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Breaking News 6/11/2011 - GM announced that Chevrolet dealers all across the nation are now taking orders for the 2012 Volt. A lower trim model will also be introduced to lower the base price by $1,000
General
motors is in final testing of a car that will be marketed under the Chevrolet
brand as the Volt.
This car is a Plug-in Parallel hybrid, that is it is driven by an electric motor coupled
to a grid chargeable battery pack. There is also a small gas powered
engine that drives a generator that can be used to power the volt when the pack
voltage drops below a set limit. A power Split device similar to the one
in Toyota and Ford hybrids allows the engine to provide power directly to the
wheels in some instances, normally when the car is travelling above about 70mph
and the battery pack is depleted.
The Volt uses a 16KW Lithium battery pack that provides a range of up to 40 miles of electric only propulsion. After that the 1.4 liter 4 cylinder gas engine turns on and the car can essentially be driven using the ICE while there is gas in the tank. The T-shaped battery pack actually has only 8.8KW usable, it is managed at a state of charge between about 40 and 80%, This is designed to extend the life of the pack which GM predicts will last about 150,000 miles before it will need to be replaced.
Charging will be done via an SAE J1772 compliant charging port that will allow the use of either a 220V or 110V outlet. It is expected that most Volt buyers will have a 220V interface installed in their garage. The car also comes with regenerative braking.
The car, which seat 4, will hit a top speed of over 100mph and, when not running in EV mode should return a respectable 40mpg on the highway but requires premium gasoline. The European version of the car, sold under the brand names Opel Ampera in mainland Europe and Vauxhall Ampera in the UK, will also come equipped with a hold charge button that will force the car to run in ICE mode so that the battery charge can be kept for use in your destination city. In the US version this function can be achieved by switching the car into Mountain Mode.
The Volt will be priced at $41,000 before Federal and State incentives. The car will initially be available in Seven regions, California, Connecticut, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Texas, and Washington DC starting around November or December 2010.
It will have a bumper to bumper warranty of 3 years or 100,000 miles while the battery pack will be warranted for 8 years of 100,000 miles. The car is rated at 93mpge in electric mode and 37mpg when the gas engine is running by the EPA.
In Europe the Opel version, the Ampera, will have a base price of €42,900
Check out my Test Drive of the Chevy Volt
Check out this video on charging the volt courtesy of youtube
Orders can be placed directly with a participating dealer. To find the closest dealer to you check out their Dealer Locator
To
order the Opel Ampera version go to the Opel-ampera
site
Fisker
is a start-up company based in Southern California that has developed a plug-in
hybrid called the Karma. The Karma is a serial hybrid which offers an all
electric range of around 50 miles from its 22KWHr lithium-ion battery pack,
after which a small gasoline engine will start up to keep the batteries
charged
Fisker's Q DRIVE technology gives the car a top speed of 125 mph and will go from 0-60mph in under 6 seconds. There are two driving modes, economy mode that offers reduced power to provide maximum range, and sport drive mode that allows full power to kick in. The car also offers regenerative braking and an optional full sized solar roof. To enhance their green image, no animal products are used on the Karma, and the wood used in the interior will come from trees damaged by California wild fires.
The initial vehicle will be a 4 seat sedan, which will be built in Finland, is targeted at the luxury market and will be followed by a convertible version. The car is expected to sell at a base price of around $88,000.
Fisker has already started development of a lower cost sedan under a project dubbed Nina but that isn't expected until toward the end of 2012.
The Fisker Karma is being sold through a group of about 45 retailers but 2011 production is already sold out.
Fisker is now accepting Pre-orders for the Karma for delivery in 2012.
In Santa Monica, CA Fisker of Santa Monica is now taking Pre-orders
Chinese battery maker BYD has started selling a plug-in Hybrid based on its F3 model. The car, called the F3DM uses BYD's Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries to give the car an electric only range of 100KM (62 miles) and a top speed of 160kph (99mph). The battery pack is expected to provide about 2000 cycles (about 120,000 miles) before it needs to be replaced.
Once the battery capacity runs low the 1 liter three cylinder gas engine fires up and the car will operate like a conventional hybrid. BYD calls this serial/parallel system Dual Mode.
The F3DM is a four door compact sedan that looks a lot like the Toyota Corolla. The car went on sale to government agencies in China in December 2008 but only about 80 vehicles were sold, and I have heard rumors that build quality was quite poor on these cars. The car went on general sale to the public in China during April 2009. The price of the car is 109, 800 Yuan (about $16,000). It is expected to go on sale in Europe and the USA in 2011.
To purchase a BYD F3DM see your local DBD Dealer
If any owner out there would like to email evfinder and tell me their experience I would love to pass on the information to prospective buyers. I would also like to hear about any full sized EVs that are not listed here, or send any questions you might have about EVs.
Now for the fine print - remember always read the fine print.
The information contained in this web site is based on information I have received about the availability of vehicles both new and used. I attempt to keep the information here as current as possible but I would appreciate being notified of any inaccuracies you may find. The appearance of a vehicle on this site does not imply any endorsement of that vehicle, or any implication that the vehicle will be suitable for your needs. As always you should investigate the vehicle and the seller before shelling out your hard earned money.