Volt to be Sportier Alternative to Prius, Insight

[FenwickHockey65]

Chief engineer Andrew Farah has some interesting things to say about the Volt and the way GM will position it against its competitors. For instance, Farah notes (in reference to the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight), "Our chassis is much more sporty than either of the other vehicles."

Farah also comments on a couple of changes to the car's exterior design that eagle-eyed parties had noticed, such as the relocation of the plug from the front fender to under a flap in the traditional location for a gas cap. Other changes, such as the headlamps and taillights, may merely be present because the Volt is still early in its development cycle and there are some pre-production bits that aren't yet necessary for testing purposes.

Link

['Vette Dude]

Not hard to do

[CJ Thunder]

That looks like a rocket all right...oh the production Volt, nevermind...

[cyclone]

If we could get GM to make the US version like the Ampera,

[Uzzy]

Originally Posted by cyclone

If we could get GM to make the US version like the Ampera,

Buick Electra?

Maybe Jeremy Clarkson won't feel an overwhelming urge to drive the Volt into the nearest tree.

[cyclone]

Originally Posted by Uzzy

Buick Electra?

Maybe Jeremy Clarkson won't feel an overwhelming urge to drive the Volt into the nearest tree.

I thought Buick was going to get a plug in CUV or something. The Volt will probably get rendered a lot by next October.

[AMcA]

Bless 'em for that.

If you've ever driven a Pious, you know just what an awful, dispiriting experience it is. The car's soft, unresponsive, heels over like a ship in a high wind in turns. Absolutely dreadful. Like Clarkson, I wanted to drive it into a tree just to end the misery.

Bless 'em if they can make the Volt drive like a real car.

[mgescuro]

Originally Posted by Uzzy

Buick Electra?

Maybe Jeremy Clarkson won't feel an overwhelming urge to drive the Volt into the nearest tree.

Oh I LOVE that play on words!!!
I'm surprised it wasn't brought up earlier!!!!!

[johnstarnes]

Originally Posted by cyclone

If we could get GM to make the US version like the Ampera,

I love that radical, aggressive front end!

[BlueChevyGuy]

While I do believe that the Volt will be a "game changer," I am concerned that the car will not be able to back up all aspects of the sporty claim. It sounds like the suspension will offer sportier handling than the Pious or the Insight. However, once the internal combustion engine kicks on as the battery reaches its minimum allowed capacity, it sounds to me like the Volt will be quite buzzy if you want to accelerate or maintain speed traveling up any type of significant grade.

I only bring this up because my C&D that showed up yesterday had a section devoted to the Volt, in which the chief engineer (I think) stated that the engine will be thrashy in those circumstances. The engine puts out ~ 100 horsepower, which in turn will be the maximum output coming through the electric motor that drives the wheels. This is down from the ~ 150 horsepower or so, that is generated from the battery-only operation. Once the battery is depleted, the battery is no longer used until the car is charged up again.

I'm sure that this has been debated and discussed to death, but could someone with an engineering background explain to me why it is not practical for the IC engine to re-charge the batteries AND drive the car, then shut off once the battery has reached its maximum allowable capacity? I'm just not convinced that buyers will accept the drastic change in the car's acceleration capabilities and smoothness once the battery is depleted.

Thanks for any information that will clear this up for me.

[johnstarnes]

I've read that the Volt's torquey electric motor gives it awesome acceleration.....that would do a lot to make it "sporty".

[Uzzy]

Originally Posted by johnstarnes

I've read that the Volt's torquey electric motor gives it awesome acceleration.....that would do a lot to make it "sporty".

The thing about electric motors is 100% of torque is always available. It doesn't have to rev up to produce power. Ever seen Jay Leno's review of the Tesla? Impressive. I would hope that the same is the case for the Volt since it is an all electric powertrain with an onboard gasoline-fueled generator.

And mgescuro, the idea of Buick reviving the Electra nameplate was not my idea, but I love it! It's been brought up on here lots since the Volt came about.

