crash325
Elite Member
I think Obama would lie even if the truth was better than the lie. Bad thing, he believes his own lies. Ever so sad.
Chevy Volt Halted. Who did not see this coming?
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I think Obama would lie even if the truth was better than the lie. Bad thing, he believes his own lies. Ever so sad.
Canada_CT230
Platinum Member
I know a guy that bought an mid 90s Geo Metro and gutted the engine out it and installed batteries and electric motors in it. I believe he has about $2000 in it for the conversion and about $500 in the car shell.
He can drive freeway speeds and gets about 50-75 miles from it on a charge. With that you could easily use it as a daily commuter and pennies to recharge and no small fortune to buy. All the stuff was off the shelf components.
So why are electric vehicles $41K?
He can drive freeway speeds and gets about 50-75 miles from it on a charge. With that you could easily use it as a daily commuter and pennies to recharge and no small fortune to buy. All the stuff was off the shelf components.
So why are electric vehicles $41K?
ultrarunner
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My guess is because of the Hybrid nature of the volt...
Also, home built are operated by people that know how they work... you won't find heated seats and A/C on the home built I've seen... most were VW... rabbits and a couple of Karmann Ghia
Several all electric cars at work and they didn't cost half the price of the volt...
In a word... Greed.
OP
Diamondpilot
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Has nothing to do with Greed. Its about recovering the R&D cost. For a large company like GM to build anything from scratch the cost will be in the millions. Then to sell less than 10,000 units in 3 years, it is what it is.
Chris
But you can bet that there are some sizeable corporate profits factored into the equation as well. Then there is the profits of the dealer, etc, etc, etc...
Kyle_in_Tex
Super Star Member
Just found this thread and read all 5 pages of it....whew
All politics aside, I work for a technology company that employs a few battery experts. Here are a few of their thoughts (and mine).
Main reason it is expensive = R&D, plus it has two engines (electric and gas). Gm felt since it was for America, that consumers would demand a gas backup so they could go on a trip and not have to worry about charging.
Would the battery experts buy one? 1 said he would stay away from it, 1 said he would love to if it was more affordable, 1 says he's neutral.
They agree, that if you drive the car within it's parameters, it might eventually save about 1/2 its cost if you drive it 200,000 miles, 20 miles at a time.
I believe that Gm misrepresented the REAL WORLD distance you can drive on the batteries. I remember initially they were hoping for 60 miles. The reporter on Fox got around 23 (I think) before it switched to gas. This is lousy.
Eric Test Drives Chevy Volt- 'The Five' Gives Their Take on the Electric Car - Chevy Volt - Fox Nation
I also don't like the taxpayers paying $7500 in subsidies on each one.
Here's another way I think of it. Compare it to geothermal HVAC or solar panels. If you can afford to get in the game with the high upfront costs, it can help save you money from there after. These are comparable subsidized energy saving tax breaks available to consumers.
Have any of you taken advantage of or actually done any home improvement contracting that has/had the tax rebates? I'm referring to the improved insulation and window replacement type rebates. I consider this to be simular to the hybrid rebates on a smaller scale.
So the Volt is not for everyone, but for some with high incomes, it just might be their version of a geothermal system.
1 more thing...I just wanted to get my 2 cents in and post before the thread gets locked.
:laughing::thumbsup::drool:
All politics aside, I work for a technology company that employs a few battery experts. Here are a few of their thoughts (and mine).
Main reason it is expensive = R&D, plus it has two engines (electric and gas). Gm felt since it was for America, that consumers would demand a gas backup so they could go on a trip and not have to worry about charging.
Would the battery experts buy one? 1 said he would stay away from it, 1 said he would love to if it was more affordable, 1 says he's neutral.
They agree, that if you drive the car within it's parameters, it might eventually save about 1/2 its cost if you drive it 200,000 miles, 20 miles at a time.
I believe that Gm misrepresented the REAL WORLD distance you can drive on the batteries. I remember initially they were hoping for 60 miles. The reporter on Fox got around 23 (I think) before it switched to gas. This is lousy.
