Chevy Volt's Pricing Could Provide Sticker Shock

[D C]

Originally Posted by Hurricane

I commute 14 miles round trip each day to a metrorail station - the Volt would work great for this commute!

You must spend all of $3-4 per day on gas. Why would you even consider a hybrid for such a short commute?

[jbartley]

selling it as a cadillac would be a mistake. this is a unique vehicle for the masses, not a luxury vehicle. just because it's 30-40k doesn't mean it should be in the Cadillac showroom.

[GM-Joe]

Originally Posted by member12

Toyota sold the first generation Prius at a loss.

GM should do the same for the Volt. It's an emerging technology that will dominate the market. Experience should be what should try to attain now.

And no, I don't think it should be a Cadillac.

Yes. I actually like the marketing idea of Chevrolet having the bounty of the electric vehicles because it will reintroduce the tree huggers and Toyanda backers back into Chevy with already a hybrid versions of Tahoe, possibly a Suburban, Silverado, Malibu, and 35+ new Cobalt to boot could possibly become a juggernaut for GM.

[PontiacBixler]

Originally Posted by CJ Thunder

Why not? Its a small business. Don't just jump on me. I said I would meaning I can. I will.

I wasn't jumping on you man. When I was saying "you" in my write up describing the potential aftermath, I was generalizing, not accusing.

[383_torque]

Hopefully they don't screw it up like the Yukon/Tahoe hybrid! ($28,000 for an LS, $50,000 for a hybrid) That is sticker shock!!!

Adding an additional 3 or 4k to the price is not that bad. This article had an over-sensationalized headline and not much fact. Sort of like a check out line tabloid!

[Ed753]

Originally Posted by jkennedy293

I think your doom and gloom about huge electricity is a little premature. Also, if my electric bill only went up $120/month, I would still save money as I spend $160 or more in gas. As more and more plug-in vehicles come on the market, I'm sure the electric companies will come up with a way to let them charge up cheaply, because most vehicles would charge at night during a period where energy producers have to "vent off" the extra electricity that is produced.

Were not talking trickle charger on a motorcycle battery overnight ....

Then there is the extra 10K (a $20K car for $30K) on your 5 year car loan ..... @ 6% that alone is an additional $190 smackers....

[YupYupYup]

Originally Posted by jbartley

selling it as a cadillac would be a mistake. this is a unique vehicle for the masses, not a luxury vehicle. just because it's 30-40k doesn't mean it should be in the Cadillac showroom.

A Cadillac would not get the numbers to justify the research and battery costs. You can't sell only a few and you would really not want to sell a mass-produced car under the Cadillac name.

[Ed753]

Originally Posted by Hurricane

I commute 14 miles round trip each day to a metrorail station - the Volt would work great for this commute!
__________________
2007 Yukon XL Denali
2006 Chevrolet Corvette

Your kidding right!?

You've got a Yukon Denali XL and a Vette, and your worried about saving gas money!?

Buy a Vibe, you could go (back and forth to the rail station) for a month and even if gas was 5-bucks a gallon, it would only cost you $60.00

[Corr69]

I think in Canada, this car will wear a price tag of around 40-42,000, while wearing a 35-38,000 dollar price tag in the states.

Its too bad that GM still has too much corporate greed. Perhaps it would be better in the long run if they sold it at a loss for the first couple years instead of trying to make a quick buck.

[PhishPhood]

Originally Posted by PontiacBixler

I'm really disappointed by the amount of people on here that obviously base their "knowledge" of Oil, the Middle East and "Republican Red White and Blue" on the scant fake emails out there created solely to generate a fervor about hating the oil tycoons in the desert.....

If you don't want to give your money to "Terrorists in the Desert", then don't..... But that is not where the bulk of your money is going to when you buy gasoline for $3.50 a gallon.

Try looking to the North and to the South to see where your money is REALLY going to.

Don't believe me? Have a read:
http://www.autoblog.com/2005/09/07/c...il-to-the-u-s/

And I also agree, the Volt should be a loss in the first couple years. How do you think Blu-Ray beat out HD-DVD? The PS3 has been a financial burden on Sony, but it's been the cheapest Blu-Ray player on the market for a year and a half now!

Sorry that's a smoke screen to hide the real situation.

Yes we do directly pay Canada and Mexico for our oil. But what is never stated that every drop and every barrel that we buy from them means that Iran, Russia, and all the rest get richer and richer because we've taken Canada and Mexico out of the game simply because they are fully involved in supply the giant next door.

What CA and MX don't supply Iran does. Oil is a fungible product so Canadian oil and Iranian oil work just as well in Asia or Africa or S America. The correct way to look at it is 25% of every oil well in the world ends up in the USA.

If because of our usage we are driving up the price of oil guess what the Iranians and Russians and Saudi's are getting wealthier by the minute. Triplethat if you factor in China and India.