And when is the Volt going to replace the Camaro at the top of the website?

[eaton53]

Originally Posted by BlueChevyGuy

While I do believe that the Volt will be a "game changer," I am concerned that the car will not be able to back up all aspects of the sporty claim. It sounds like the suspension will offer sportier handling than the Pious or the Insight. However, once the internal combustion engine kicks on as the battery reaches its minimum allowed capacity, it sounds to me like the Volt will be quite buzzy if you want to accelerate or maintain speed traveling up any type of significant grade.

I only bring this up because my C&D that showed up yesterday had a section devoted to the Volt, in which the chief engineer (I think) stated that the engine will be thrashy in those circumstances. The engine puts out ~ 100 horsepower, which in turn will be the maximum output coming through the electric motor that drives the wheels. This is down from the ~ 150 horsepower or so, that is generated from the battery-only operation. Once the battery is depleted, the battery is no longer used until the car is charged up again.

I'm sure that this has been debated and discussed to death, but could someone with an engineering background explain to me why it is not practical for the IC engine to re-charge the batteries AND drive the car, then shut off once the battery has reached its maximum allowable capacity? I'm just not convinced that buyers will accept the drastic change in the car's acceleration capabilities and smoothness once the battery is depleted.

Thanks for any information that will clear this up for me.

The engine won't drive the car because it is not physically connected.

Remember, the engine might be 100hp, but it's constant. So there will be gains during some loading and losses during others... it takes little power to roll down a highway. The battery will act as a buffer to smooth all of this out as there is still considerable energy available even after it's "depleted".

I'd think with the engine running at only a couple of different RPM's it'd be a lot easier to cancel noise out. I wouldn't be surprised if it's the quietest car on the road. There was even some talk that it might have to make artificial noise so people can hear it coming and not get run over.

[prowlerjc]

Originally Posted by johnstarnes

I love that radical, aggressive front end!

It looks like its mascara is running.

[Uzzy]

Originally Posted by BlueChevyGuy

While I do believe that the Volt will be a "game changer," I am concerned that the car will not be able to back up all aspects of the sporty claim. It sounds like the suspension will offer sportier handling than the Pious or the Insight. However, once the internal combustion engine kicks on as the battery reaches its minimum allowed capacity, it sounds to me like the Volt will be quite buzzy if you want to accelerate or maintain speed traveling up any type of significant grade.

I only bring this up because my C&D that showed up yesterday had a section devoted to the Volt, in which the chief engineer (I think) stated that the engine will be thrashy in those circumstances. The engine puts out ~ 100 horsepower, which in turn will be the maximum output coming through the electric motor that drives the wheels. This is down from the ~ 150 horsepower or so, that is generated from the battery-only operation. Once the battery is depleted, the battery is no longer used until the car is charged up again.

I'm sure that this has been debated and discussed to death, but could someone with an engineering background explain to me why it is not practical for the IC engine to re-charge the batteries AND drive the car, then shut off once the battery has reached its maximum allowable capacity? I'm just not convinced that buyers will accept the drastic change in the car's acceleration capabilities and smoothness once the battery is depleted.

Thanks for any information that will clear this up for me.

Sorry, but what you just said doesn't make any sense. Why would the electric motor's output change when the ICE is on? It should not. It should be exactly the same all the time, unless there is some programming to limit it when the battery is run very low. Furthermore, the engine would not thrashy at any time. It would run at the same RPM all the time. It is designed to run as efficiently as possible since it's job is to re-charge the batteries as efficiently as possible, again unless the battery charge become dangerously low then perhaps there is some programming that will charge them up faster, but it would likely negatively effect system efficiency.

I have an engineering background and the reasion the ICE doesn't power both, is just as stated above...efficiency. The best way to do it is to keep the engine disconnected from the mechanicals and just use it as a generator for the batteries. That is why it is a series hybrid. The Prius and all other hybrid systems produced to date are parallel hybrids.