Gen 1 GM Volt Plug-In Hybrid (2011-2015)

[palmermd]

Yeah, I just saw that today just after I posted. I guess I should look it up before answering. Just goes to show how inept the marketing people are at GM that I did not even know that until today.

 

[planet4ever]

Just to suggest we should be careful in our wording - Neither ChargePoint nor ECOtality are giving free chargers to customers.

A charger is a machine that converts AC electricity to DC and feeds it to the battery at the correct voltage. For all level 1 and level 2 charging, the charger is built into the vehicle, be that Leaf or Volt. For level 3 charging a big and very expensive external charger is used to feed electricity to a separate DC port in the Leaf. The Volt doesn't have a DC port, so can't use those.

ChargePoint and ECOtality may install some level 3 chargers in public places, but no one is going to have one in their private garage. What are being given away free are level 2 EVSEs. (Electrical Vehicle Supply Equipment) These take 240v AC from your wall and pass it as 240v AC into the car - sort of like a very fancy extension cord with a special plug and some important safety features.

 

[TimeHorse]

Good one @evnow ! But Dang, my commute is 67^h^h^h 72 mi and I've got no^h^h^h a response from the higher ups about charging from work: there's no rule against it but you can't do it! So it looks like even with the volt I'll^h^h^h^h^h I'd be $##$ing Osama and #$%$#ing all over the Gulf of Mexico for a few more years.

But with CO2 Fre, it's more an issue that I have to go to 100% every night and that will shorten my battery life. So I very much wish I could charge at work since the revolution priorities should be: first, charge at home, second, charge at work, third charge on the road.

And one more thing: President Obama can't control Congress; he can't control the Private Sector; he can't control the Supreme Court. But there is one thing President Obama can control: and that's the federal workforce! President Obama, if you want to see 1,000,000 EVs on the road by 2015, the most effective thing you could possibly do is require that all federal facilities provide a place where employees and contractors can charge their electric vehicles! This isn't to say that this should be a free service which would none the less reduce our dependency on foreign oil; a nominal fee that reflects the going local electric rate would be more than reasonable. But the important thing is to let the federal workforce charge at our federal installations. This would eliminate the most salient of potential EV Buyer's fears. This, Mr. President, you can control!

 

[evnow]

Good one @evnow ! But Dang, my commute is 67 mi and I've got no response from the higher ups about charging from work! So it looks like even with the volt I'll be $##$ing Osama and #$%$#ing all over the Gulf of Mexico for a few more years.

Ofcourse, you are in the zone where experience and careful driving can take care of range anxiety.

To me, these are the perfect examples of why we need some infrastructure. If it can't help cases like yours, what is the point of all the infrastructure being talked about ?

 

[redLEAF]

GM raises the bar (how high we don't know) on their battery warranty ...


http://www.automobile.com/volt-will-offer-extended-battery-warranty.html


Will be curious to Nissan response once GM's is 'public'

 

[Bicster]

I'll be surprised if it's more than the CARB mandated 10/100 warranty.

Edit: I'm referring to GM's warranty.

 

[JasonT]

Autoblog is reporting 8 years, 100,000 miles - http://green.autoblog.com/2010/07/14/general-motors-announces-8-year-100-000-mile-warranty-for-volt-b/

 

[Bicster]

Autoblog is reporting 8 years, 100,000 miles - http://green.autoblog.com/2010/07/14/general-motors-announces-8-year-100-000-mile-warranty-for-volt-b/

They are also reporting that the chemistry is Li-Poly. I thought it was Li-Mn.

I stand corrected on the 10/100 requirement. Fuzzy memory.

Nice to see GM is doing the minimum required and making a big deal about it. :roll:

 

[mwalsh]

Autoblog is reporting 8 years, 100,000 miles - http://green.autoblog.com/2010/07/14/general-motors-announces-8-year-100-000-mile-warranty-for-volt-b/

Nice! So now we need to see Nissan step up to the plate! If not equal or better, we need to at least need to start getting some information on what we should expect.

 

[AndyH]

They are also reporting that the chemistry is Li-Poly. I thought it was Li-Mn.

