I was saying that since the energy produced in diesel is twice that in gasoline that amount of energy consumed is near that of gasoline.
It was mere food for thought, not for you to over analyze and argue each little point.
You want to be condescending?
Are all commercial vehicles diesel?
Take that smart ass.
Sorry it took so long to respond, I was loading my gasoline truck(commercial) which holds 35 gallons gets aboot 8mpg that I fill daily.
Also, this isn’t the first production electric car… GM also gave us the EV1 in the nineties. Like the Clarity now, you couldn’t buy it, only lease it, and only in Cali.
The majority of them are. Especially the ones doing construction on the 219.
I wasn’t going for condescending as much as smartass.
It’s just the law of numbers at work. Those big construction vehicles may use a lot of fuel, but the 247,421,120 registered passenger vehicles in the US as of a 2005 DOT study is going to use a lot more.
People who can’t afford to pay the prices of rising gas are obviously not doing well financially. So IMO a 40k car is not a solution to anyone who gives a shit about gas prices. As already stated it is just a novelty for well off green d-bags to trot around town in so other green humpers will suck them off. Possibly even getting some nice green vag out of the deal.
Seen any mention of pricing?
No, but isn’t the Volt its own platform? That probably drives cost up significantly. Does the Prius share parts with the Corolla?
And anyway, it’s not a stupid pseudo-sedan like the Volt concept.
The Volt never drives on gasoline, the gas engine is a generator for the batteries. Atleast that is how I understand it.
The VW is a different animal all together.
True, but people don’t care about that. What people care about is “hey, I can drive 40 miles on battery alone, and that could save me a whole bunch of money as long as the car doesn’t cost 40k like the Volt”.
The goober has a good point about doing this on an existing platform to save money.
I was predicting the Volt to be the car that saved GM, when it was at 30k plus tax incentives, but I expected them to at least turn some profit. At 40k plus tax incentives selling at a loss it’s just another item to put in the debits column of GM’s financials.
I agree on the common platform.
As for the golf a top speed of 75 mph tells me the car will be crawling at 50 mph getting up hills and a range of 30 miles means 15 to 20 tops. GM says 40 for the volt and people are expecting 30 miles real world.
The VOLT WILL get 40 miles on a single (complete) charge. A few aero changes are required because the concept looks horrible in the wind tunnel.
The gasoline (or diesel) engine will be designed with efficiency in mind. Expect 40-50mpg of fuel with a 10 or so gallon tank. The fuel cell version WILL get about 60 mpg equivalent if it makes it to production.
Toyota lost money on the first Prius they made, and look how the consumer world applauded them when it came out. Why is it a bad idea if GM does the same?
The cost estimate on the first page assumes gas and electricity are a fixed cost, unfortunately the cost of fuel is rising at a faster rate. Which would mean it would take less than 11.5 years to break even. People shell out money for conventional hybrids that take forever to break even, most people are in it for the image.
GM did not kill the EV1, suppliers backed out because the production wasn’t ramping up as fast as they wanted. IE, they weren’t making enough money from GM to continue building “specialty” parts.
i’m thinking GM will go bankrupt or be bought out within 5yrs
awful late to change gears and do what toyota already developed and released over 10yrs ago, perfected 4yrs ago and is kicking ass at selling right now. they’re so in the hole this year already.
Historically, SUV buyers are always privy to giving up their hatchback design for a boot.
example:
I really hope they decide on a real hatchback with decent room.
I agree Toyota is much better financially, but they will be 1 year later to the market with a plug in hybrid. GM’s hybrid SUVs/trucks are green car of the year as well. Toyota dominates at marketing especially with the Prius.
I am waiting for GM to go private, a sub $10 share price will be screaming for it.
I dunno. I foresee the avg lazy American not really feeling plugging in their cars overnight for 40mi… but overall, I like surprises. And the idea of buying cheap stock in something that may save the company, well - i like that even more.
ouch. http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/05/sales-of-hybrid-suvs-lower-than-expected.php
They really need brand recognition.
Do you think the Prius appeals to normal Americans?
When I see a Prius driver they look pretty atypical. Like aliens.