# The Volt got leaked
**URL:** https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262
**Category:** NYSpeed Automotive
**Created:** [September 2, 2008, 10:40am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262 "2008-09-02T10:40:48Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 3
### Author:  [@Tevenor](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Tevenor)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2008, 2:02pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/41 "2008-09-02T14:02:09Z")
> [@JayS](#):
>
> No, it’s not. That’s my point. Look at cold hard numbers in my previous post that I quoted from the other thread.
>
> Cliffs: If you’re buying tomorrow you’re talking about a difference in price of $14600 between a Volt and a Civic. That would buy enough gas to drive 91250 miles @ 25mpg with gas costing $4/gal.
>
> And that’s not factoring in the difference in sales tax.
>
> PS: For what it would cost you in electricity, I got my figures here:
> [http://engineeringtv.com/blogs/etv/archive/2007/05/24/episode-41-the-chevy-volt.aspx](http://engineeringtv.com/blogs/etv/archive/2007/05/24/episode-41-the-chevy-volt.aspx)
So at these numbers, it would take 8 years to make up the difrerence in cost in savings, not including the cost of the electric. So lets bump it up to say 10 years once you factor in electrical prices. Any tax breaks to account for the cost discrepancy like they did with the Prius?
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### Author:  [@BigRon](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/BigRon)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2008, 2:02pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/42 "2008-09-02T14:02:38Z")
> [@Tevenor](#):
>
> That’s one of my big questions as well. If it spikes my home electrical by a huge amount per charge, how does that equate to cost savings and the always popular “carbon footprint” measurement. If you get 100% of your electric from a coal plant versus a nuclear plant, how does that factor into the equation?
Most of this has been covered
[http://www.nyspeed.com/forums/showthread.php?t=48247](http://www.nyspeed.com/forums/showthread.php?t=48247)
“Posawatz said the Volt’s lithium-ion batteries can store about the same amount of power (16 kilowatt-hours) and provide nearly the same vehicle range (40 miles or more) as the EV1’s lead-acid batteries. However, the lithium-ion batteries, located under the Volt’s chassis and are about a third the size of the EV1’s, should last the vehicle’s lifetime.”
> **[GM Resurrects the Electric Car](https://www.wired.com/2007/01/gm-resurrects-the-electric-car/)**
>
> General Motors, a company notorious for allegedly conspiring with Big Oil and others to "kill the electric car," is about to roll out a unique, fuel-efficient sedan that could redefine electric vehicles. The new Chevrolet Volt, which premieres Sunday...
Here is price per Kilowatt hour
[http://www.ppinys.org/reports/jtf/electricprices.html](http://www.ppinys.org/reports/jtf/electricprices.html)
NEW YORK 14.54 cents
So $2.33 to recharge and go 40 miles
Granted JayS commented that it might take more than 16 kilowatts to recharge a 16 kilowatt battery
---
### Author:  [@JayS](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/JayS)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2008, 5:33pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/43 "2008-09-02T17:33:55Z")
> [@Tevenor](#):
>
> So at these numbers, it would take 8 years to make up the difrerence in cost in savings, not including the cost of the electric. So lets bump it up to say 10 years once you factor in electrical prices. Any tax breaks to account for the cost discrepancy like they did with the Prius?
I can’t quote myself quoting myself, so here:
[http://www.nyspeed.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1072095&postcount=22](http://www.nyspeed.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1072095&postcount=22)🙂
What have we learned since then? For one, my wild ass guess of 40 MPG when running the gas engine to charge the batteries was probably right. For another, as a WNYer paying 8.75% sales tax you can tack on another 1.5 years to the 11.5 years to **break even[b] because of the extra $1900 in sales tax you would pay on a Volt vs a Civic. 13 years, at 12k a year, is 156k miles. I can pretty much guarantee what ever the warranty is on the battery it won’t be that long so tack on a several thousand dollar battery replacement as well. That’s going to add another 3-4 years onto [b]breaking even**.
Still think it might be a good economic idea? You better have a pretty high dollar value assigned to feeling good about being green then.
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### Author:  [@traumadog](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/traumadog)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2008, 5:54pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/44 "2008-09-02T17:54:39Z")
> [@Nikuk](#):
>
> …what I mean to say is that cars have been mocked up for movies before.
> [@tpgsr](#):
>
> The movie will come out in June, and the car is going to be debuted this month. It would be retarded to have a car released, then advertised in a movie months later if it wasn’t the same vehicle. “Well you know when we mocked it up for the movie we had that cool feature but we decided not to keep it on the car. Sorry”
FWIW - Bumblebee as seen in the movie was actually two mocked-up cars, specially built for the movie out of cut-down GTO’s. You can tell the movie car is a “prototype” as it uses the concept’s thin outside rear-view mirrors, not the one made for production.
> [@brent\_strong](#):
>
> No, it sounds like it’s an electric-only drivetrain with a gas engine generator for longer trips. I’ve heard that trains use similar systems, with a diesel generator and electric motors for the wheels (but I don’t know shit about trains to verify this).
Diesel locomotives have been that way since the '30s - and they’re more typically called diesel-electric locomotives. Basically, there’s no electrical storage, and the “electric” part only serves as a transmission. For the HP levels that trains put out, a distributed electric motor system proved to be much more reliable (and easier to control in multiple-unit configuration) than any attempts at a mechanical transmission.
And ironically, it was GM’s Electro-motive Division that ruled the roost until the '90s - but now GM has since sold it off…
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### Author:  [@JayS](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/JayS)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2008, 7:11pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/45 "2008-09-02T19:11:30Z")
> [@traumadog](#):
>
> FWIW - Bumblebee as seen in the movie was actually two mocked-up cars, specially built for the movie out of cut-down GTO’s. You can tell the movie car is a “prototype” as it uses the concept’s thin outside rear-view mirrors, not the one made for production.
