GM plans 2 other electric vehicles

[blue_onyx]

"General Motors Corp. plans to bring two additional models based on the Chevrolet Volt’s electric drive technology to market, according to its restructuring plan filed late Tuesday with the U.S. Treasury.
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The Volt, which has become a symbol of GM’s powertrain strategy of the future, is slated to hit the market late next year. GM has said it planned to use the extended range electric vehicle technology in other vehicles.

The company’s plan said it is investing “significantly in hybrid and plug-in vehicles” and will increase the number from six in 2008 to 14 in 2012 and 26 in 2014."

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http://www.freep.com/article/20090218/BUSINESS01/90218061/GM+plans+2+new+electric+vehicles+based+on+Chevy+Volt

Since DU focused only on the negatives of the viability plans, here some good information GM presented. I think the Saturn Vue would've been a great option for the Volt technology but that looks unlikely with now.

[Initech]

1. They need to make a 4 door electric hatchback.

That would easily be enough to single handedly rejuvinate GM right there.

[CRF450]

4. They can improve on the Volt and make one later.

[flvegan]

8. The Saturn Astra platform with that technology would be very nice.

[jody]

2. Too little, too late! n/t

[blue_onyx]

3. How so?

Not like Toyota or Honda has plug-in hybrids that go 40 miles without any gas on the market yet.

[pleah]

5. Why do they not put the price tag on all these new cars?

Well, I guess it doesn't matter, I can't afford a new car anyway.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

6. No one, but no one should poo poo the

electric car... especially when it can eat a Ferrari for lunch

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqqtJpfZElQ

[david13]

7. Yeah and GM says it should be ready in 20 to 40 years.

[blues90]

9. Like one other poster said "a little too late"

And that's damn right . Look I don;t care how the big three cry now and want bailouts they have had decades to produce all sorts of new inovations and yet what was their focus. They focused on and banked on big oil. They don;t give a shit about the milage or pollution they had t be forced to increase it as well as safety issues. Then they act like they did it for the consumer.

Now that people can't even afford food how the hell are these new electic cars going to help these people. I guess the focus now is only as always on the ones who have managed to keep their jobs and did well , those who's jobs were not outsourced of cut back to some min wage.

I guess the electic car will benefit the homeless since the air will be better and the noise will be reduced.

I cannot understand how people stand behind the big three when they never stood behind the people or the environment and fought the unions all the way.

think about how long the internal combustion engine has been the choice. Fuck the big three. let then fail because they deserve to fail with their cheap half assed crap that they pedal.

[blue_onyx]

10. "Cheap half assed crap that they pedal."

Don't talk about things you are clueless about because this is BS. Their vehicles are not crap. As far has milage, GM makes vehicles that get equal or better MPG than Toyota or Honda. For example, the Malibu gets 22/33 compared to the Accord (22/31) and Camry (21/31).

I stand behind the big three because my state depends on them and if they all go bankrupt, our state will not recover for decades.

[blues90]

11. Don't tell me I don't know about it .

I worked for one of the big three for over 34 years and saw first hand what goes into these cars and trucks. I worked on them and deal with all the customer issues and recalls and all of it. They need to design these unit much better so they can be less expensive to service if something fails and use better parts. Did you know that the manufacturer depends on the repair dealers reports and input to tell them what needs to be changed because of a simple routing of a wire harness can render a car in-operable?

Do you actually think that after all these decades that 22 to 33 MPG is something of a thing called progress?

Beside that milage is not the only issue involved here , quality enters the picture too. These cars have a life span of at best 5 to 7 years and they are worthless after that and that is if they are well taken care of.

I understand your concern if they go backrupt but it really was up to them to make a better product and go beyond the in-efficient internal combustion engine.

[blue_onyx]

12. Do you have proof that their products life span is 5 to 7 years at best?

I'm driving a 15 year old Buick Regal...clearly far beyond the 5-7 year time frame. If 22/33 isn't good enough why aren't you criticizing Toyota and Honda too? People on DU worship these companies for reasons that aren't even valid. The idea that US vehicles are inferior isn't true. In fact, Toyota's quality has been slipping and they even annouced a "recall of 1.4 million cars throughout the world" recently.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17912_3-10151587-72.html

"Go beyond the in-efficient internal combustion engine." Once again, not only an issue with US companies since the foreign companies also rely on internal combustion engines. Next year, GM will be the first to get a plug-in vehicle that can operate for 40 miles without using gas to market and yet you say to hell with them. I don't get it.

