Intill theres better battery technology or a real viable alternative to gasoline electric cars will always be a side show. This country is run by two, well three factions : Lawyers, medical and especially big oil. Its a joke, pricing off of speculation, its a license to steal. If we didnt ship our energy overseas we wouldnt need to rely on the middle east.They're taking trillions of cubic feet a gas, the most ever anywhere, from pretty much right under my feet. Doesnt do me or you any good, almost all of it gets shipped overseas.

[cecil98]

Originally Posted by Jonr There were two main design principles of the Volt. The first principle is to be an efficient electric vehicle. Thus, if your daily commute is less than 25-30 miles, you will only be on the electric motor. The second design principle was to have an extended range. Thus, if you are traveling more than 25-30 miles, you know that you will have the gas motor to rely on. You also know that you have the capability to stop at any gas station and get more fuel for the trip. With other electric vehicles, the range you can go and where you can recharge are major issues. With the Volt, you do not have this issue. While I don't disagree with any of the math of the 4.5 hour trip, I would argue that the 4.5 hour trip shows the worst possible mileage scenario for the Volt. Just as the article of the person who used the Volt as her daily commuter on her ten minute commute to work and didn't buy any gas at the pump for several months would be the best case scenario. Lastly, the fact that the Volt made a 4.5 hour trip is a positive. There are no other electric vehicles that can make that trip. Is the Volt the best choice of vehicle for everyone? No. If you are consistently making long trips in the vehicle, there are probably better vehicles for you. If you are looking for a daily commuter that can give you outstanding gas mileage, this could be the vehicle for you. The idea of buying gas every couple of months is outstanding.

So.....basically you're saying that Gov't Motors expects the average Joe to spend $46grand for a car that will get you to the Kroger Store and back before it needs an $18.00, 10 hour "coaled fired" recharge?
WOW!

[TQ29m]

Originally Posted by cecil98 So.....basically you're saying that Gov't Motors expects the average Joe to spend $46grand for a car that will get you to the Kroger Store and back before it needs an $18.00, 10 hour "coaled fired" recharge? WOW!

I wasn't going to get in this, cause I don't, as so many other's, have a dog in this fight, but I was on this planet, at the end of the last Century, when there were still a small number of the early, "electrics" on the roads, and from what I see, of some of the new attempts, they haven't come any further, than they were, 70 or so years ago, they've "restyled" the old "phone booth", but you still only drive, about as far as you could then, 30-40 miles was possible back then, and it didn't cost hardly anything to recharge, we seem to think that coal, and oil, and some other things are "history", and Green is in, well, I for one, want to see a 747 take off here, and land in Florida, on one "charge", whether or not you want to admit it, coal and oil will be what get's us out of the mess we're in right now, not anything else. JMHO! Bob!

[Revolution Racing]

For the record.... YES the government did subsidize Henry Ford. Many times, and in many ways. Have you ever read anything about what Ford did for this country (with a lot of help from the government) during WWII? That effort gave us critical manufacturing for the war effort, but it also kept the auto industry afloat during a time when nobody was buying cars. Many countries do not have this kind of cooperation between govenment and industry. Somalia and Zimbabwe come to mind - are you saying we should follow their lead?

Look I'm as fiscally conservative as most, but this new idea that the government plays (or should play) no role in the development of National infrastructure is goofy. How the heck do you think our highways, bridges and dams get built? How do you think we got to the moon? Don't you agree that developing new transportation and energy technologies is equally important? Can't you see that this opportunity represents our next/best chance at a new manufacturing cycle here in America?

Oil is global - nobody is going to change that anytime soon. So when Gingrich tells you he can give us $2.50 gas, he's telling you what he knows you want to hear. Anybody who actually knows anything about the oil bidness will tell you he's nuts. Going forward, we need efficient EV vehicles. And CNG. And fuel efficient petroleum vehicles. And more solar. And every other darn thing we can do, so that what oil we do have can be put to best use. Its really not a bad scenario - more U.S. energy production, more U.S. alt-fuels manufacturing, more energy efficient U.S. made vehicles = more U.S. jobs and a better economy.

