not know anyone who does less than 40 miles per day, much less 20 miles to work one way.

my job is 12 miles each way, and most people I work have under a 10 mile commute, many under 5

[Tsar]

Well I guess I know two people now. I know my gf's mother drove a little over 180,000 miles in 5 years. Her step father drives about the same if not more, he goes all over jersey and as far as upstate new york for his business. Gf drives slightly more than 100 miles per day, just to work and back. My parents do about 50 to 70 miles per day on average.


How does one "plug it in" if they live in the city area, Brooklyn for example? Do you just drop a cord out of the 5th story window?

[Tsar]

Originally Posted by WildBillyT

"MPG" is secondary. It's ****ing electric car that actually is usable in everyday life. Kudos to GM for getting this far, now they just can't kick the ball in the street like usual.

MPG is not secondary to people who will be buying for that sole purpose. And this is not some ground braking "OMG first electric vehicle in the history of mankind" thing.

[BurninrubberGT]

Originally Posted by Tsar

How does one "plug it in" if they live in the city area, Brooklyn for example? Do you just drop a cord out of the 5th story window?

LOL so now instead of people slashing tires they will just unplug the cars in the middle of the night


and my dad's job is like 20 miles away

[NastyEllEssWon]

Originally Posted by BurninrubberGT

LOL so now instead of people slashing tires they will just unplug the cars in the middle of the night


and my dad's job is like 20 miles away

haha i thought of that too tsar.....someone around the corner will jack your jack and get a free fillup leaving you running on gas the next day


'' i cant come into work today...someone unplugged my car'' <<< soon to be classic

[Tru2Chevy]

From the press release about the magic "230" number:

http://media.gm.com/servlet/GatewayS...12&docid=56132

WARREN, Mich. - The Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric vehicle is expected to achieve city fuel economy of at least 230 miles per gallon, based on development testing using a draft EPA federal fuel economy methodology for labeling for plug-in electric vehicles.

The Volt, which is scheduled to start production in late 2010 as a 2011 model, is expected to travel up to 40 miles on electricity from a single battery charge and be able to extend its overall range to more than 300 miles with its flex fuel-powered engine-generator.

"From the data we've seen, many Chevy Volt drivers may be able to be in pure electric mode on a daily basis without having to use any gas," said GM Chief Executive Officer Fritz Henderson. "EPA labels are a yardstick for customers to compare the fuel efficiency of vehicles. So, a vehicle like the Volt that achieves a composite triple-digit fuel economy is a game-changer."

According to U.S. Department of Transportation data, nearly eight of 10 Americans commute fewer than 40 miles a day http://tinyurl.com/U-S-DOTStudy .

"The key to high-mileage performance is for a Volt driver to plug into the electric grid at least once each day," Henderson said.

Volt drivers' actual gas-free mileage will vary depending on how far they travel and other factors, such as how much cargo or how many passengers they carry and how much the air conditioner or other accessories are used. Based on the results of unofficial development testing of pre-production prototypes, the Volt has achieved 40 miles of electric-only, petroleum-free driving in both EPA city and highway test cycles.

Under the new methodology being developed, EPA weights plug-in electric vehicles as traveling more city miles than highway miles on only electricity. The EPA methodology uses kilowatt hours per 100 miles traveled to define the electrical efficiency of plug-ins. Applying EPA's methodology, GM expects the Volt to consume as little as 25 kilowatt hours per 100 miles in city driving. At the U.S. average cost of electricity (approximately 11 cents per kWh), a typical Volt driver would pay about $2.75 for electricity to travel 100 miles, or less than 3 cents per mile.

The Chevrolet Volt uses grid electricity as its primary source of energy to propel the car. There are two modes of operation: Electric and Extended-Range. In electric mode, the Volt will not use gasoline or produce tailpipe emissions when driving. During this primary mode of operation, the Volt is powered by electrical energy stored in its 16 kWh lithium-ion battery pack.

When the battery reaches a minimum state of charge, the Volt automatically switches to Extended-Range mode. In this secondary mode of operation, an engine-generator produces electricity to power the vehicle. The energy stored in the battery supplements the engine-generator when additional power is needed during heavy accelerations or on steep inclines.

"The 230 city mpg number is a great indication of the capabilities of the Volt's electric propulsion system and its ability to displace gasoline," said Frank Weber, global vehicle line executive for the Volt. "Actual testing with production vehicles will occur next year closer to vehicle launch. However, we are very encouraged by this development, and we also think that it is important to continue to share our findings in real time, as we have with other aspects of the Volt's development."

More reading: http://www.chevrolet.com/pages/open/...future/volt.do

- Justin

[NastyEllEssWon]

interesting....the ion might be saying goodbye if the epa ratings on the electricity costs are accurate. like i said, it stays under 40 miles a day usually. i wonder if theyd let you test drive these things overnight...id like to see how fast you can drain the battery of electric mode with a little bit of encouragement

[Tru2Chevy]

Originally Posted by NastyEllEssWon

interesting....the ion might be saying goodbye if the epa ratings on the electricity costs are accurate. like i said, it stays under 40 miles a day usually. i wonder if theyd let you test drive these things overnight...id like to see how fast you can drain the battery of electric mode with a little bit of encouragement

I'm sure you'll get far less than 40 mpg with all accessories running and driving in a spirited manor, but for daily commuting you shouldn't be too worried about that.

If I could afford a new car, I would definitely look into one for my commute (roughly 14 miles each way).

- Justin

[NastyEllEssWon]

how long does it take to charge when your electric range is done

[Tru2Chevy]

Originally Posted by NastyEllEssWon

how long does it take to charge when your electric range is done

Approximately 8 hours in a standard 120V outlet, less than 3 hours in a 240V outlet.