[PhishPhood]

Originally Posted by YupYupYup

The Prius was like $40K and cost Toyota a heck of a lot more to build it...Toyota just started making money off recently!

I love how the press is going after GM for building a green car. They never went at Toyota, even though the Prius mileage ratings were over-estimated, it cost more to build than they could sell it for, and it wasn't overly useable as an only car. They just do not want GM to succeed. They would have no stories left to recycle about evil GM and how great Toyota is for pushing the technology...!!!

Important to note, Lutz did NOT say it was going to be expensive...He and GM have been throwing a lot of misinformation around to keep the competition off track. They are also being conservative on all new vehicle sales number, etc. so the bias press doesn't hammer them. And it is also important to note that early adopters wil pay more for a game-changing product. So why not recoup some investment and then lower the price in 3-6 months for everyone else? That way you don't go bankrupt and you still push the "green envelope" in regards to technology and spirit. Of course, we would not hear any sort of analysis in the media like this.

I do notice Toyota has backed off chastizing the Volt. Where is their so humble chairman?

Real numbers... the first Prius in Jan 01 listed for $20,900. Allegedly it cost $35,000 to make. But that was based on 1000 units. The first year they sold about 5000 units here.

I'm guessing that the first two Gens were fully 'costed' last Spring when 'yota dropped the prices $2000 on the top trims and $600 on the base model.

[Neanderthal]

You can get a good sized solar dashboard charger for 100 bucks.

That should make algore sleep better at night in his lizard's den.

[edsuski]

Originally Posted by PontiacBixler

No one has thought about the consequences yet of what CJ THUNDER just said....

You really think your employer is going to soak up the cost of recharging your car for you to come to work and go home???

Some places do already offer outlets but only for engine block heaters which don't take as much juice as these cars will need.

Just wait for the backlash when people's monthly bills go up over $200/month more because they now plug in their cars at night or their raises at their jobs are smaller than previous years because of added cost from outlets out in the parking lot.

First of all, if you do the simple math - you will understand that even in California (not known for low electric prices) that traveling 40 miles in a Volt will cost $1.72. Since 78% of the country travel less than 40 miles per day to and from work - we can assume that 78% of the people will pay $1.72 or less (less if they travel less and/or pay less than Southern California rates). That amounts to $34.40 per month not $200 (assumes 800 miles). I don’t know about you, but I am filling up each WEEK for about $56.00.

Second, while people should not expect employers and businesses to pay for recharging - many do! Many government offices and retail establishments like Costco etc. offer electric plugs for other electric vehicles. Don't expect it to last - but some do.

We need to stop the disinformation on the subject. Plug in electric vehicles will end this countries dependency on Middle East Oil! Clearly this is a national security issue and should be treated as such.

[jbartley]

Originally Posted by 383_torque

Hopefully they don't screw it up like the Yukon/Tahoe hybrid! ($28,000 for an LS, $50,000 for a hybrid) That is sticker shock!!!

Adding an additional 3 or 4k to the price is not that bad. This article had an over-sensationalized headline and not much fact. Sort of like a check out line tabloid!

no that's apples to oranges. a hybrid tahoe comes fully loaded. it's well worth that price sticker.

[zete]

Originally Posted by PhishPhood

Sorry that's a smoke screen to hide the real situation.

Yes we do directly pay Canada and Mexico for our oil. But what is never stated that every drop and every barrel that we buy from them means that Iran, Russia, and all the rest get richer and richer because we've taken Canada and Mexico out of the game simply because they are fully involved in supply the giant next door.

What CA and MX don't supply Iran does. Oil is a fungible product so Canadian oil and Iranian oil work just as well in Asia or Africa or S America. The correct way to look at it is 25% of every oil well in the world ends up in the USA.

If because of our usage we are driving up the price of oil guess what the Iranians and Russians and Saudi's are getting wealthier by the minute. Triplethat if you factor in China and India.

Some folks simply don't understand how capitalism works. Canada's setting the price for oil at world rates. It's not like we have the Premier of Alberta sitting down over donuts at Tim Horton's figuring out how much to gouge the world today for oil. If he wakes up and oil is $100/bbl then that's great for Alberta. If it suddenly tanks to $50, it's bad for Alberta.

I do hope folks read your post, check what fungible means, and then realize that the more you want -- greater the demand -- the higher the price tends to go. It's not a difficult concept but for some folks, esp. those enamoured with their cars, it seems totally impossible to comprehend.

And remember, we here in Canada -- a nation that's a net exporter of oil -- pays world prices for its oil. It's not like we get 25 cent/litre oil like some Gulf states do in the Middle East! We pay world prices because we're a Western capitalist democracy and we play by the rules. Plus, it pisses Alberta off less if we pay the going rate .