Volt road ready this Spring?
Still, a long way to goGM's Bob Lutz is a spin-master.
“I think that our No. 1 competitor has some problems with their technology, and I do think that it very definitely opens a window of opportunity for us to be first to market with a genuine plug-in hybrid,” Bob Lutz said at an automotive industry conference in Traverse City where the battery deal was announced.
While I believe that GM might offer the first "genuine plug-in hybrid", GM is also facing serious problems. For example, the Chevy Volt is still just a concept. It won't be road-ready - for testing - until the Spring of 2008, at the earliest. Additionally, if GM does produce the Volt by the end of 2010, as planned, the costs are expected to be very high. Thus, GM is considering a plan to sell Chevy Volts with optional battery leases to help make the cars a little more cost-effective.
But, back to Toyota's problems. Finish Volt road ready by this Spring
Labels: bob lutz, Chevy Volt electric vehicle concept, GM, Hybrid Vehicles, lithium battery, plug-in hybrid vehicles, toyota, toyota prius
posted by Dahcredyns at
7:57 AM
1 Comments:
Full Story
GM's Bob Lutz is a spin-master.
“I think that our No. 1 competitor has some problems with their technology, and I do think that it very definitely opens a window of opportunity for us to be first to market with a genuine plug-in hybrid,” Bob Lutz said at an automotive industry conference in Traverse City where the battery deal was announced.
While I believe that GM might offer the first "genuine plug-in hybrid", GM is also facing serious problems. For example, the Chevy Volt is still just a concept. It won't be road-ready - for testing - until the Spring of 2008, at the earliest. Additionally, if GM does produce the Volt by the end of 2010, as planned, the costs are expected to be very high. Thus, GM is considering a plan to sell Chevy Volts with optional battery leases to help make the cars a little more cost-effective.
But, back to Toyota's problems.
Toyota is close to creating the first mass-produced lithium-powered hybrids. They might not be plug-in hybrids, but such vehicles would still be a huge advancement, in addition they would help Toyota bring down the cost of lithium batteries. And, let's not forget, there are already dozens of Toyota Prius plug-in hybrids on the road today achieving as much, or more than, 100 mpg.
In reality, Toyota could begin mass-producing 100 mpg plug-in Prius hybrids today based off of Toyota's 2nd generation Hybrid Synergy Drive. Of course, such vehicles would probably cost about $50,000 - 60,000, and there are still safety issues that need to be further explored.
Thus, Lutz might be correct when he claims that GM could be first to plug-in hybrids, however, if current hybrid vehicles demonstrate future success, then it's hard to bet against Toyota.
Still, ultimately, I believe both companies will achieve plug-ins around the same time, and success will not be determined by the most sophisticated technology, but by the most cost-effective technology - a serious problem for both GM and Toyota.
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