Why the Chevy Volt will succeed

It really is more than just a hype machine!

I'm not sure that there has ever been a concept vehicle that has resulted in more PR and hype than GM's Chevy Volt plug-in.

For instance, despite the fact that GM received the first and only lithium battery pack for the Chevy Volt just a few weeks ago, David Kiley of Business Week has already claimed that the Volt is "miles ahead" of Toyota and Honda. Yet, today there isn't one single Volt prototype that utilizes ANY of the potential Volt battery packs. There is still the potential - which will only be found in real world testing - that the battery packs currently planned just won't work.

Crazy!

But there is a change brewing in the world and I've been in a crazy sort of a mood since the LA Auto Show. Actually this current streak of insanity dates back a few weeks before the LA Show. That's when my belief in the automotive revolution changed, and I've since been reevaluating all my beliefs. Finish.....

Hydrogen Economy: Where's the buzz?

FCV's: Too much of a threat to the military-industrial Iron Triangle?

Fuel cell vehicles, such as the Chevy Equinox FCV, Honda FCX Clarity, and Toyota FCHV, captured a pretty big chunk of the spotlight at the LA Auto Show this year, but nobody really seemed to care.

Sure, fuel cell vehicles are expensive and there isn't yet a hydrogen infrastructure. In reality it would take 10's of billions dollars to kick start the hydrogen economy and to create enough tax incentives to make fuel cell vehicles affordable for consumers.

With such high costs, why not just focus on plug-in hybrid vehicles and pure electric vehicles anyway, the consensus seems to be saying these days.

How sad. How embarrassing for a country that used to be the world's leading auto manufacturer and technological leader. Does America have any future beyond consumption? Finish....

Did US automakers cry wolf on the hydrogen highway

Hyundai's Bibendum winning FCEV

There is a rumor in the automotive world that the US auto industry and its lobbyists have long convinced the US Congress and multiple executive branches that CAFE was an inhibitor to fuel cell vehicles and the hydrogen economy. This lobbying effort, the rumor claims, has gone on for decades, although it has weakened since 9/11, Iraq, Katrina, etc.

I don't know whether the rumor is real or not, but I've heard it many times from many different sources.

The real point, however, is that in many circles, such as those rounded out by environmentalists and energy security hawks, the hydrogen economy is now believed to be fiction, something that is always a decade or two away from reality - something I have also believed, until recently. Finish.....

Fuel Cells: How you could take a drive into the future

A few of the first Project Driveway participants

Early next year, the first participants of GM's Project Driveway will begin testing GM's Chevy Equinox Fuel Cell Vehicles in their day-to-day lives. For three months, these participants will replace their current automobiles with fuel cell vehicles to provide GM with real world data, consumer preferences, etc.

Of course, you could apply to be one of GM's next Project Driveway participants - a program that will go on for the next few years. Or, you can head to Disneyland. At the LA Auto show GM announced a partnership with Disney where GM will provide Disney with some Equinox fuel cell vehicles to use as shuttles on Disney properties.

Role Reversal at the LA Auto Show: GM and Toyota

No new hybrids from Toyota?

Today, at GM's press release, fuel economy ruled. The Tahoe hybrid, the Malibu hybrid, the Silverado hybrid, and the Chevy Equinox fuel cell vehicle dominated the show.

At, Toyota's press release, the Sequoia ruled. Sure, Toyota also showed their fuel cell vehicle, which is a hybrid, but a fuel cell hybrid. Where was a new Prius, a next-generation hybrid?

Not at the LA Auto Show. Last year it was trucks that Toyota focused on. This year it was a large SUV.

My Second Equinox Fuel Cell Drive

This car kicks ass in LA traffic

I was able to take my second test drive of GM's Chevy Equinox fuel cell vehicle yesterday, and I have to say that all those writers that have focused on the 12 second 0 - 60 of this fuel cell vehicle just don't get it.

First, from 0 - 40 this car hauls ass. What more do you need in city driving? Second, the smooth seamless transmission, or lack thereof, makes the electric drive worthy of a slower 60 - the acceleration is just so smOOOth. Third, this vehicle is built on old fuel cell technology. The next generation of GM fuel cell technology will be lighter and more powerful, as will the battery. So, this car will see faster 60 times and better range.

