Introducing, the production Chevrolet Volt

Enjoy.

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080917/2008_09_16t103640_450x252_us_gm_volt.jpg?
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080917/2008_09_16t103858_450x300_us_gm_volt.jpg?
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20080916/i/r4195533970.jpg?x=400&y=253&q=85&sig=pWkiGCTjOYFVjeHZ68y79Q--
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080916/2008_09_16t164929_450x279_us_gm_volt.jpg?x=400&y=247&q=85&sig=EPxHFvMrMK8RNQCdGP5BOg--
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20080916/i/r4264100907.jpg?x=400&y=224&q=85&sig=YgiJSc0rLNyBg1HqSWoG9A--
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20080916/i/r2316691693.jpg?x=400&y=238&q=85&sig=EYLjLNPci38T1VTWqliaLw--
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080829/2008_08_29t051550_450x300_us_generalmotors.jpg?x=4 00&y=266&q=85&sig=1cCmYfrjWYEAyKz3_6iRyw--

A nice intro on GM's 100th birthday. I like the design better than the concept. Seems more user friendly and I'd bet slicker in the wind. Let's hope the program is going as smoothy as GM states that it is and this baby comes out on time with as few glitches as possible. GM needs this car yesterday and Wall St. would like GM's stock better if it was out already.

it looks better than the internet dating website pictures posted earlier

amazing what different angles and fewer old executives in front of a car will do

So the rear tailgate is glass? Could be an expensive fix for a rear-ender...

So how does one drive this car? IOW, is there a "gear shift"? What's that big white thing that is where I would expect a gear shift lever?

I like it well enough....

While I miss the Camaro-ish front end. I think this car looks a lot sportier and muscular than the Prius and Insight. No longer are electric cars wimpy.

Looks really nice except I hope they'll offer black for the center stack or maybe silver. That white is going to get dirty looking really easily and already looks appliance-like cheap to me even when it's clean.

BTW this is pretty ridiculous for GM to be putting out official production photos of a car that won't be out for at least 2 more years. Are they planning on moving production up or are they just hoping they can continue to capture everyone's attention for 2 more years with press releases... I mean what else are they going to release now?

BTW this is pretty ridiculous for GM to be putting out official production photos of a car that won't be out for at least 2 more years. Are they planning on moving production up or are they just hoping they can continue to capture everyone's attention for 2 more years with press releases... I mean what else are they going to release now?

I thought Lutz promised to lease a limited number of them (1000?) by Dec. 31 2009 :shrug:

I like it!

So the rear tailgate is glass? Could be an expensive fix for a rear-ender...

Looks like it is dark tinted glass.

http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autobloggreen.com/media/2008/09/volt-reveal-1280-39.jpg
http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autobloggreen.com/media/2008/09/volt-reveal-1280-71.jpg

Looks really nice except I hope they'll offer black for the center stack or maybe silver. That white is going to get dirty looking really easily and already looks appliance-like cheap to me even when it's clean.


I read that they will offer several color choices on the center stack in addition to black and white.

Enjoy.


http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080829/2008_08_29t051550_450x300_us_generalmotors.jpg?x=4 00&y=266&q=85&sig=1cCmYfrjWYEAyKz3_6iRyw--

[QUOTE=Z28x;5586998]

http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autobloggreen.com/media/2008/09/volt-reveal-1280-39.jpg
Are these from the same car? Looks like the glass is "transition glass".

Here is a weird thought. If your work commute was 42 miles round trip could you plug the car into an "APC back up" at work (that you charged at home) to get that extra 2 miles(more if you didn't drive like a granny)? Yes I know it has a gas engine.

Its a sweet car!

For $30k, I'd seriously consider it.
For $40k, I might consider it if gas goes north of $5/gal.
For $45k+, No thanks, I'll buy a Chevy Cruze and have enough to purchase a Camaro as well for the weekends.

Something tells me that this one is in for some serious dealer markup, especially in greenie states like California. :p

No traditional guages? Interesting. I know that's where it's headed, but I don't know how I'd feel without a "standard-looking" speedometer behind the wheel.

I guess I'd feel like it's a return to the 80's...

Looks better than the concept Volt, IMO. The interior is very nice.... much nicer overall than the Prius... but I could be biased....

