The Low Down On Green Living
September 17th, 2008
Chevy Volt: New Mass-Market Electric Car Unveiled
Stumble it!
According to CNNMoney.com, General Motors officially unveiled the Chevrolet Volt electric vehicle on Tuesday. GM says the Volt will go on sale in 2010.
The Volt will be driven by electricity stored in a large lithium-ion battery pack running the length of the car. The Volt will be able to run for about 40 miles without using any gasoline after charging up for several hours. To charge the batteries, drivers will plug a cord into one of the ports by the driver’s side mirror. The cord can then be plugged into a normal home electrical outlet.
The car will have the equivalent of about 150 horsepower and a top speed of 100 mph, says GM. The car’s zero-to-sixty time will be under nine seconds, said GM vehicle line director Tony Posawatz. That would make the performance about average for a modern car.
Unfortunately, GM did not announce a price for the car. However they did say that recharging the car will cost “less than purchasing a cup of your favorite coffee”, and use less electricity annually than a refrigerator. The Volt should cost less than 2 cents per mile to drive on electricity, GM said, compared to 12 cents a mile on gasoline at a price of $3.60 a gallon.
Many people writing on car blogs are disappointed with the look of the car. What do you think?
To learn more about the features and hear more of what people are saying about the Volt, click here.
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Comments
Julie
September 23rd, 2008 at 9:03 am
I am a little confused and concerned that this is being touted as a “green” alternative. Electricity in my area is not only definitely NOT a green form of energy, since it is produced by coal burning plants (which, as I understand, create far more greenhouse gases than do cars), but also is in such high demand that thy can’t keep up with the demand even now. Not to mention the cost (in pollution) of manufacturing new cars. I agree that the shift to electric power is beneficial in reducing our reliance on foreign oil, but is it really “green”?
thegreenplumber.org
September 23rd, 2008 at 9:36 am
Re the looks of the car..
I dont care if it looks like an Aztec, a Matador, or any other ugly car. My car image to others is not as important as a car manufacturer making a safe, efficient, comfortable car that does “the right thing for the community. Does anyone really need a hybrid Escalade or Hummer? Do we need this new car to have more chrome trim, or cooler looking rims? How about a jazzier paint job? I think you need to decide what it is that you really desire in a car… You cannot have everything is one model. Purchase the car with the features you want. If you want to make a huge guzzler “i do what i want and don’t care about the consequences” vehicle purchase, do that, but dont ask for it to be a hybrid. Your statement is clear. Mine is just different. The question asked seems to me to be silly. Do I think the car looks are ok? It looks just fine, thanks.
Timothy@TheGreenPlumber.org
thegreenplumber.org
September 23rd, 2008 at 9:43 am
Electric, electric electric……
Sounds like the perfect corporate inroad to “Hey, now we have to have NUCLEAR power.
How about this?
You can purchase an electric car for a reasonable price, IF you have a green power grid source, owned only by a community group.
If you want to buy a gasoline powered auto, you have to pay an additional tax, which would then be added to a fund that provides no interest loans for community solar electric grid implementation.
Just a thought.
Timothy@TheGreenPlumber.org
K
September 23rd, 2008 at 3:05 pm
Has anyone taken a look at Mitsubishi’s iMiev? It’s fully electric and doesn’t rely on gas…ever! Oh and did I mention it’s gonna be affordable? And for sale and not lease? If you buy wind power or have solar panels then you don’t have to worry about an electric car being “truly green”. Nice try, GM.
Check out the link for an article on the iMiev…also out in 2010!
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/02/mitsubishi_i_miev_electric_car.php
Your Furniture » Blog Archive » Chrysler to Sell Electric Cars in U.S. as Early as 2010
December 3rd, 2008 at 8:56 pm
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