GM's fuel cell vehicles will, as according to GM's plans, be ready by 2010. Will they be cost-effective? Will the hydrogen highway exist? Those are the real questions regarding GM fuel cell vehicles.

Hybrids at the LA Auto Show

Chrysler Aspen to debut at the LA Auto Show

I'll be at the LA Auto Show tomorrow and Thursday, and I am looking forward to checking out some new hybrid vehicles, such as the Chrysler Aspen hybrid and the Mercedes S400 diesel hybrid.

Later today I'll get another chance to drive GM's Chevy Equinox fuel cell vehicle, and over the next couple of days I'll be talking with a number of GM hybrid and hydrogen execs., so stay tuned.

Time to jump start the hydrogen highway?

A fuel cell vehicle being filled with hydrogen

$10 - $15 billion. Sounds like a huge sum of money, doesn't it? Too much for the government to jump start the hydrogen highway, right?

Well, let's add a little perspective.

In 2006, ethanol subsidies reached $8 billion dollars, and within 10 years those subsidies could reach $25 billion per year (more). Even ethanol subsidies, however, are chump change. (Finish: Hydrogen Highway)

Hybrids versus electrics: Just posturing?

Is the Volt heading in the wrong direction?

Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal ran a feature on the debate going on at the Tokyo Auto Show between automakers regarding hybrid vehicles versus electric vehicles.

When I read the piece, I could only laugh.

Big surprise that Toyota would defend hybrid vehicles. Can you say Prius? Likewise GM's Chevy Volt plug-in - a series plug-in hybrid, even though GM hates the word hybrid - puts GM on the same side as Toyota.

Well, kind of.

On the other side is Honda and Nissan. (Finish: Hybrids versus electrics)

Is it worth $15 billion to kick-start the hydrogen highway?

Is hydrogen worth the investment?

Thus far, war funding for Iraq and Afghanistan is over $140 billion dollars and another $40+ billion is on the table. Other reports suggest that the total cost of the Iraq and Afghan wars could hit $2.4 trillion. Sadly, when push-comes-to-shove, these wars could not have happened if not for America's foreign oil dependency.

So, how do we get off oil?

For decades the world has been told the 'hydrogen economy' is the future. According to GM, the future is here.

By 2010, if a hydrogen highway...(Finish: Hydrogen highway)

Project Driveway: GM's real world fuel cell vehicle test

First large-scale market test of fuel cell electric vehicles

GM is launching the largest fuel cell electric vehicle fleet into the hands of regular people everywhere. O.K., not everywhere, but in LA, New York City, and Washington, DC, although this program will probably spread to other locations where hydrogen is available.

For three months, regular people will replace their current vehicle and, instead, drive a Chevrolet Equinox fuel cell vehicle.

The Equinox fuel cell vehicle is road-ready and expected to meet all applicable 2007 Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. The Equinox also includes many safety features such as driver and passenger frontal air bags and roof rail side-impact air bags; anti-locking braking system (ABS); StabiliTrak stability enhancement technology and OnStar.

Thus, Equinox fuel cell drivers are not signing up for some crazy, dangerous experiment.

This test will go on for the next few years, as GM monitors these fuel cell drivers, noting their likes and dislikes and, of course, any technical problems. By 2010, if all goes well, GM is hoping that it could start selling next generation fuel cell vehicles at the same cost as gasoline-powered vehicles, and Project Driveway is meant to help achieve that goal.

GM demonstrates hydrogen fuel cell vehicle success

A shining example of fuel cell reality

Not more than a couple of months ago I was certain that hydrogen fuel cell vehicles were a boondoggle. Even if all the problems with fuel cell vehicles could be overcome, I believed, costs would still be too prohibitive to make such technology cost-effective.

And, then there is the hydrogen highway.

Yesterday, I test drove GM's Chevrolet Equinox fuel cell vehicle, and now everything has changed. Finish: GM's fuel cell reality