I just realized this whole time I've never really specifically heard whether the Volt will use generative technology while driving... I've been assuming it would but never heard specifically that it would, or what it would be using other than regenerative braking, if anything else.

Looks better than the concept Volt, IMO. The interior is very nice.... much nicer overall than the Prius... but I could be biased....

I agree with you and I'm not biased toward GM. On the flip side the Prius starts at just over half what the Volt will likely start at. Then again fully equipped it's more like 2/3rds of the Volt.

Actually there's an all new Prius about to come out... I saw some spy shots of its interior and wasn't impressed. Though it was interesting they've gone back to that idea where the center stack and center console should be angled in toward the driver... kinda like the old Supra but taken a bit further.

I think GM could have been able to sell this car for less than 40k if they had decided on a more traditional gauge cluster and center stack and not some lcd looking thing. I'm sure there has to be a lot of money in that from a costs standpoint. No wonder the thing will cost 40k, its basically a Caddy with a Chevy badge.

I think GM could have been able to sell this car for less than 40k if they had decided on a more traditional gauge cluster and center stack and not some lcd looking thing. I'm sure there has to be a lot of money in that from a costs standpoint. No wonder the thing will cost 40k, its basically a Caddy with a Chevy badge.

I bet that while the development costs might have been kind of high for the digital dash and the rest of the software, the actual cost of the two LCD screens and the hardware to run them isn't very high at all on a per vehicle basis. Maybe 3-4 hundred dollars? I mean I realize that's nothing to sneeze at but relative to what it has added to the vehicle... a truly next-gen "this is the future" feel for the driver and probably a whole lot more information about the car's operations which will appeal to the nerds and fuel economy nuts (which will probably be 90% of the people buying this car at first).

Plus once you've got a hardware and software platform like this setup for the dash you can apply it to ANY GM vehicle in their lineup... maybe modify/add/remove a few applications or GUIs and that's it... you've got your gauges for another new vehicle.

I bet that while the development costs might have been kind of high for the digital dash and the rest of the software, the actual cost of the two LCD screens and the hardware to run them isn't very high at all on a per vehicle basis. Maybe 3-4 hundred dollars? I mean I realize that's nothing to sneeze at but relative to what it has added to the vehicle....

Development costs are factored into the MSRP of a new vehicle. The real driver on cost for this car is the est. $15k LI battery.

Development costs are factored into the MSRP of a new vehicle.

Yes but if they can spin the development costs of the digital dash into more (eventually all) GM vehicles then it lowers dramatically on a per vehicle basis.

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080829/2008_08_29t051550_450x300_us_generalmotors.jpg?x=4 00&y=266&q=85&sig=1cCmYfrjWYEAyKz3_6iRyw--

http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autobloggreen.com/media/2008/09/volt-reveal-1280-39.jpg
Are these from the same car? Looks like the glass is "transition glass".

Here is a weird thought. If your work commute was 42 miles round trip could you plug the car into an "APC back up" at work (that you charged at home) to get that extra 2 miles(more if you didn't drive like a granny)? Yes I know it has a gas engine.

Nope, guionM posted a pic of the concept. Just look at the bumper.

It is glass on the production car though, you can see the dash center stack in the second pic I posted.

Yes but if they can spin the development costs of the digital dash into more (eventually all) GM vehicles then it lowers dramatically on a per vehicle basis.

Well sure if and when that happens. For now the question was how much the digital dash drove up the price of the Volt. I'd say not much more than the development and material costs for any new GM IP these days. The tech is available already for that. It's the development of the LI plug in battery and all the new tech going into this car that is driving up the price.

Well sure if and when that happens. For now the question was how much the digital dash drove up the price of the Volt. I'd say not much more than the development and material costs for any new GM IP these days. The tech is available already for that. It's the development of the LI plug in battery and all the new tech going into this car that is driving up the price.

I agree. I think they HAVE to make the interior look expensive to try and justify the price tag. They can source a fancy instrumental panel much cheaper than the LIon battery pack!

While the pricing is kind of tough on this car, I think people would rather have a very nice $40,000 Volt with a near-luxury interior rather than an Aveo with a $15,000 battery for $28,000.

