Reviewing a Chevy Volt is a lot like assessing a low-end BMW, Mercedes, or Lexus. Although the Volt has a Chevy nameplate, it's still a luxury car -- albeit a car for those with an untraditional sense of luxury.

I wrote about my initial impressions of the car in July. This article is to add deeper perspective on its features and energy usage.

The reason I put the Volt in the luxury category is simple: The model I drove from September 28 to October 5 has a sticker price of $44,680. Most buyers will also need to add a 240V charging station to their homes or garages at about $1,500 to $2,000 a pop, installed. So the bottom line is that it's going to be a tough sell for a young engineer with a family and an $80,000-a-year salary.

Watch Chuck's video showing the Volt's center-console power management and charging display:

That said, the Volt is a triumph of energy-efficient engineering. The 16kW battery and the 149HP electric drive unit provide a lot of oomph, making it accelerate in a way that few production vehicles can today. Moreover, the Volt's launch is smooth and quiet -- so quiet, in fact, that riders in our car universally felt that they were experiencing a new automotive phenomenon. The Volt, they said, really is different.