Where does this keep coming from? The first thing we knew about the Volt is that it was electric drive. There is no mechanical connection between the gas motor and the drivetrain.

Without a direct mechanical link to the gas engine, the wheels are drive solely by electricity. After your 40 miles are gone, what are you going to do? The gas motor will supply electricity as it turns a generator, of course.

After 40 miles, which do you prefer:

*your Volt idling constantly at stop lights and unattended in the parking lot or driveway while the gas motor fully charges the batteries? This is obviously not the case.

*your Volt running the gas motor during a trip only enough to get you where you need to go so you can plug in at a parking spot to recharge via cheaper (hopefully cleaner) supply?

The only real question is how much the gas motor must run to keep the car going with a depleted battery. Maybe it is only 5 minutes in 30. Maybe it is continuously. I’ve never seen anybody provide solid information on this, the most important part of the fuel economy equation for this vehicle.

Either way, the car is going to be producing at least a little excess power. Terrain will vary. Speed will vary. Accessory usage and regenerative braking will vary. In current vehicles the motor varies RPM. In the Volt, there’s this big thing called a battery pack available to soak up the extra power. Maybe it’s only a couple percent of capacity, but it is still actual charging of the battery.

TOP FIVE REASONS:
5. You try hauling around seven thousand Ray-o-Vac ‘D’ cell batteries!
4. Fake digitized cars get better mileage at lower fake digitized speeds.
3. Exhausted interns can only push concept car up to jogging speed without hurting selves.
2. Too difficult to unspool half-mile-long extension cord at higher speeds.

And the TOP REASON:

1. Tried to wind rubber bands tighter, but engineers kept getting fingers caught in them.

Electric drivetrain in automobiles seems like a logical evolutionary step. Run the internal combustion engine at its optimal efficiency point while having torquey electric motors do what they do best. That seems to be how locomotives and cruise ships are designed nowadays too.

It does seem logical, doesn’t it. Unfortunately the latest info (read here at TTAC) has it that the gas engine will not recharge the batteries. They act like two separate systems. Once the batteries run out, you have to get home and plug them in to recharge.

I’m actually glad of that. I was worried that the lukewarm response to the production concept was going to see GM attempt to sex it up, hoping to appear people whop wanted an electric Cadillac Sixteen.

There’s a lot of “it looks like a Prius” complaints. I don’t mind** that it looks like an aero-wedge; it’s got a job to do, and it can’t do it if it suffers compromised styling.

Everything the exterior is optimized for airflow like the performance cars you mentioned.

That’s an issue. Performance cars’ shaping of airflow is very different from that of the Prius. The Evo’s “shark fins” are there to increase downforce on the rear wing; the diffusers on the Prius are there to reduce sucking drag by breaking up airflow behind the vehicle, possibly at the expense of downforce.

(** I drive pre-Epsilon Saab 9-3; as such actually like the Pruis’ shape, and by inferrence that of the Volt and Insight)

The glossy center stack is going to be a nuisance on bright sunny days for the passengers and driver – I would almost bet they change that.

The production Volt looks very nice in motion, better than the concept looked in my opinion. It’s a properly futuristic looking car whereas the concept was a cartoon.

What does that mean, and is that GM’s pitch?

The fake front grill seems a little dopey too. I understand that superior aerodynamics and a small gasoline engine obviate the need for a grill, but GM stylists wanted to give the front of the car a traditional car appearance, in contrast to the milquetoast Prius face. At least the Volt doesn’t have fake side vents.

Overall, I’m actually pretty excited about this car. $35K (after tax rebates?) for a car like this seems like a fair deal.

Electric drivetrain in automobiles seems like a logical evolutionary step. Run the internal combustion engine at its optimal efficiency point while having torquey electric motors do what they do best. That seems to be how locomotives and cruise ships are designed nowadays too.

Of course, it’s probably a styling gimmick…