Volt Birth Watch 54: Hype, Deconstructed
Published: June 10th, 2008
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Sales in the toilet? Market share down? Cash burning? Thank God for Maximum Bob. Post Black Tuesday, GM Car Czar Bob Lutz demonstrated GM's commitment to a better tomorrow by not flying a Harrier jump jet to the recent Volt mule demo. According to ever-faithful Detroit News, "Bob Lutz has upped his personal commitment to battery-powered transportation with the purchase of an electric scooter." If that doesn't make you think longingly about someday maybe having the opportunity to possibly order an actual Chevrolet Volt, then this: "Lutz already has four electric Segways at home, including a pair of X2 off-road models." Four? Segway soccer? Anyway, Autoblog's Sam Abuelsamid trades his Bob props for some scuttlebutt. In terms of potential Volt battery suppliers, GM has "a lower risk with one company than the other." Since the Guardian recently ran a story naming potential supplier LG Chem/Compact Power as the provider of the Volt mule's powerpack, Abuelsamid's colleagues at AutoblogGreen assumed that LG Chem/CP was Lutz's preferred company. Twice. AutoblogGreen must've missed the International Herald Tribune story "Compact Power plans to make Volt batteries at a factory on Seoul's outskirts that will make paperback-sized cells for a coming Hyundai hybrid." In other words the real headline should be "GM Volt To Use Hyundai Batteries."
More by Edward Niedermeyer
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If GM didn't kill the EV they wouldn't be scrambling to build the Volt right now. Instead they took the easy road and focused on SUVs because they could make tons more money selling these tarted-up trucks. They favored a quick buck over the big picture. I have no sympathy for GM, they deserve to die. The Volt will never see the light of day, it's a classic case of "too little too late".
The Volt was quite obviously originally a half-serious and half-FUD project (the FUD being "don't buy hybrids! Look! We have something better in progress!" while they still thought they could sell SUVs and big cars. Now that it needs to be all-serious, it's probably too late.
Hey, I think 6 segways may actually make for a good soccer match. Get a little attachment to make ball handling a little easier, use a larger ball. I can see it.
Yes! Four Segways. Have you not seen his house? He needs one for the north wing, one each for the west and east wings, and one for the grounds.