GM Volt test drive tour starts Oct 9th

[DaveinOlyWA]

test drive was only a few miles, but did involve merging onto the freeway.

the interior was nice and bright.

the response of the car was very adequate. it was very smooth, quiet (even in electric assist mode there was no engine noise at all) and its ride was very solid and stable.

but...

its smaller than my Prius which simply means its not an option. back seat is cramped and back storage is nice, much better than a trunk, but still smaller than what is available on a Prius. below the floor in the back there was storage for the cord and a flat tire repair kit but also the battery that would be used to jump the vehicle and i thought the space could have been ultilized better. unlike the Prius which has the battery against the wall, the Volt battery was nearly dead center in the middle which made large storage impossible, only smaller compartments on each side.

here is pic on center console

here is the drivers view. notice the gear indicator on upper right. just below that is a representation of the gear shifter. strange... why they needed both i do not know
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=31593862&id=1470388190

 

[sjfotos]

Is the above what we were trying to insert?

 

[sjfotos]

test drive was only a few miles, but did involve merging onto the freeway.

the interior was nice and bright.

the response of the car was very adequate. it was very smooth, quiet (even in electric assist mode there was no engine noise at all) and its ride was very solid and stable.

but...

its smaller than my Prius which simply means its not an option. back seat is cramped and back storage is nice, much better than a trunk, but still smaller than what is available on a Prius. below the floor in the back there was storage for the cord and a flat tire repair kit but also the battery that would be used to jump the vehicle and i thought the space could have been ultilized better. unlike the Prius which has the battery against the wall, the Volt battery was nearly dead center in the middle which made large storage impossible, only smaller compartments on each side.

here is pic on center console

here is the drivers view. notice the gear indicator on upper right. just below that is a representation of the gear shifter. strange... why they needed both i do not know
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=31593862&id=1470388190

I am much relieved to find that the clunky graphic is a Volt one and not a LEAF example!

 

[evnow]

http://www.theolympian.com/2010/10/10/1398849/chevrolets-volt-gets-rave-reviews.html

Chevrolet's Volt gets rave reviews at Tacoma debut Electric car

Its debut in Tacoma did, however, generate lots of radio and television sound bites and earned exposure on air waves as far away as Tokyo.

Two Japanese television stations, highly interested in the American competition to the soon-to-be-available all-electric Nissan Leaf and Toyota’s fleet of hybrids, interviewed members of the public who took test drives. Two local radio stations set up booths for the day at Griot’s Garage, the test-drive site. Local TV crews showed up too
...
You won’t be able to buy one in Washington until at least 2012, and there’s no set date for sales here, General Motors senior project engineer Tim Perzanowski said.

Its a mystery why GM is doing test drives here - let alone start here. Pure geography ?

ps: http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2010/10/10/1661840/rave-reviews-for-electric-car.html

"Tacoma debut: 214 people try out Volt"

 

[Anonymous]

http://www.theolympian.com/2010/10/10/1398849/chevrolets-volt-gets-rave-reviews.html
Its a mystery why GM is doing test drives here - let alone start here. Pure geography ?

Possibly, if you look at their tour map going across the US, either start here or in Chicago depending on whether you want to go clockwise or counterclockwise around the states.

Also, it might make sense to start your test drive show in a "later" area just so that by the time you get to the first markets you've already generated a lot of hype so more people are aware of what you're doing and sign up for the bigger events.

 

[evnow]

Also, it might make sense to start your test drive show in a "later" area just so that by the time you get to the first markets you've already generated a lot of hype so more people are aware of what you're doing and sign up for the bigger events.

Apparently they are failing in the hype department. Even gm-volt doesn't have anything about this (Lyle has a rather unflattering 32/36 mpg story) !

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

Yes that's the 1 that there are 2 of them. the picture is the 1 on the center counsel. The other picture is the 1 on the drivers side dash. It has a lot more details

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

I personally think the tour started here As part of recognition that of our efforts To promote green transportation.
An obvious and logical choice would be to start in detroit or maybe to end it in Detroit as the first volt rolls of the assembly line.

But then again this would not be the first time That gm confused me

 

[evnow]

Just came back from the test drive. Thankfully it wasn't raining - i'll post my impressions a little later.

 

[evnow]

Compared to my 10 yr old maxima ...

Cons
- Smaller
- Limited rear visibity (split rear window !), large C pillar

Pros
- Nearly silent, even in CS mode (that is the only mode I drove in)
- Much better trim level giving a comfy-cozy, if compact, feeling
- Decent acceleration, even with all that bulk



There was a steady stream of 15 or so people waiting ...


Isn't "Unplugged" as strange name for a plug-in vehicle ?

 

[sjfotos]

What is "CS" mode? and thanks for the update and picture!

 

[evnow]

What is "CS" mode? and thanks for the update and picture!

"Charge Sustaining" mode i.e. when the battery charge has depleted and the generator has kicked in. Until recently GM wouldn't let anyone drive in this mode ...

I'll give a proper account of the drive - hoping to do that in the new "mynissanleaf blog" when it goes live.

 

[sjfotos]

What is "CS" mode? and thanks for the update and picture!

"Charge Sustaining" mode i.e. when the battery charge has depleted and the generator has kicked in. Until recently GM wouldn't let anyone drive in this mode ...

I'll give a proper account of the drive - hoping to do that in the new "mynissanleaf blog" when it goes live.

Thank you! I look forward to the extended review.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

here is the dash pic

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

here is the dash pic referenced above. very colorful

 

[sjfotos]

Thanks for posting both of them. They seem s bit busy for automotive displays, but that is a matter of personal taste.

 

[evnow]

Thanks for posting both of them. They seem s bit busy for automotive displays, but that is a matter of personal taste.

Yes - very busy. Have Space Will Use school of deisgn.

 

[planet4ever]

Yes, "busy" was my immediate reaction. And busy can be very bad when you are supposed to be giving most of your attention to the road.

 

[walterbays]

"Charge Sustaining" mode i.e. when the battery charge has depleted and the generator has kicked in. Until recently GM wouldn't let anyone drive in this mode ...

So the Volt is more like a big Prius than it is like a Leaf pulling a gasoline generator behind on a trailer. This explains why it is a much better car than expected, and also why it is so much more expensive than expected. I wonder how they were able to work around Toyota's patents on Hybrid Synergy, or whether they just intend to defend based on a hoard of other unrelated patents from which to make counter claims.

http://www.automobilemag.com/green/news/1010_chevy_volt_surprise/index.html

 

[EVDRIVER]

THe display graphics on the Volt are very clunky and unrefined, a bit like a kids video toy. The white interior center consul is a bit out of place but the dash pad design is hideous, the entire dash is overdone and looks like it was inspired by the Grand Canyon where a river carved through to make the lines. The front of the car is very much like the gen 1 Acura TL, which is not bad.

Anyone notice that PW at Aptera completely copied the dash design of the volt from the ugly double-hump dash pods (EVA) to the ipod white center consul. Not to mention the over weight attributes the volt has with it's bulky parts and added dash accents.