Close enough for the press. I believe the poly refers to a thickened electrolyte. You're right that the cells called LiPo are a variation on traditional lithium cobalt cell commonly called lithium ion. More confusing is that all the lithium family cells - including our LiMn - are 'lithium ion'. Clear as mud. :?

I stand corrected on the 10/100 requirement. Fuzzy memory.

Nice to see GM is doing the minimum required and making a big deal about it. :roll:

Yeah buddy. Marketing over substance - GM in a nutshell.

 

[evnow]

Nice! So now we need to see Nissan step up to the plate! If not equal or better, we need to at least need to start getting some information on what we should expect.

I expect Nissan to warrant for 60K/60 month like rest of the drivetrain - like one of the dealers has been saying on the other leaf forum.

 

[mwalsh]

Looks like GM has really given a knock-out punch to Nissan's so-called "press tour" today....274 new news articles on Google today about the GM Volt, which mention the Leaf in passing, and zero new news articles specifically about the Leaf. :?

 

[IBELEAF]

Nice! So now we need to see Nissan step up to the plate! If not equal or better, we need to at least need to start getting some information on what we should expect.

I expect Nissan to warrant for 60K/60 month like rest of the drivetrain - like one of the dealers has been saying on the other leaf forum.

I am being more optimistic about this. Nissan did recently upped the warranty for CVT transmissions.

http://www.nissanassist.com/

 

[sjfotos]

Looks like GM has really given a knock-out punch to Nissan's so-called "press tour" today....274 new news articles on Google today about the GM Volt, which mention the Leaf in passing, and zero new news articles specifically about the Leaf. :?

I am not worried in the least. The Volt is a Frankenstein, not just limited to the hybrid drivetrain, but also including the absurd idea of a battery tunnel running through the rear seat area.

 

[evnow]

Looks like GM has really given a knock-out punch to Nissan's so-called "press tour" today....274 new news articles on Google today about the GM Volt, which mention the Leaf in passing, and zero new news articles specifically about the Leaf. :?

Well - there are always going to be such days. The big question to me is - why is GM holding back the price ...

 

[AndyH]

Giggle. :lol:

http://www.autoblog.com/2010/07/14/chevrolet-volt-loses-230-mpg-rating-victory-red-debuts/

Remember how big a deal General Motors made about the upcoming 2011 Chevy Volt's supposed 230 mile per gallon EPA fuel mileage rating? Well, you can now forget about it. According to USA Today, the Feds have decided not to use the preliminary testing procedure that produced that mythical 230 mpg figure, and a new methodology for rating electric vehicles has yet to be finalized. Don't expect a revised mileage figure any time soon. In fact, an actual mpg equivalent rating may not come until the Volt is just about ready to hit the market at the end of the year.

 

[evnow]

Obama getting into Volt.

 

[palmermd]

Obama getting into Volt.

Looks like ingress / egress problems. I suggest they redesign the door and take a year to do it. Haha. Oh sorry wrong forum.

 

[Stoaty]

Volt Doesn’t Meet CARB Designation, Californians Lose $5,000 Tax Incentive

http://gm-volt.com/2010/07/17/volt-doesnt-meet-carb-designation-californians-lose-5000-tax-incentive/

For a time, it was assumed by many that the Volt would come with a 10 year/150,000 mile warranty in California and other CARB states (17 of them in total), and a 8 year/100,000 mile warranty for the greater, unwashed masses. That perception changed on Wednesday, when GM announced the battery warranty would be 8 years/100,000 from coast to coast.

A little help from the California Air Resources Board should provide a more complete answer; and it comes in the form of designation. The Volt did not meet the criteria as a enhanced advanced technology partial zero emissions vehicle, or AT-PZEV, as was widely expected, therefore they don’t have to meet the 10/150 warranty, (or enjoy the incentives of that program), so 8/100 is the minimum benchmark they have to offer.

The real kicker to the no AT-PZEV designation (besides the lessened warranty) is that the Volt does not now qualify for the additional $5,000 state incentive.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

Volt Doesn’t Meet CARB Designation, Californians Lose $5,000 Tax Incentive

http://gm-volt.com/2010/07/17/volt-doesnt-meet-carb-designation-californians-lose-5000-tax-incentive/

i wonder if this might give us a teeny tiny hint as to overall mileage after the battery pack wall charge has been depleted?