At GM's "blogger town hall" at the end of yesterday's Chevy Volt unveil, the General's Vice Chairman and product czar, "Maximum" Bob Lutz, made mention to a Volt feature we hadn't yet heard about, and is even more techie-cool than the iPod-like interface on the center stack. Apparently, the Volt will "know how far you are from home" using what we're assuming is an on-board GPS system. The plug-in electric extended range hybrid's computer will then use that distance, along with route information, to determine how long the car needs to run the gas engine to charge the on-board battery pack, allowing the vehicle to truly maximize fuel economy. Even if you're not drinking the GM Kool-Aid, you've got to be wow'ed by a system like that — as long as it actually works. Read the full quote from "The" Bob after the galleries and the jump below.

That is cool, how does the EPA test for that one?

I wonder what the electric bill will be to keep it charged up? Will they just be swapping gas cost for electric cost?:eek:

Nice! :D

:cool:

I wonder what the electric bill will be to keep it charged up? Will they just be swapping gas cost for electric cost?:eek:

Not quite...Lutz said on Fastlane (http://fastlane.gmblogs.com/archives/2008/09/power_on.html) that for about $0.80 you can "fill up" the battery. That'll get you 40 miles of range. If you do a dollars/miles comparison between a gasoline-powered...say Cobalt...and this car:

$4.50 a gallon = 36miles in the Cobalt
$4.50 worth of charging = 225 miles in the Volt......

So, cut your gas bill down to a 1/6, and add that to your electric bill. :D

I just realized this whole time I've never really specifically heard whether the Volt will use generative technology while driving... I've been assuming it would but never heard specifically that it would, or what it would be using other than regenerative braking, if anything else.

It sounds like once you deplete the batteries by driving the first 40 miles, then the batteries are done for the remainder of the trip:

http://www.autonews.com/article/20080917/ANA03/809179977

I hate to sound like a spoilsport, but General Motors is making me really nervous with its assurances that the Chevrolet Volt will transform the company, liberate motorists and achieve world peace.

On the contrary, the Volt is starting to look like a car that will appeal to a small group of consumers. For starters, it's a compact with a price of $30,000 to $40,000 or so, unless Congress scrounges up some subsidies.

And now it seems that the Volt's magnificent fuel economy on short hauls may be less than magnificent for longer trips.

Last week, Frank Weber, the Volt's chief engineer, let slip that the vehicle's gasoline engine will not recharge the batteries during daily operations. The only way that you can recharge those lithium ion batteries is by plugging them in to an electrical outlet.

Now, this doesn't mean that you'll be stranded by the roadside if the batteries run down. Once you've driven 40 miles or so, the gasoline engine will generate all the electricity needed to power the car.

The battery pack alone will carry you for those first 40 miles. But after that, it might as well be a paperweight.

The regenerative brakes will create a little juice for the batteries, but not enough to recharge them fully.

What kind of fuel economy will the Volt achieve on longer road trips? Weber says it will do fine. But he declines to provide any numbers.


This contradicts the Lutz comment posted above by Z28x. I suspect that ol' Bob was talking more about what could be done, instead of what the car will actually do.

It sounds like once you deplete the batteries by driving the first 40 miles, then the batteries are done for the remainder of the trip:

http://www.autonews.com/article/20080917/ANA03/809179977



This contradicts the Lutz comment posted above by Z28x. I suspect that ol' Bob was talking more about what could be done, instead of what the car will actually do.

Hmm... it still says they have regenerative braking so the battery must contribute something after it's depleted... unless you're on the highway.

Also I am a bit confused now as I thought the engine would start up and charge the batteries which would continue to power the electric drive train. Now it sounds like the engine will run dynamically and on-demand enough to supply power as-needed to the drivetrain... which I'm assuming is still run by electricity, right?

It sounds like once you deplete the batteries by driving the first 40 miles, then the batteries are done for the remainder of the trip:

http://www.autonews.com/article/20080917/ANA03/809179977



This contradicts the Lutz comment posted above by Z28x. I suspect that ol' Bob was talking more about what could be done, instead of what the car will actually do.I would assume they've done the math on this, right? I mean, once the engine comes on while driving, it will use the least amount of energy if it outputs only enough power to move the vehicle (through the electric drive system). Any power going to the battery pack is burning more gasoline than is required to move the car. So suppose the engine comes on at mile 40, and you drive the vehicle another 60 miles that day. But then you were going to plug it in when you get home. If the engine is burning the extra fuel required to charge the batts (so at the end of the gas-on 60 miles, the batts are highly or fully charged), then you've basically chosen to get the next day's charge by burning the fuel in your tank, rather than from the electricity in your wall outlet.