GM (as well as Ford) have great products and even better ones on the way. I believe Obama understand the importance of helping the US auto industry and will continue to assist the US automakers.

[blues90]

14. The only proof i can offer is what I experienced

Working on the cars and with the customers. I really don't have a reason to lie about it but I can't produce actual written proof.

I'm not saying the imports are any better other than the dealership I worked for had a used car dept and I was amazed how much smoother the imports engines ran at idle . you could not even see that they were running . Most of the imports passed the calif smog test the big three often failed.

I drive a 1973 VW squareback and it is well past 400,000 miles and I rebuild the engine once and the trans which is fully automatic I replaced one forward clutch snap ring because it popped out and before the engine rebuild I got 38.5 MPG highway with two people and a load of luggage headed to Vegas through the inclines. This was 1991 and I still drive it today.

What I'm saying is if a customer buys a new car why should they be bombared with endless recalls and small issues that were clearly design flaws put up with this with a new car payment and high insurance when with a bit more attention to small details would avoid all of this and make the car so desirable that it would be a top seller. Word of mouth spreads.

How much repair have you put into your buick?

I can't answer for Honda or Toyota unless through the years they are also using cheap parts to save on cost.

I do know when I took my VW transmission into where I worked to clean it and take it apart the techs were asking me what I was working on , a truck , because the parts in my 73 VW were cast steel and twice the size of the same parts of a ford expedition automatic trans which the parts were made of stamped steel welded onto a machined center hub and the stamped steel would split.

Now the cars of the 60's and 70's had a 12,000 / 12 month warrenty and most all of them went past this before they ever needed repair. No they did not get 22 MPG but if they were fitted with an efficient engine they would have and lighter sheet metal parts to reduce weight.

Yes milage is very important but so is how long the car lasts and how little maintainence it needs are also part of the cost in the long run. Alot has to do with how the car is driven too because I've seen some junk in 20,000 miles and others go much longer. Milage depends a lot on how the driver operates the car too you know.

[blue_onyx]

16. I'm not positive about how many repairs in its lifetime

My parents bought it used (it was 4-5 years old) and then it passed down to me. While we've had it, I believe the brakes needed to fixed and there was a coolant leak. The struts needs to be replaced but I don't drive it much (I'm unemployed so I don't have anywhere to drive to) and I'm looking to update when I get a job.

[blues90]

17. Sorry about the job loss ,

But you do see what I'm saying . Everything that has to do with a car including repairs do add up so it's difficult to say if a car is a good product of not so good . Milage is one important issue but so is overall expense.

[blue_onyx]

18. Didn't lose a job

I haven't been able to find one since graduating from college. But thanks :)

I understand what you're saying but you were saying US vehicles are inferior. The US companies did have quality issues in the past but they have improved greatly. I believe if you went to a GM dealer today that you would be able to purchase a vehicle that is just as good as one from Toyota.

[blues90]

19. you may be right about the american cars being as good

I don't know , I don't look at cars , I am happy with what I have . I would say that they all could do much better for what these cars cost these days.

I have been out of the auto field since 2006 since there are no jobs . I never worked for the imports.

I just know from years of experience that you don't get what you pay for. Just like anything else these days , most of the parts are made all over the world and by the lowest bidder. I have some stuff here that has lasted and more stuff that has died well before it's time.

But I would say as time has gone by , most stuff whether a car or a clothes dryer is made to break where the old stuff I have just keeps on going and has never been apart.

I just think it's a shame and a scam that people are left at the mercy of cheap crap and pay hard earned money for it.

I'm 60 and have seen the downhill ride that has happened.

[TahitiNut]

15. Our 1990 Chrysler LeBaron and 1977 Chevrolet Monte Carlo are still running fine.

:shrug: :eyes:

[Blue Belle]

13. Wow! They're really stepping into the 90's!

Maybe they wouldn't be bankrupt if they had just thought of this a few years ago.

[ConcernedCanuk]

20. Rather than respond to individual posts - I had a big bad-ass '66 chevy convertible

.
.
.
was 19 miles per gallon

then I put in dual exhaust, changed the tranny from 2 speed to three speed

put on a 4-barrel carb

23 miles per gallon after all that

that was decades ago

I could do even better with today's tech

and it would ROCK!!

nothing quite like listening to that extra 2 barrels kicking in and plastering your head to the headrest!

I miss my power cars

oh well