too much, and not fast enough...
Posted on 08/02/2010 6:13:14 PM PDT by Kaslin
Industrial Policy: The administration's electric car represents both the genius of American technology and the stupidity of its government. Imagine Rube Goldberg with $50 billion. Buy now and get a free 40-mile-long extension cord.
It wasn't exactly Michael Dukakis riding in a tank wearing a Snoopy helmet, but it was close. President Obama, who reportedly hasn't driven an inch himself since taking office, visited a GM plant in Hamtramck near Detroit on Friday to drive a Chevy Volt 10 feet off an assembly line. It was a perfect image, as the American economy is being driven off a cliff by this White House.
The administration, at taxpayers' expense, has labored mightily and brought forth an Edsel that needs to be recharged. If a camel is a horse designed by committee, the Chevy Volt is a car designed by government. It is a perfect example of industrial policy run amok, of what happens when government picks winners and losers. Without heavy subsidies and government ownership, it never would have been built.
The base sticker price is about $41,000, comparable to the base price for a BMW 335i. For that price, you could also get a good-sized SUV that can seat more than four people and get all your stuff back from the big-box store.
There's a $7,500 tax credit offered by our utterly bankrupt federal government that's supposed to help, but even a presidential commission in 2009 said the Volt "will likely be too expensive to be commercially successful in the short term."
(Excerpt) Read more at investors.com ...
They will control my thermostat when they pry it from my cold dead wall.
Their specs from the GM website:
Full charge: 110V 15 amps, 6.5 hours
That works out to 110 x 15 x 6.5 / 1000 = 10.73 KWhr
My electricity costs (Progress Energy of SC): $0.10 per KWhr
Cost for a full charge: 10.73 KWhr x $0.10/KWhr = $1.07
Specified range on electric only: 40 miles
Energy cost per mile: $1.07 / 40 = $0.027 per mile
Even if I run the A/C (this is SC) and it only gets 20 miles to a charge I could still make my 14 mile round trip for about $0.05 per mile.
This doesn't take into account the purchase price or the cost of battery replacement and/or disposal. It also doesn't take into account the road taxes that I'm sure they will figure out pretty quickly or the rising cost of electricity if these really become popular. I'm not going to run out and trade-in my F-150 to buy one.
the horror, the horror, the horror...
Hilarious video.
Read the comments too.
Don’t care how ya cut it, this vehicle is headed for the heap. An anchor for any democrat.
I understand that the batteries in the Dolt require a 240V source to charge them. Technically, 240V is not even available from the grid, but even at 220V, it only INCREASES the load on the grid. Brownouts, anyone?
>> From what I can gather, it outperforms the GM offering
>> in pretty much every category...
Then you haven’t gathered enough.
After 80 or 100 miles, give or take, the Leaf is a shiny doorstop until you can recharge it*. Stop for gas every 300 miles or so, and in the Volt and you can drive indefinitely.
The first 40 miles are only intended to cover the “typical daily usage” of about 75% of Americans.
And that’s pretty much the whole point. Do you have a typical, <40mi/day driving pattern? You will rarely use ANY gasoline. Drive a bit more than that? You’ll use gas, but less than in a normal car. Need to go on a road-trip? No problem, just gas up.
* = By the way, the full charge on the Leaf takes over 24 hours from a 110v outlet. Volt’s 110v full charge is complete in 8-10 hours. Each can also charge from a 220v circuit (must be hardwired) in about half the time.
That made the rounds last week, except it was a copy made from the audience where everyone was snickering at the lyrics.
The 3 dancing girls are OK. Just turn off the sound.
>> You would think that once you kick in the gas engine,
>> the battery would charge.
Why? You’ll just use up gas faster.
What you really want is use electricity for your motive force as much as possible. Charging is better off coming from the grid, not from the engine-generator.
The specs on the website list only 110V, 15A for 6 to 6.5 hours.
"GM should make a car that runs on bad taste. This video will fulfill the whole world's needs."
According to chevy, the volt charge take 8 hours on 220 and 16 on 110, so essentially the same as a leaf.
That makes sense.
By the way, I should clarify that while the Volt doesn’t “charge” the battery (meaning to recharge to a significantly higher percentage), it WILL still take advantage of surplus power created by the genset or regen braking.
Example: Let’s say the car in CSM (charge sustaining mode, ie. ICE genset running) and you start to coast, or use the regen braking. That doesn’t mean the genset will necessarily slow down or stop right away. That’s up to the car’s computer. The battery pack buffers both directions - both by absorbing surplus electricity, and supplying surge power as needed to satisfy your right foot.
” Somebody is going to get an ear-full when the blackout start. “
That is, of course, assuming that they actually sell enough of them to have an impact on the grid...
I’m betting not.... ;)
**********
Agreed. This is for a subset amongst the vegans.
too much, and not fast enough...
Assuming it will even move at that temp...from Wiki:"On August 2009, GM released their estimated city fuel economy rating for the Volt of 230 mpg of gasoline."
My Excursion does MUCH better than that. We have almost 200,000 miles on the thing and have never put a single gallon of gasoline in it. (It's a diesel.)
>> These people are all morons. This car runs for 40 miles on
>> coal and then when it’s coal power gives out it runs on gasoline.
Is it fun painting with a broad brush? Not everybody gets their power from coal. Some people get their electricity from nuclear, wind, hydro, solar, etc. Yes, coal is dominant, but it won’t be forever, and many people already have a choice.
FURTHERMORE...
A Volt owner who happens to own their own solar array, and has a <40 mile R/T commute, can flip OPEC the bird all day long if they are so inclined. A Leaf or Tesla owner can, too (they just don’t have a plan “B” when the juice runs out).
THAT’S what I want out of an electric car. NATIONAL SECURITY. As much as I can buy.
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