Or, we could just go back to kissing the oil companies butts, put carburetors back on taxi cabs, and KEEP ON WHININ' Some of you guys need to cheer up a little.

[racer-x]

There is more oil here and in Alaska then there is in all of the middle east.Its just the tree huggers and the spotted owl loons have made it off limits to drill. Go look at the unemployment rate in North Dakota,its only about 2% because of all the oil work.There economy is so good the "ladies of the night" are fleeing Vegas and going there. Go listen to Newts plan on energy verses the speech that current guy said a few days ago about converting "pond scum" into energy and tell me who you think has a plan.. I am all for natural gas and hydrogen in cars as it is a cheap replacement to oil.
Some of the problem us that understand the volt is you have to plug it in and then your energy comes from a so called "dirty" coal plant..They are shutting 2 of these coal plants down in Illinois next year! What do you think that will do to your energy bill??????
Im not sad either,its just not so easy to find the truth if you only hear a little bit of it a day!
Thanks Bill for letting us vent a little on this as the price of gas and the car industry is very important to open wheel racing!!

[Jonr]

Originally Posted by cecil98 So.....basically you're saying that Gov't Motors expects the average Joe to spend $46grand for a car that will get you to the Kroger Store and back before it needs an $18.00, 10 hour "coaled fired" recharge? WOW!

How about $1.50 a day.

How much does Volt cost to charge?

Electricity is an extremely affordable transportation fuel. With a fully charged battery, most people can commute gas– and tailpipe emissions–free for about $1.50 per day. That's about the same annual cost as running a common household appliance. To save even more, some utility companies offer lower electricity rates for vehicles charging during off–peak periods, such as night. (1) EPA-estimated 35 miles initial range based on 94 MPGe (electric); actual range varies with conditions.

http://www.chevrolet.com/volt-electric-car/ in the FAQ section.

[cecil98]

Originally Posted by Jonr How about $1.50 a day. How much does Volt cost to charge? Electricity is an extremely affordable transportation fuel. With a fully charged battery, most people can commute gas– and tailpipe emissions–free for about $1.50 per day. That's about the same annual cost as running a common household appliance. To save even more, some utility companies offer lower electricity rates for vehicles charging during off–peak periods, such as night. (1) EPA-estimated 35 miles initial range based on 94 MPGe (electric); actual range varies with conditions. http://www.chevrolet.com/volt-electric-car/ in the FAQ section.

The article I read said between $17-$18......that doesn't mean that the authors of the article couldn't be mistaken....

[Revolution Racing]

I'm 100% 'drill baby drill', not because it will have any meaningful effect on price at the pump but because it does create lots of good paying jobs right here in America - the kind of jobs a guy can afford a race car on!

Petroleum industry statistics have repeadedly stated that even if we could extract all the oil we have (which is indeed a lot), and then, somehow, refine it (we don't have anywhere near that refining capacity btw), the effect at the pump would be, at best, $0.03 per gallon. You have to understand, the oil we drill for here goes onto the GLOBAL market - it only stays here if we are willing to pay the highest price for it. Otherwise it gets sold to China, or Europe or whoever pays the highest price.

I didn't make the rules, I don't particularly like the rules, but i understand the dang rules!. Politicians that tell you they can control the price of gasoline ARE LYING TO YOU.

Now if we could only get politicians talking about changing the rules on American natural gas before all of it gets sold to China, we might be getting somewhere....

[racer-x]

Your being set up people!! Most of it is the journalism of the mainstream news and the coverup that has been going on.. Want the facts? Watch the Shaun Hannity show tonight,maybe you will change your mind..

[TQ29m]

Here's a link, to a co in Indiana, that rebuilds wrecked Prius electrics, I have a friend who works there, www.autobeyours.com, an interesting inside to the electric question. Bob!