Such behavior, where you get all electric at first, then just enough gas usage to maintain your drive, seems to jive with the idea of an electric car with a range extender. That lets the electric recharge depend on the plugging in and not gasoline.

:shrug:

Hmm... it still says they have regenerative braking so the battery must contribute something after it's depleted... unless you're on the highway.

Also I am a bit confused now as I thought the engine would start up and charge the batteries which would continue to power the electric drive train. Now it sounds like the engine will run dynamically and on-demand enough to supply power as-needed to the drivetrain... which I'm assuming is still run by electricity, right?

I think I remember reading it had regenerative braking, I don't see why it wouldn't. Vue, Escape, Civic, and Prius have it.

The gasoline engine does nothing more than turn gas into electricity, they should really call it a gas generator instead of engine. The battery will never run out of power, the generator will kick on when it gets down to something like 30%. Don't need that thing dying when your going up Mt. Washington.

If the engine is burning the extra fuel required to charge the batts (so at the end of the gas-on 60 miles, the batts are highly or fully charged), then you've basically chosen to get the next day's charge by burning the fuel in your tank, rather than from the electricity in your wall outlet.

Seems to jive with the idea of an electric car with a range extender.

:shrug:

It won't do that , see my above post, #23

It won't do that , see my above post, #23That's what I'm saying.

I was answering the apparent surprise that the engine will not be recharging your battery while using it.

:)

EDIT: I'll admit that I had always sort of envisioned the gas-engine operation working similarly to how a laptop works when plugged in, if you'll follow me. When I deplete my laptop battery, I plug it in and run on AC power. The computer draws enough power to run the laptop and simultaneously charge the batteries. However, with the Volt, since the goal is to minimize gasoline usage and depend as much as possible on the plug-in aspect, this analogous behavior wouldn't make as much sense. If the gas engine provided enough power to operate AND charge (like plugging in the laptop), then you would be burning more gas than necessary. But in the laptop case, all of the power is coming from the plug in, whether the laptop is being used or turned off.

That's what I'm saying.

I was answering the apparent surprise that the engine will not be recharging your battery while using it.

:)

EDIT: I'll admit that I had always sort of envisioned the gas-engine operation working similarly to how a laptop works when plugged in, if you'll follow me. When I deplete my laptop battery, I plug it in and run on AC power. The computer draws enough power to run the laptop and simultaneously charge the batteries. However, with the Volt, since the goal is to minimize gasoline usage and depend as much as possible on the plug-in aspect, this analogous behavior wouldn't make as much sense. If the gas engine provided enough power to operate AND charge (like plugging in the laptop), then you would be burning more gas than necessary. But in the laptop case, all of the power is coming from the plug in, whether the laptop is being used or turned off.

I agree it could be done; but i'm also in agreement with you they will probably not allow the gas engine to fully charge the battery (just keep it hovering around the 30% mark). This will allow less load on the generator/engine and less gasoline usage.

Is Lithium Ion the kind of battery that lives the longest if you fully discharge it before recharging it? Like a cell phone?

I agree it could be done; but i'm also in agreement with you they will probably not allow the gas engine to fully charge the battery (just keep it hovering around the 30% mark). This will allow less load on the generator/engine and less gasoline usage.

But with gasoline engines being rather inefficient at light loads, you'd think it would be better to run it at its peak efficiency (say, 75%), charge the batteries up to 40%, then cycle the IC engine off until it drops to 30% again. Or using GPS, just let it charge enough until it calculates you can get home.

Is Lithium Ion the kind of battery that lives the longest if you fully discharge it before recharging it? Like a cell phone?

Don't ever, every deplete a battery fully and think that it'll live longest.

Keeping a lithium-ion battery on the charger all the time does hurt its life, though. The rate of depletion over the calendar life of a lith-ion battery is related to the voltage of the cell, and of course this voltage is higher when on the charger - and thus the rate of depletion is highest. This is why it's recommended to store unused lithium ion cells with a small amount of charge (perhaps 30-40%).

