and at ~$40,000 they won't exactly be flying out of the showrooms either
Posted on 09/05/2009 7:03:31 PM PDT by dangerdoc
Bring on the war of words. In a frank conversation with MSN writer Lawrence Ulrich, Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen has said that the Chevy Volt will fail and that anybody who buys the car is an idiot. Not only that, de Nysschen has lumped proponents of any type of electric car into a category of “intellectual elite who want to show what enlightened souls they are.”
Now I'm too pay 40K for a Corolla with a battery pack that costs about half of what the car goes for if it craps the bed.
No thanks.
and at ~$40,000 they won't exactly be flying out of the showrooms either
When the SHTF my old Ford LTD will take me about 300 miles. I have gasoline.
If I have to plug my car in to an outlet, I will have to negotiate the terms.
Think chess and think beyond one move.
Power outages happen.
Thank the Lord; someone in the car industry who has a BRAIN and the wisdom to open his mouth and speak the TRUTH!
“Prius”
Around these parts, we call them “Pious”...for obvious reasons.
I wouldn’t say idiots. After all we can say he’s a little biased working for another car company.
In some cases, I’d say ‘suckered’, ‘eco-nuts’, ‘smug’, and for some it might be a car that works out for them they way they drive.
I don’t think it will work for most people however.
I wish they would design a car like they did those european electric buses, where each wheel is its own electric engine (its a generator in reverse where the rotor is fixed and the housing is the wheel hub and spins around that) - and all it takes to power the bus is a decent size 5000-6000 watt generator engine to supply current to the wheels. It’s extremely low polluting and gas efficient. Have a lot less weight and more room for people and storage as there is no central engine. No transmission or fluids. Just a little oil for the generator engine. Could really slap a big gas tank on it and it’d run for a very long time.
You wind up with four separate electric engines in each wheel. Always 4 wheel drive. I don’t know why we don’t go that way here
I think there’s a general less than complete understanding out there - not just this forum - of what the “plug in hybrid” technology in the Volt represents.
This is not an electric car, which won’t run on gas. It’s not a “hybrid” like a Prius, which won’t run on electricity.
It’s both. If you have access to a plug - it will run on electricity (alone) up to a certain distance. If your daily round-trip is less than that distance you never actually require gasoline.
However it also has a gas tank, and switches to gas once the electricity runs out - after which it’s a gas car. It can be refueled at any gas station just like a regular car.
So in a SHTF scenario you can still use gas.
It’s truly a breakthrough technology, and it’s American.
Now. If we could just get GM wrested away from the government, and get the price down from $70K or whatever absurd level it’s at for the first models.
It’s a good concept. An excellent concept actually.
Ford needs to make a Focus with this tech. And an F-150 wouldn’t hurt.
Thank you for the reply.
“AMERICA FIRST.”
Not when the practice - buying companies with taxpayer dollars to support unions - is completely UN-American!
I wouldn’t accept one if it were free.
Thanks for your post.
I feel like one of the lone “buy American” FReepers - but we’re really frittering away our once-might industrial base. Eventually that will not end well.
I understand the whole union issue - but there are some issues even bigger than unions.
We’ve just about destroyed our economy. We’ve just about destroyed our industry. We’ve just about spent all our money buying stuff from China, and we’ve almost farmed out all our technical capabilities. We need to stop.
We’ve really damaged our country.
“AMERICA FIRST.”
I agree, and that’s why, despite the fact that my father worked for GM for at least 35 years, I will never buy a GM car again unless and until the government is out of it, and the unions cease backing socialists.
I would agree to a certain level.
I will not ever buy a Chevrolet, or Chrysler vehicle again.
New or used.
I like Ford products. I liked Ford products before the bailouts.
I am proud that Ford is standing on it’s own.
I have owned several vehicles. Ford, GM, Nissan, Ford, Mazda, Dodge, Dodge, GMC, and triumph.
When I have need for a new one, I will look to Ford first. GM and Chrysler won’t get a look. New or used.
Okay. Whatever you say is fine with me.
Batteries not included...
I hope everyone gets a Dolt. With a range of what, 150 miles, that should open up the highway for me and my diesel VW. Half the cost of a Dolt, 42+ MPG, range of 600 miles, converted to run on veg-oil and/or diesel, with care a car that should have a life span of 400,000 miles or better, who needs an extension cord or a fancy expensive 150,000 mile battery?? No fossil fuel, no problem, get me to a Cosco or Sam’s Club and I’m ready to roll!! Yes, I know it’s not American made but why can’t we make a decent small diesel engine? I’ll not buy crap just cuz it’s made in America.
They have all gone off the deep end.
What does the Volt cost...forty k a pop? You have to use an ocean of gasoline to make up for that much money for a glorified go-cart.
Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen has said that the Chevy Volt will fail and that anybody who buys the car is an idiot. Not only that, de Nysschen has lumped proponents of any type of electric car into a category of "intellectual elite who want to show what enlightened souls they are."Depends. If local or state or federal gov't mandates that employers have to provide charging stations for employees (which also would mean designated parking) to recharge the commuter vehicles at no "charge" to the joker driving it -- and during peak grid stress at that -- they will look like geniuses.
Ich liebe mein Audi A6 mit quattro.
And a Q5 with turbodiesel will be better, if it comes along.
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