Also something that I hadn't heard before:

According to former GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz, the Volt will use its GPS system to determine how long to run that engine. "The car will know how far you are from home," Lutz told reporters last September, "and it will only run the gas engine long enough to give you enough charge to get you home where you can actually plug it into the wall outlet. So the car will be smart enough to know where its home base is."

http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.com...hevrolet_Volt/

- Justin

[NastyEllEssWon]

i wonder what the test drives are gonna be like....no one is gonna want to spring for this new technology without knowing how it goes. id like 3 days with one before i decide

[91chevywt]

Seems like a well thought out vehicle. I don't think we'll see true numbers until farther in the future, but I don't doubt the 230 mpg figure. I would spring for one possibly down the road.

One concern, not a biggie. Being that most will never use gasoline based on statistics, or rarely use it, I wonder if there have been provisions for maintaining the fuel system. Since gas may end up staying in the fuel system for very long periods of time, I wonder if there will be a point where the fuel will become unusable. Maybe the gas engine will start after a predetermined time in order to simply keep everything moving?

[foff667]

Originally Posted by BigAls87Z28

Pennies. Your electrical bill might go up 10-20 bucks a month.
I think your average person fills up once every week to two weeks.
So thats, at minimum, is 2 times a month.
Let me know if you can fill up your car, from empty to full, twice a month, for less then 20 bucks.
you cant, so dont bother, just sit back and wonder why you didnt think of that before you made your post.

Just to play devils advocate here

Prius lets say gets an average of 40mpg city right? roughly depending on driving habits(I underestimated to make my point clearer) and Costs about $22,000 according to that article nearly 1/2 of what they are saying the volt will go for.

Lets say you drive 40miles per day to work with a prius vs. volt
Any given month thats 20 days, 20X40=800 miles which also equals 20 gallons of gas at say $3 gal is $60/mo or $720/year. Now lets say the Volt takes $20 in electricity/mo thats $240 for the year, $720-$240=$580 in savings every year.

For the $18000 you'd save buying a prius at initial price point it would take, I dunno 40 years to make that up in gas savings?

Just my .02 here

[PolarBear]

Originally Posted by foff667

For the $18000 you'd save buying a prius at initial price point it would take, I dunno 40 years to make that up in gas savings?

I keep getting emails at work about electricity prices declining and with the economic decline is forcing power plants to produce less electricity as there is less demand. There are many more things invloved related to the price of electric but electric is down significantly from the last 40 years. I was just reading an email at work today. Unfortunately even with a company like I work for we all have to worry about layoff and furlow possibilities, EVERYONE START RUNNING THOSE AIR CONDITIONERS MORE!
Honestly I think it will probably be less than $20 a month to charge the car with the current state of the economy. It is going to take a long time for the price to come back to where it was just one year ago. The price is down about 25% from last year in this area and in some place down as much as 50%. Then factor in the declining prices for solar electric you could concieveably charge your car for "free" if you were able to afford solar panels and produce and sell power back to the grid.
In addition some places in the US charge your kwH more during peak usage times of day, so the meter actually sends real time data back to the blling center and can charge you more during the day than at night time. So if your vehicle is only charged durning off peak hours can cost even less

I think this is a good concept and like the hybrids will catch on and become mainstream vehicles. If I actually had to commute to work a significant distance I would consider a Volt.

[91chevywt]

I'm kind of curious how the Volt will do versus the Prius. It seems like the Prius it the 'holy grail' of hybrids. I'm not a fan of the Prius by the way. I'm curious to see how it fairs as far as reliability, comfort, performance, and overall appeal. Only time will tell.

[Tru2Chevy]

Originally Posted by 91chevywt

One concern, not a biggie. Being that most will never use gasoline based on statistics, or rarely use it, I wonder if there have been provisions for maintaining the fuel system. Since gas may end up staying in the fuel system for very long periods of time, I wonder if there will be a point where the fuel will become unusable. Maybe the gas engine will start after a predetermined time in order to simply keep everything moving?

They are aware that some people will have fuel in the 6 gallon tank for months at a time, and they say the fuel tank / system is pressurized (so it's not vented to open air at all) and this I assume will significantly delay the degradation of the gasoline in the tank.

- Justin

[NastyEllEssWon]

i wouldnt mind dropping a six gallon fuel tank.

[LTb1ow]

Sweet, so I would need to get a 220 plug. Hmmnn the possibilities... if only I can convince the rents to get a volt...

[sweetbmxrider]

Originally Posted by NastyEllEssWon

i wouldnt mind dropping a six gallon fuel tank.

agreed!

Originally Posted by ShowSomePromise

Sweet, so I would need to get a 220 plug. Hmmnn the possibilities... if only I can convince the rents to get a volt...

not needed, but would make **** a helluvalot nicer annnnnd those benefits i'm sure you're thinking of

[BigAls87Z28]

There is talk that the Volt could go into ICE mode to run the gasoline that is in your tank before it goes bad. So if you fill up 3 months ago, and havnet filled up since, the computer will turn the ICE on and burn the gas.

Volt isnt a Hybrid, and GM is really trying to pry it away from the "hybrid" name. The Volt is an electric car. No engine connected to a trans, and the engine does not move the vehicle like it does in a convetional or hybrid vehicle.
The engine acts as a small generator to charge the batteries. Thats it.
Hybrid is a half an electric car, half a regular car. Hence, hybrid.

GM has let several members of the automotive press drive a handful of Volt prototypes, running on plug in charge only. There are a handful of Volts being hand built right now. You can become a fan on Facebook or check out its own blog site that talks more about the car, as well as future developments.

[NastyEllEssWon]

haha who needs to read up on current automobiles....if i want info on one ill just post up how i dont like....that way you can write me a 3 paragraph essay on why im wrong