Ooooooh… the mirrors were a little different than the production car. In this case we’re talking about a car that looks totally different than the Volt concept.
Chevy blew it last time because the movie came out so long before the car. That amount of hype (had to resist using “buzz”) Bumblebee created for that car was huge and GM would have seen huge sales had the car actually been available when the movie came out.
This time they’re going to have the car available when the movie comes out so I really doubt you’d see them use a car in the movie that doesn’t look extremely close to the production version. It’s GM though, so they’ll find a new way to screw it up. Oh yeah, they did, by letting the costs get out of hand and having to price it at 40k. 😉
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### Author:  [@greenbull](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/greenbull)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2008, 7:16pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/46 "2008-09-02T19:16:36Z")
> [@JayS](#):
>
> Ooooooh… the mirrors were a little different than the production car. In this case we’re talking about a car that looks totally different than the Volt concept.
>
> Chevy blew it last time because the movie came out so long before the car. That amount of hype (had to resist using “buzz”) Bumblebee created for that car was huge and GM would have seen huge sales had the car actually been available when the movie came out.
>
> This time they’re going to have the car available when the movie comes out so I really doubt you’d see them use a car in the movie that doesn’t look extremely close to the production version. It’s GM though, so they’ll find a new way to screw it up. Oh yeah, they did, by letting the costs get out of hand and having to price it at 40k. 😉
Don’t they have something like 30k people inline for the volt already?
edit~i just saw the pics in the link up top. i think i like the look of the front end way better than the concept. concept was too blockish. actually looks almost like a ford design.
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### Author:  [@Penfold](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Penfold)
#### Post date: [September 2, 2008, 8:13pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/47 "2008-09-02T20:13:56Z")
If the price-tag does come out at $40k and it doesn’t drop FAST, I also think the whole project will flop.
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### Author:  [@boxxa](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/boxxa)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 12:29am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/48 "2008-09-03T00:29:18Z")
If the pics are real and thats what it looks like, its pretty cool lookin IMO. Better than the Prius.
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### Author:  [@47\_WAFFLES](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/47_WAFFLES)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 7:23am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/49 "2008-09-03T07:23:29Z")
looks cool
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### Author:  [@justa4door](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/justa4door)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 7:26am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/50 "2008-09-03T07:26:31Z")
> [@47\_WAFFLES](#):
>
> looks cool
? 47 waffles ???
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### Author:  [@JayS](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/JayS)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 7:44am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/51 "2008-09-03T07:44:53Z")
> [@greenbull](#):
>
> Don’t they have something like 30k people inline for the volt already?
> **[Unofficial Chevrolet Volt waiting list tops 34,000 - egmCarTech](http://www.egmcartech.com/2008/08/13/unofficial-chevrolet-volt-waiting-list-tops-34000/)**
>
> We don’t know if you remember or know Lyle Dennis but he is the biggest enthusiast for the Chevrolet Volt
Yeah, and we had 30+ cars signed up for the last dent removal meet that somewhere around 10 showed up for.
Unless you’re taking non-refundable deposits waiting lists don’t mean shit. Besides that in this case the unofficial waiting list was based on a 31k price.
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### Author:  [@justa4door](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/justa4door)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 7:47am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/52 "2008-09-03T07:47:54Z")
i still want to know the max range… its 40 miles just batt power but there is a gas motor to charge the batt … but whats the mpg on that ?
can you get like 600 miles on a tank ~5 gal ??
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### Author:  [@tpgsr](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/tpgsr)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 8:13am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/53 "2008-09-03T08:13:24Z")
According to the video that was posted prior, the car gets something like 50 miles to the gallon. It charges the batteries which in turn power the wheels more efficiently than if the car did what a standard hybrid did and switched over to gasoline power. GM has changed the gas tank more than once on the car so it could wither be 340 mile range, or 600 miles depending on what size the production car has.
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### Author:  [@justa4door](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/justa4door)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 8:16am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/54 "2008-09-03T08:16:05Z")
so with the 50 a gal it really could get 90miles if when running it would charge the batt fully …if that could happen
cool
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### Author:  [@tpgsr](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/tpgsr)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 8:21am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/55 "2008-09-03T08:21:25Z")
What they need to make happen is the charge as it brakes. That is the best feature in the current hybrid, generating energy without wasting fuel. They didn’t fit it in this car though.
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### Author:  [@Penfold](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Penfold)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 8:28am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/56 "2008-09-03T08:28:34Z")
^^^^
I thought they did?
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### Author:  [@boxxa](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/boxxa)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 8:41am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/57 "2008-09-03T08:41:06Z")
Ya how can this not charge itself using typical methods that the other hybrids use? If you are going on a highway using the battery, you would think that they could find a way to use that power and somewhat charge the batteries or esp if you are using the gas engine.
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### Author:  [@ZOMGVTEK](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/ZOMGVTEK)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 9:19am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/58 "2008-09-03T09:19:05Z")
How could it not have regenerative braking? Its very simple to do and would be stupid for them to not…
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### Author:  [@boxxa](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/boxxa)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 9:21am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/59 "2008-09-03T09:21:01Z")
> [@ZOMGVTEK](#):
>
> How could it not have regenerative braking? Its very simple to do and would be stupid for them to not…
Since this car is pure electric, would it contribute enough to actually charge it or would the technology and equipment to implement it not provide enough benefit?
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### Author:  [@HYBOOST](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/HYBOOST)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2008, 9:32am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/the-volt-got-leaked/54262/60 "2008-09-03T09:32:31Z")
Only 40 miles on a charge?? Shocking!!
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