I recently had the opportunity to test drive the Chevy Volt as part of Drive for Innovation, a partnership between UBM Electronics, the parent company of Design News, and Avnet Express. During the test drive, EE Times' editorial director, Brian Fuller, asked what it would take for me personally to buy a Volt. I talk about that in the video below.
Source: General Motors.
It's a good question. The short answer, though, is pretty simple: money. The Volt's MSRP is $40,280, which is high, at least for my pocketbook. If you subtract the $7,500 tax credit, it comes to $32,780, which is still about $7,000 more than the base price of a Nissan Leaf.
For me, though, the money issue is also inextricably tied to another matter: all-electric range. At first glance, that might seem like an odd statement, since the Volt has a gasoline backup and an overall range (electric and gasoline) of more than 340 miles. But, right now, I own two cars with more than 150,000 miles on them.
My annual mileage clocks in at well over 30,000 per year, with a high percentage of my trips exceeding the Volt's 40-mile all-electric range. For me, the $12,000 penalty imposed by the Volt's 16kWh battery doesn't make sense, since so much of my time is spent well beyond the all-electric range. In much of my driving, I'd be lugging around a depleted, 400-pound battery that would actually cut my fuel efficiency.
That driving profile is unusual, of course. But Fuller's question raises some valid issues: If you buy an electric, does it become your first car or your second? If it's a second car, is the price within your means? Finally, what driver profiles are well-suited to the Volt's capabilities?
If you want to learn more about the Volt, we recommend you go to the Drive for Innovation site and follow Fuller's cross-country Volt journey. On his trip, sponsored by Avnet Express, Fuller is taking the fire engine red Volt to innovation hubs across America, interviewing engineers, entrepreneurs, innovators, and students as he blogs his way across the country.
In the meantime, let us know what you think: What would it take to make you buy a Volt?
If the volt were not as expensive as a luxury car, I would be thinking about it, and if a Volt sold for $17K to $20K, I would consider it very seriously. There are quite a few things besides price that are probably show-stoppers, however, which include serviceability and the availability to charge the vehicle.
I would purchase a given vehicle if it met my needs, rather than because it was "green" or "cool", since I feel no urge at all to simply impress people.
One of my biggest concerns would be how it would survive the huge amounts of road salt that are applied to all roads in this part of Michigan every winter. The conditions are far worse than the US Navy salt spray test, and the amount of vehicular destruction that results is large. Any vehicle that could last more than 5 years under these conditions would be a good candidate. BUt, would you spend some $8000 for a new battery pack for a vehicle that might fail after another 2 or 3 years?
I certainly would NOT buy a Chevy VOLT, BUT I might buy a Ford "JOULE" or a Plymouth "AMPERE" or a Toyota "WATT". However, this vehicle would have to be able to travel on the U.S. highways & byways at least 600 miles in all weather conditions, whether 95º heat or 15º cold, with rain, snow, etc. Charging would have to be as simple AND quick as getting fuel is now, AND, when the batteries are permanently depleted, I should be able to go to SEARS, ROEBUCK for a drop-in replacement DIE HARD!
I still see this car as a second vehicle as opposed to a primary vehicle even for someone like me who doesn't have a commute to work (I work at of the house). That said, my family does regular road trips of between two or four hours each way and the battery range issue would be a concern. As Chuck and Robinr note, however, the price point is far too high at this stage of the game to make this a viable second vehicle option (or a first car choice for many in this economy).
I'd LOVE to have a Chevy Volt. Unlike Mr. Murray, my drive to and from work each day is within the electric drive range of the Volt. I currently own two cars and a pickup truck. I would LOVE to thumb my nose at big oil.
Would I BUY a Chevy Volt? No way, not at that price! Not included in the purchase price is the price of a new battery every year or so ($3000?). OUCH! Would I save that much in fuel costs every year? Not quite.
Also, I know the hassles one must go through to be an "early adopter." Been there, done that. When all the bugs are wrung out of the first year's model, and when the price of ownership drops below $30K, THEN I will look seriously into buying one.
But in the meantime, if someone wants to send me one to test for a year or so, I'll gladly drive it around!
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 3
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
11 
