Survey says, the Chevy Volt failed — and surveys are always right, always
Consumers are just realizing the cost of the Volt?
Consumers are losing interest according to CNW Marketing Research
I hate automotive surveys. According to numerous surveys, for instance, somewhere between 60 and 80 percent of new car consumers are interested in hybrid cars, yet less than 3 percent of new car consumers actually purchase hybrids. So, I’d say that when it comes to new automotive technologies, consumer surveys aren’t worth the paper they are published upon.
Thus, when a survey suggests that consumers are losing interest in the Chevy Volt, I say whatever.
According to CNW interest in the Volt is dropping because it’s too expensive. Seriously? That alone makes the survey meaningless.
Inevitably, the technology powering the Volt will almost certainly experience numerous breakthroughs as it evolves over the next decade, and that means cost-cuts. Besides, GM knew full well that the Volt was going to cost too much for most consumers for at least the first few generations. Therefore, anybody that was expecting a far cheaper Volt today just hasn’t been paying attention, and probably never was a very serious Volt consumer in the first place.
Granted, GM over-hyped the Volt far too much and far too early, and coupled with bankruptcy, there is a lot of interest in Volt success and failure. Nevertheless, whether the Volt fails, achieves modest success, or rewrites the future of the automobile, is still to be determined, and it’ll probably many years, even a decade or more, before we’ll really know anything.
And, finally and most importantly, until consumer surveys start better correlating to actual auto sales, they should be deemed irrelevant and basically worthless.
Source: MotorTrend
Larry: The answer is “it won’t”. Since the unemployment rate is about 20% (that’s the real number, not the published number), and that figure is essentially the new norm, I don’t see luxury cars having a bright future in the United States.
On the other hand, since all the jobs have been shipped to China and India, maybe Cadillac will survive in those countries, since that is where the American Dream has been sold to (for pennies on the dollar).
well.. if it failed ..why is Cadillac going to make it?
Agreed. The Volt really is useless. Who ever heard of a hybrid in which the engine couldn’t recharge the batteries?
It is critical to understand that the Volt was never about selling cars; it was about getting government grants. Moreover, the bulk of the Volt sales to date have been to government fleets and not private citizens. I’ve only ever seen one (1) Volt in real life that didn’t have government tags.
@Indigo – Volt is not a great hybrid once that 35 miles battery range runs out. The car is 400 lbs heavier than a compact SUV (Honda CR-V). The 1.4l gas engine won’t have enought power to handle that.
On top of that the remaining battery and gas engine do not work in concert like the patented HSD. The result is an anemic $40k compact car that sprew more tailpipe emission than the Cruze. That’s pretty outragous.
It is amazing how word of this survey has gone viral…
The results of this one survey, (conducted by the same group that tried to prove that the Toyota Prius produced more greenhouse gases than a Chevy Tahoe), has been picked up by every major news organization across the country.
News agencies no longer care if the information in a story is accurate. They simply care how the story will affect their ratings…….
Quite a few folks who solo commute daily will buy a Yarus or Civic or Corrolla … the sweet spot is 10-20K and 30+ mpg.
and the Prius falls into that bucket.
The Volt does not.. it’s new and it’s made by GM and only a few car manufacturers who can be trusted to build a new car that starts off reliable and GM does not have that reputation but Toyota and Honda do.
People are not going to sign up in droves for a new GM-made car utilizing bleeding-edge technology that costs more than 30K….
I still believe GM correctly deduced that a car that has range anxiety – even a well-made one that hits the sweet spot on price and fuel economy has a significant flaw for the average commuter.
Someone who commutes 30-40 miles a day and can reliably do that commute and recharge at night will be tempted by the LEAF even if they realize it won’t get them to upstate grandma and back.
but for me.. the reports of the Leaf “fibbing” about how many miles are left is a worse fault that the “propulsion reduced” warning that only happens on very steep uphills for the Volt – not exactly a big deal if the car is used for daily commuting anyhow unless you work at a mountain-top observatory or some such….
So.. here’s a question.. assume Toyota brings a plug-in to market .. GM holds their fire and keeps their powder dry and then right as Toyota’s plug-in hits the streets.. GM announces a 25K Plug-in Cruz…..
Americans don’t like limited range. They need to be able to drive their car 300+ miles to the beach/mountains/grandma’s …
How many Americans actually own a small car just to commute? Its a low percentage because both parents work and both want to commute in “their car.” There’s no room for the commuter car in that scenario.
Wolf: My guess would be that the Prius PHEV will be less expensive than the Volt. It also won’t feature the “Propulsion System Reduced” message once the plug-in part of the system is depleted.
Isn’t it interesting that the production version of the Prius PHV is coming out and the interest in the Volt is dropping.
You have to remember that the Volt was designed from the ground-up to be a different kind of hybrid. Whereas the Prius and Insight run on a hybridized combination of gasoline and electricity, what powers the Volt is a hybridized combination of unsustainable hype and truckloads of taxpayer cash.
What do you expect from the same group that tried to show that a Prius causes more pollution than a Hummer?
well.. the “survey” would have been a little more informative if they had added a question like: ” Would you buy a Chevy Cruz Hybrid for 22K”?
or perhaps:
would you chose a 22K car that got 50mpg over a 18K car that got 35mpg….
so much of the discussion seems to me to seriously conflated… and seriously about people’s prejudices with respect to brands (and styling).
A little notice thing that is going on is how well Chrysler is doing with popular styled cars even though they are bottom rung cars on value and reliability… they still sell….well..
Chrysler was also a bailout auto company but hardly any criticism like that that is leveled at GM…
Interest is not dropping. The survey is just becoming “more accurate” now that the Volt and Leaf are on the market…
When the Volt and Leaf were just “pipe dreams” it was much easier for folks to say they were willing to pay the higher price for these vehicles…. Now that the Volt and Leaf are actually on the market, people have to put their money where their mouth is. That’s a little tougher…..
I think the survey is “more” accurate today than it was previously. The survey “is” saying that the price is still too high for most Americans.
But, as this survey has become more accurate, the percentage of people that said “yes” in the survey who will actually buy a Volt or Leaf will be higher than from previous surveys…
I’m not surprised. Most people will make the calculation that a more fuel-efficient car with no worse compromises can be had for far less.
their only interest in the technology that is in the Volt is if that technology will benefit them in some way …usually financially.
there’s a lot of talk about people who are concerned about pollution, energy independence, “green”, etc… but the vast majority of people, it simply comes down to how much they can afford either as a cash-buy sale or a monthly payment and when the money comes into the equation – a lot of other things they say they care about… just fall away.
A 10K or 20K car that goes 50 miles on a charge and re-charges in 30 minutes (and has a “get-me home capability) would, in my estimation, blow the other hybrids out of the water….especially if it had all the cool technology that many people crave….
the only real benefit of the Volt – was to get an American contender in to the EV competition.
It’s served that purpose well in my view but people are looking for Version 2.0 from GM – perhaps a Cruz Hybrid ….
On the Version 2.0 issue.. Nissan needs to do that also with the LEAF.
if neither GM nor Nissan move the ball forward then Toyota will win by default.
Plug-ins are still not practical. In most of the country, their coal-powered electricity is even more dirty than petroleum. The proverbial three strikes would be cost, actual environmental impact, and lack of quick electrical refueling.
Gas still isn’t expensive enough for most Americans to give a rats ass.