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Automotive News & Views Can GM make Cadillac the standard of the world Again?
6098 messages, Last post on Aug 14, 2009 at 4:43 PM
You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires
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Replying to: circlew (Apr 08, 2009 4:16 pm) And there's the little matter of who's paying for the power. Plugging in your laptop at the coffee shop is one thing. Plugging in your Chevy Volt around town (even assuming that places install the plugs, and they won't be 120 outlets will they?) is going to cost money. That kilowatt charge is likely to be passed on to the owner. The gas station will come to you in the form of a bigger electric bill or some dollars docked from your paycheck. I'd want to pencil out the numbers before getting too excited about mpg vs ____. (what do you call miles per kilowatt anyway?).
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Replying to: steve_ (Apr 08, 2009 4:25 pm) But I agree, we need to calculate all of the costs. At the end of the day, the energy needs to be created here and expended here. Then we can calculate the build-out at the most efficient cost. The good thing is we can have alternates to plugging into the national power grid as technology improves. Regards, OW
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Replying to: circlew (Apr 08, 2009 4:39 pm) I guess I'm still favoring the drive-through battery pack replacement setup. When you look at a photo of a block heater install (or a Prius plug-in setup), you see this nice little electric plug tucked away in the grill or behind a flap. But you need a cord to get from the car to the outlet, so you wind up with a 10 to 25' extension cord you have to haul around. That cord is often going to be wet, dirty or frozen. Pickup owners often just put some prongs on their grills and wrap the cord around that in block heater country. Seeing a $40,000 Volt cruising around with a 25' extension cord hanging off the front grill will be entertaining. 
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Replying to: steve_ (Apr 08, 2009 5:14 pm) Well, I saw a video of a gal who drove away with the gas pump following behind. I guess the 25' electric cable whipping around is a little cleaner!   Regards, OW
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Replying to: steve_ (Apr 08, 2009 4:25 pm) It's not a huge deal. A car like the Volt might have as much as 15 kilowatt-hours in the batteries, which works out to maybe a dollar per full recharge. Pop a few quarters in the meter and walk away. (what do you call miles per kilowatt anyway?). Watt-hours per mile is the usual term. The lower the number, the farther you can go on a charge. The Volt is probably in the neighborhood of 250. |
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| until the Fuel Cell is perfected, which, no surprise, it looks like Honda has about done. This eliminates the need for plug in parking meters, or employers who will pay to charge their employee's cars (yeah right! Like they pay for their gas now). The Hydrogen Fuel Cell is the answer folks, and until the distribution system for Hydrogen is built - petrol will still rule the day. Hybrids are merely stopgap - enjoy them if you want to, but they are temporary. | |
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GM has a well thought out solution to the battery range problem. Put a little generator on board. Plus- the Chevy Volt is pretty good looking and the Caddy version (Converj) is over the top hot. That vehicle will sell- if they can build them. I know plenty of affluent people who drive Prius's, but if there were a luxury, no compromise choice out there- it would sell. now- if GM can actually build them and sell them for a reasonable price, they'll be able to make some cash- 10 years from now after they pay off the development investment.
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Replying to: morey000 (Apr 10, 2009 8:49 am) I know plenty of affluent people who drive Prius's, but if there were a luxury, no compromise choice out there- it would sell. There is. GM is playing catch-up with the Volt. Too late. 04/10/2009, 9:21 AM Tesla Roadster goes 241 miles on single charge in European rally Electric vehicles are often criticized for their limited range, but Tesla’s Roadster recently proved that even today’s EV’s have enough juice to cover a significant chunk of miles. In the Rallye Monte Carlo d’Energies Alternatives, Tesla’s Roadster covered 241 miles on a single charge. The annual event –put on by the Automobile Club of Monaco – runs from Valance, France to Monaco, pitting alternative fuel vehicles against one another. The rally covers 241 miles of highways, streets and back roads. The Tesla Roadster was the only electric vehicle to finish the event on a single charge – a Ruf EV and a few Mitsubishi iMiev’s also competed in the event – and its gauge cluster even indicated its batteries still had enough charge for another 38 miles. That would put the Roadster’s overall range at 279 miles – about 59 miles more than Tesla claims on the Roadster’s spec sheet. Speeds for the rally ranged from about 60 mph to 20 mph, with the average checking in at a less-than-thrilling 28 mph. However, the fact that the Roadster covered all 241 miles – with some to spare – is still quite the feat The Sedan is being ordered no (>1,500 on order) and will start production soon. Regards, OW
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Replying to: circlew (Apr 10, 2009 10:33 am)
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Replying to: aldw (Apr 10, 2009 12:30 pm) For me, it's the Tesla all the way.  The Volt is a sad excuse for a $40K EV IMHO, of course. It's not what I would pit against the int'l auto community of future technology from the U.S.A. , afaic. And the Prius looks like a modified Aztec from my vantage point!  Besides, it's in jeopardy! At a media preview of the heavily redesigned 2010 Prius hybrid here, Ed La Rocque, Toyota's national car marketing manager, confirms Toyota has a plan to address Honda's new Insight hybrid, the recent U.S. launch of which has whipped analysts and industry watchers into a frenzy because the Insight's base price ($19,800) undercuts the current Prius by thousands. With those looks and that future, it's CURTAINS! Regards, OW |
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