Hmm... it still says they have regenerative braking so the battery must contribute something after it's depleted... unless you're on the highway.

Yes, you'll still get a bit of regen. Slowing a vehicle down from 50 MPH requires storing a lot of energy - but that'll be small in comparison to the overall pack size, and so storing this in the package shouldn't be much of an issue (especially not if GM ends up with an ultracap in parallel with the battery).

Such behavior, where you get all electric at first, then just enough gas usage to maintain your drive, seems to jive with the idea of an electric car with a range extender. That lets the electric recharge depend on the plugging in and not gasoline.

That makes sense for a commuter that's trying to minimize gasoline usage, but on an extended trip, it'd make more sense to cycle the engine at a low duty cycle but a high load.

A lot of this might come down to minimizing the size of the generator. At $50/kW for a permanent-magnet electrical machine, the difference between a 30 kW generator for "topping off" the battery and a 120 kW generator for absorbing 100% of the engine's output is the difference between a $1500 generator and a $6000 generator.

That makes sense for a commuter that's trying to minimize gasoline usage, but on an extended trip, it'd make more sense to cycle the engine at a low duty cycle but a high load.You're right, Eric. I guess that is where the GPS / trip learning comes in... :think:

It's interesting how much this car has evolved (mostly for the better) from the concept.

The two share almost nothing significant in my eyes.
http://www.gminsidenews.com/forums/1183593-post13.html

Is Lithium Ion the kind of battery that lives the longest if you fully discharge it before recharging it? Like a cell phone?
No. Volt will keep the battery's charge range between ~30% and ~70% to maximize the number of charge cycles in the battery's lifetime. Actual percentages to be determined. :)

A friend of mine is the lead engineer on the Volt's control system.

The last time I spoke to him was ~6 months ago, so this may have changed, but he told me that the gas engine will always run at it's most efficient RPM. This makes sense to me -- using the least amount of gas to get the most possible energy out of it. This means that the generator will be creating a constant amount of current.

The rest of this are my own conclusions drawing from what he told me: Presumably, the current will be greater than what is typically necessary to drive the car (so that when you're going uphill with a headwind, there's still enough juice). It only seems logical that the control system would store any excess current in the battery (rather than wasting it).

If driving conditions resulted in the battery being charged to the maximum allowed, the engine should shut down and the car should run on battery only for the next ~40 miles.

At least, that's what makes the most sense to me.

Here is a weird thought. If your work commute was 42 miles round trip could you plug the car into an "APC back up" at work (that you charged at home) to get that extra 2 miles(more if you didn't drive like a granny)?
You're right, that is a weird thought. :)

The rest of this are my own conclusions drawing from what he told me: Presumably, the current will be greater than what is typically necessary to drive the car (so that when you're going uphill with a headwind, there's still enough juice). It only seems logical that the control system would store any excess current in the battery (rather than wasting it).


For a permanent-magnet electrical machine (what I'm assuming that the Volt will used for both the generator and traction motor, since it's the most efficient technology), current is proportional to shaft torque, and voltage is proportional to shaft rotational speed. So, for a given vehicle speed and load, the traction motor will need to be fed power at a particular voltage (enough to force current through the windings and overcome the motor's back EMF) and frequency (this being proportional to the motor's rotational speed).

The generator works in a similar fashion - to get voltage, you need to spin it at a particular speed, and then the current load will dictate the torque required by the engine's crankshaft.

Without a buck/boost DC inverter between the generator and the motor, you'd need to vary the engine speed as the vehicle speed varies. But... the Volt presumably has such an inverter, and so it'll be possible to vary the traction motor speed and torque without varying the engine speed! Ah, but now you have two problems: 1) You may not be operating the inverter in its most efficient range; and 2) You may not be operating the IC engine at its most efficient load point. And we haven't yet even figured out if we want to produce some extra power to feed to the pack (keeping in mind that fast charging of the pack is less efficient from an electrochemical standpoint than a slow charge)...

I feel sorry for the dude that's gotta optimize all this stuff. Oh, who am I fooling - I'd probably like to be that guy, but then again, I've always been all too happy to get in over my head.

