Saw this ad on TV for the first time whilst fantasizing about a Rachel Maddow vs. Bill O’Reilly death match (rules upon request). The first thing that struck me: the Aptera is the only car in the world with less sideways visibility than the 1938 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic Coupe. Second, what is that hulk those guys are washing, and does the man from Griot’s Garage wince every time he sees that paint-scratching action? And lastly, I reckon the Volt has had its day in the sun. It’s not a profound Insight, but by the time Chevy’s not-so-slammed electric/gas hybrid appears, the Volt’s gee whiz factor will have drained off into the gestaltosphere. The Volt will have to compete with real cars in the real world, offering real advantages to real buyers. As you may have noticed, GM isn’t so good at reality. Still, where there’s a will, there’s an Uncle Sugar. The feds are lining up some $10k worth of tax credits for GM’s Hail Mary. Per vehicle. Is it enough? And will the clock run out before The General can even send in the special teams? Your guess is better than theirs.

This is what I get for taking a moment to check in at GM-Volt.com. The angry young Volt-lovers are freaking out about the possibility of GM not surviving until the Volt’s launch date, and the prospect of losing their beloved fetish object has folks in a “pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship” kind of mood. The emotional fervor that these people feel towards this nonexistant vehicle is such that their suggestions make handing a blank check to Detroit look like a good idea. The “ GM-Volt.com Viability Plan Suggestion,” was put forward by semi-retired NASA engineer Phil Toney, and man is it a doozy. The plan boils down to congress legislating that the entire government fleet (600k+ vehicles) be replaced with, you guessed it, Chevy Volts. But that’s not all…

Maximum Bob Lutz was not invited to grovel testify before congress this week, for all of the obvious reasons. So Lutz earned his champagne and cigars the honest way this week: driving cars and blogging about it at Fastlane. Of course, that doesn’t mean Lutz doesn’t have an opinion about the bailout. He’s just strictly forbidden from saying anything besides “I am not going to comment here about any government loans or hearings or GM’s financial situation — just like I wouldn’t engage you in conversation about it if I ran into you in the produce aisle.” Wheh. There goes one recurring nightmare. Besides, as Lutz points out “we have other places online for that conversation, such as gmfactsandfiction.com.” And if that’s not Lutzy enough for you, just wait until he starts talking about the Volt he’s been driving!

Obama is doing what he can to avoid getting overly involved in the unfolding government-industry debacle, but as we noted earlier, that’s a luxury he can only avoid for so long (not that we blame him for trying). Nothing illustrates the tough choices that The One will face in a few short months like Chevy’s moon-shot-mobile: the Volt. Accordingly, Holman W. Jenkins Jr has a column in today’s Wall Street Journal about “the car of the Age of Obama — or at least the Honeymoon of Obama, before the reality principle kicks in.” Jenkins devotes a good deal of the column to rehashing the many, many problems with the whole Volt project, a topic we have covered extensively in our Volt Birth Watch series. His logical conclusion? “It’s a car that will be unsalable without multiple handouts from government.” And he doesn’t go easy on Obama either…

In true Colbert Report fashion, a “tip of the hat” to the General Motor’s spinmeisters for letting GM Car Czar Bob Lutz walk into the lion’s den, knowing full well Colbert would make him look like an idiot. Mission accomplished. For example, Mr. Colbert pushed Maximum Bob on his stance on global warming, forcing the winner of our annual Bob Lutz Award to claim the Volt was for people interested in operating “cost per mile,” not the environment. Bob’s request for a change of subject was far from elegant (somebody help me, please!). Although Colbert managed to make Lutz look tongue-tied, nervous and shifty– only one of which you’ll see in person– the interview never got to the heart of the matter. So a “wag of the finger” to Stephen Colbert for not asking the obvious questions: is the Volt currently for sale? How much? Does GM have the financial liquidity to make it happen? On that note, Mr. Colbert should take a gander at GM’s market share slide before suggesting (however saracastically) that Lutz should take over the U.S. financial system (shiver). And to think I once compared Stephen Colbert’s passion for truth to the honest goodness of a Ford Ranger. Fake news should be ashamed of themselves.

GM, GMnext, General Motors,Ed Welburn on the Volt

We're all in favor of debunking the myths surrounding Chevrolet's plug-in electric – gas hybrid Volt. Of course, while TTAC's taking on myths like "The Volt will save GM" and "The Volt will be a reliable gas-free daily driver," The General worries that people believe the electric grid can't sustain electric vehicles. "We know that the charging of the Volt will happen at night," Volt-man Frank Weber assures. "When actually the consumption on the grid is lower. No air conditioning, no lights are on." Uh, OK. Myth 2: nobody knows what kind of battery the Volt will use. Huh? Myth 3: I want my GM EV! It's a conspiracy! Nope. It's a cutting edge deal. We couldn't do it before (even though we did). So now you know.