Chevy
Volt Plug-in Hybrid Vehicle ready by Spring
Friday,
August 10, 2007
Still,
a long way to go
GM's Bob Lutz is a spin-master.
“I think that our No. 1 competitor has some problems
with their technology, and I do think that it very
definitely opens a window of opportunity for us to be
first to market with a genuine plug-in hybrid,” Bob Lutz
said
at an automotive industry conference in Traverse City
where the battery deal was announced.
While I believe that GM might offer the first
"genuine plug-in hybrid", GM is also facing
serious problems. For example, the Chevy
Volt is still just a concept. It won't be road-ready -
for testing - until the Spring of 2008, at the earliest.
Additionally, if GM does produce the Volt by the end of
2010, as planned, the costs are expected to be very high.
Thus, GM is considering a plan to sell Chevy Volts with
optional battery leases to help make the cars a little
more cost-effective.
But, back to Toyota's problems.
Toyota is close to creating the first mass-produced
lithium-powered hybrids. They might not be plug-in
hybrids, but such vehicles would still be a huge
advancement, in addition they would help Toyota bring down
the cost of lithium batteries. And, let's not forget,
there are already dozens of Toyota
Prius plug-in hybrids on the road today achieving as
much, or more than, 100 mpg.
In reality, Toyota could begin mass-producing 100 mpg
plug-in Prius hybrids today based off of Toyota's 2nd
generation Hybrid Synergy Drive. Of course, such vehicles
would probably cost about $50,000 - 60,000, and there are
still safety issues that need to be further explored.
Thus, Lutz might be correct when he claims that GM could
be first to plug-in hybrids, however, if current hybrid
vehicles demonstrate future success, then it's hard to
bet against Toyota.
Still, ultimately, I believe both companies will achieve
plug-ins around the same time, and success will not be
determined by the most sophisticated technology, but by
the most cost-effective technology - a serious problem for
both GM and Toyota.
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