The question to ask everyone is Who do you know who can afford $40,000 for a new car? I wonder what the percentage is of Americans who are struggling to even afford their car payment?
There are several categories of people who might want buy one. These people are rich, and they value the coolness factor more than some insignificant pocket change to the tune of $40K.
However Hollywood is not that large. It appears that Volt sales saturated all the demand that ever was. Now Volt needs new buyers. But there are no other people in the country who have more money than brains.
From my own point of view, Volt has a future battery problem. We know that current hybrids, like Prius, are not dependent on the battery that much, and the battery in Prius is NiMH, and it lasts about 10 years. We also know that battery in Volt is Li-Ion, and those batteries don't last (anyone who owns a laptop knows that - two years and you need a new battery.)
Volt also has limited range. I live in hills, which means that if I buy Volt it will be struggling to return home. But even on a flat terrain 30-40 miles is not a sufficient range. I need 30 miles for a daily trip around the valley; if I go visit friends that turns into 60 miles. I may also need lights, heater, windshield wipers, radio, and all other power consumers that I'm sure are not counted in the advertised Volt's range.
Volt has a gas engine. However why in the world would I want to buy a gas car that also has an electric powertrain if it will be used only in the first hour of my trip? A gas engine of Prius, for example, is far better in terms of fuel efficiency because it's designed for that. A gas engine of Volt is a last-moment drop-in to solve the range problem. Also that auxiliary gas engine requires premium gas - which is not good news right now. Volt is designed to run the gas engine from time to time in order to circulate gasoline, so eventually all owners of Volt need to buy more of that premium gas.
All in all, this car doesn't even look like a good technical implementation. It's a shapeless pile of random things thrown together to do the job. As an engineer, I don't want Volt - it is simply not good enough for me to desire one.
Perhaps I'm driving too much, and other people - who commute to work for 10 miles or less - will be more interested? But those people are also spending very little on gas; they will be better off just buying a used car for a few $K and driving it until the wheels fall off. Volt's intended benefit is in electric powertrain; but it cannot be used for more than 40 miles. Short commute doesn't realize this benefit because the car is too expensive. Long commute doesn't realize this benefit because the electric range is not sufficient. In other words, Volt, as designed, will never be more economical than a 10 year old Japanese car (let alone a modern Prius - which can be had for half the price of a Volt.)
That’s a good point. My only disagreement would be that although some can afford the car the question becomes, “Do I want to spend $40,000 on THAT car?” I am fortunate and can afford a car in that price range, but I wouldn’t spend that kind of money on any GM product. I usually rent cars when I travel and have tried some of the offerings of late from GM’s so-called “luxury division” and found them all to be wanting.