Is the Chevy Volt a PR Ploy for GM?

In 2008, GM asked the US federal government for financial protection as they faced bankruptcy. While the Senate voted down their request, President George W. Bush overrided them and granted funds to the ailing auto company on December 20, 2008.

President Obama, however, wants a greener, more socially responsible General Motors that will help break our national addiction to fossil fuels. And much of the American public wants no bailout for a company that for decades has answered calls for more fuel-efficient vehicles with only half-hearted attempts. Is the Chevrolet Volt, GM's latest foray into the alternative energy car arena just another one of their half-hearted attempts to go green?

GM XP-83

In 1969 (yes, 1969) General Motors presented the test model of its XP-83, a forerunner hybrid vehicle that looked a lot like a Chevy Vega and boasted 60 miles per gallon. Of course, in 1969 very few people saw the environmental and economic dangers caused by fossil fuels and GM saw no profit potential.

GM Ovonic

Launched in 1994, GM Ovonic was a joint venture with Energy Conversion Devices to produce commercial nickel-metal hydride batteries for electric vehicles. Unfortunately, in 2001, the oil company Texaco acquired General Motors' share of the joint venture. Note that Texaco subsequently became part of energy giant Chevron.

GM EV1

The 1997 GM EV1 was General Motors' first attempt to bring a plug-in electric vehicle to market. Actually, the EV1 was a lease-only product marketed initially only in California and Arizona. In 1999, GM discontinued the EV1 and required lessees to return all vehicles to the company. By 2003, all examples of the EV1 had been obtained by GM and each model crushed. While there have been many critics of General Motors for these actions, there are others who label the EV1 as a failed experiment. The two strongest criticisms have been its sticker price and its inability to withstand California and Arizona's extreme heat.

Chevrolet Volt

In 2007, General Motors unveiled the Chevy Volt, its range-extended electric vehicle, as a concept car with a projected launch date of 2010. GM Executive Vice President Robert A. Lutz is credited with reviving interest in the plug-in electric car. The Volt boasts 150 miles per gallon, and will offer significant tax credits for buyers. In fact, the Chevrolet Volt is a hybrid vehicle with a backup gas engine to recharge the battery for car trips over the Volt's 40 mile charge-range.

On the minus side, the Volt will be priced up to $40,000 and it won't (at least initially) generate enough of a profit for GM to dig out of their debt. To achieve a daily 40 mile charge-range, the Volt must be plugged in for six hours. And there's a hidden problem for those drivers that only travel 40 miles or less. After a certain period of time, unused gasoline goes bad and the backup gas tank will have to be drained.

While the Chevy Volt has served as GM's trump card in attaining government money, the ailing car company now offers a mixed message. On January 29, 2008, General Motors officially announced that it would end construction on the Flint, Michigan plant that would be producing the Volt's backup engine, and they would be exploring floor-space in existing GM plants.