Europe's Volt: The Opel Flextreme

Almost next-gen Prius-like?

I was pretty sick yesterday, yet when I saw this new Opel Flextreme hybrid concept yesterday, I felt a little better. Of course, then I realized this was GM's take on a Flex Drive car for Europe, not America, and I felt sick again.

OK, all kidding aside, I like this Opel hybrid far better than the Chevy Volt - America's Flex Drive concept car. Sure it kind of resembles Toyota's next generation hybrids, but it also resembles GM's fuel cell vehicles.

More important, however, can GM make the flex drive work?

Bob Lutz has been claiming that GM will beat Toyota to market with lithium powered vehicles by as much as one year. I say that's a bold prediction. Will those lithium hybrids be cost-effective? Will there be a very limited first production? Will a secondary lease on the battery scare buyers away? Could a premature rush to market result in an accident?

When GM doesn't yet have a fully functional Volt, or other flex drive vehicle, it seems odd to predict a sale date when the vehicle cannot even be road-tested for safety.

Ohhh, the hype is just starting.

I get the feeling that GM and Toyota are heading into a PR war of major proportions, and that's O.K. because this P.R. war will have to follow up with results. That means the chances for consumers to buy 100 mpg hybrid vehicles early in the next decade are looking good. With such hype, anything less will be seen as failure.