Eric Test Drives Chevy Volt- 'The Five' Gives Their Take on the Electric Car - Chevy Volt - Fox Nation
I also don't like the taxpayers paying $7500 in subsidies on each one.
Here's another way I think of it. Compare it to geothermal HVAC or solar panels. If you can afford to get in the game with the high upfront costs, it can help save you money from there after. These are comparable subsidized energy saving tax breaks available to consumers.
Have any of you taken advantage of or actually done any home improvement contracting that has/had the tax rebates? I'm referring to the improved insulation and window replacement type rebates. I consider this to be simular to the hybrid rebates on a smaller scale.
So the Volt is not for everyone, but for some with high incomes, it just might be their version of a geothermal system.
1 more thing...I just wanted to get my 2 cents in and post before the thread gets locked.
:laughing::thumbsup::drool:
k0ua
Epic Contributor
Ok I am going to put my 2 centavos in too before it is to late.. it is about the $2000 conversion of the Geo Metro. I am having a little trouble with that one.. A battery that is going to drive even a car a small car like the metro up to 75 miles? Um.. I don't think so. I am calling BS on that one. More input needed here. What and where did those battery's come from, how many amp hours, or KWhr. What battery technology? Lead Acid, Nicad? Nickle metal Hydride? Lithium? or something made from vaporware? I say again. BS.. The electric motor and control circuitry, would be more than $2000. I am assuming freeway speeds mean 60 to 70 mph? If you could put an electric motor in a car frame and fill it full of batteries and make it go 50 to 75 miles at 60 to 70 MPH for somewhere close to $2000, everyone would be doing it, and Chevy volts and Nissan leafs would be a dime a dozen. Heck just put some more batterys in it, for $3000 and go 120 miles. Now I could safely get back and forth to work up and down these hills... I WANT ONE! I need the plans, I will build it myself.... BS.
There now, it can be locked.
James K0UA
There now, it can be locked.
James K0UA
Why is everyone hating so bad on a car? If you don't like it, don't buy it. Plenty of people spend vast sums of money on vehicles that are overboard on horsepower, capacity, stereo systems, off-road capability, etc.
Do you think the people riding around in jeeps that cost $30,000 really use the 4x4 enough to justify owning a vehicle that has a low carrying capcity , gets terrible mileage, and is sometimes referred to as having bricks for suspensions? MOST buy the jeep for the cool factor.
The volt allows the average person to mostly not have to buy gas. If I wanted to buy one, I probably would not even have to fill up once a month. It's all about the green factor, not the cost or the true capability. There are entire websites out there that worship the Volt and cars like it.
Quote from GM CEO Dan Akerson
He pointed out that the best-selling car in the U.S. last year, the Chevrolet Cruze, also had a two-week production shutdown in November, and nobody made a fuss over it.
But because the Volt has been under such heavy scrutiny, the media has pointed to the shutdown as yet another indication that the Volt is doomed.
Do you think the people riding around in jeeps that cost $30,000 really use the 4x4 enough to justify owning a vehicle that has a low carrying capcity , gets terrible mileage, and is sometimes referred to as having bricks for suspensions? MOST buy the jeep for the cool factor.
The volt allows the average person to mostly not have to buy gas. If I wanted to buy one, I probably would not even have to fill up once a month. It's all about the green factor, not the cost or the true capability. There are entire websites out there that worship the Volt and cars like it.
Quote from GM CEO Dan Akerson
He pointed out that the best-selling car in the U.S. last year, the Chevrolet Cruze, also had a two-week production shutdown in November, and nobody made a fuss over it.
But because the Volt has been under such heavy scrutiny, the media has pointed to the shutdown as yet another indication that the Volt is doomed.
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The only problem is that the average person isn't rich, and it's very unlikely that the Volt would have ever been affordable for them. As for the green factor, it's only an illusion. Heck, even rich people with money to burn weren't buying the Volt because they know it's a red herring.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lClA7WzqKyw]Chevy Volt not selling - YouTube[/ame]
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