Damn it, Bryant. You are starting to make me feel more like the pointy-haired boss than one of Wally's co-workers.

:freakout:

Without a buck/boost DC inverter between the generator and the motor, you'd need to vary the engine speed as the vehicle speed varies. But... the Volt presumably has such an inverter, and so it'll be possible to vary the traction motor speed and torque without varying the engine speed! Ah, but now you have two problems: 1) You may not be operating the inverter in its most efficient range; and 2) You may not be operating the IC engine at its most efficient load point.
Wait, I'm confused. Why doesn't problem #2 go away when you add in the inverter?

I feel sorry for the dude that's gotta optimize all this stuff. Oh, who am I fooling - I'd probably like to be that guy, but then again, I've always been all too happy to get in over my head.

The friend I mentioned... he's that guy. :)

Wait, I'm confused. Why doesn't problem #2 go away when you add in the inverter?

I'm just guessing but what if the engine just isn't generating enough energy at that point for the type of driving you're doing?

Wait, I'm confused. Why doesn't problem #2 go away when you add in the inverter?

If the optimum operating point for the engine doesn't happen to coincide with the optimum operating point for the inverter, then what? :) Therein lies the magic of the "optimum" solution...

The friend I mentioned... he's that guy. :)

I'd like to meet that guy - he's at least as sick in the head as I am :cool:

I thought Lutz promised to lease a limited number of them (1000?) by Dec. 31 2009 :shrug:

Where did you hear this? Elsewhere I saw Lutz saying not a single Volt would be for sale until late 2010.

If the optimum operating point for the engine doesn't happen to coincide with the optimum operating point for the inverter, then what? :) Therein lies the magic of the "optimum" solution...

Seems to me that they would design the system so that those two points match up. Is this more difficult than it sounds?

Where did you hear this? Elsewhere I saw Lutz saying not a single Volt would be for sale until late 2010.

"Lutz reiterated that a test fleet of production-intent Volts would be on the road being field tested by late 2009 ahead of a November 2010 retail launch."

http://www.autobloggreen.com/2008/08/29/lutz-says-a-volt-battery-supplier-selected-wont-say-who/

Seems to me that they would design the system so that those two points match up. Is this more difficult than it sounds?

In a word - yes, it's more difficult than it sounds :) Explaining this at the appropriate level of detail would require a face-to-face conversation with a large whiteboard, several dry-erase markers, and some beer.

I think dodge wants to steal their thunder.
http://jalopnik.com/tag/Dodge-ev/

The first batch of photos must have been shot at bad angles. Suddenly it doesn't look so bad in these newer photos.
http://photo.netcarshow.com/Chevrolet-Volt_2011_photo_05.jpg
http://photo.netcarshow.com/Chevrolet-Volt_2011_photo_01.jpg
http://photo.netcarshow.com/Chevrolet-Volt_2011_photo_0b.jpg

Are the primary head lights LED or xenon? What do you guys think will make it to production? LED would use less energy but I don't think any car on the market has used LEDs as its primary source of forward lighting except for the Lexus LS600h... a 100k dollar car.

Are the primary head lights LED or xenon? What do you guys think will make it to production? LED would use less energy but I don't think any car on the market has used LEDs as its primary source of forward lighting except for the Lexus LS600h... a 100k dollar car.

The R8 does too. The LS was first to use LEDs for headlights, and the R8 was first to use LEDs for everything. :)

The R8 does too. The LS was first to use LEDs for headlights, and the R8 was first to use LEDs for everything. :)

Interesting. I was pretty sure the R8 did not use LEDs for its primary forward lighting last I heard of it (I read pretty in depth about it when it first came out) so I looked up some articles and it looks like in just the last few months Audi has been offering it as an option (only over in Europe as far as I can tell..?) for about $5100 (after currency conversion).

http://www.autoblog.com/2008/05/30/audi-r8-gets-first-full-led-headlamps/

Is this was you were referring to or did you think that all R8s had them?

edit: further investigation shows then as an option on the Audi UK site but not on the US site.

Is this was you were referring to or did you think that all R8s had them?

I thought they all had them. I remember reading something to that effect back when they came out, but apparently my memory isn't serving me well this week. :)

Are the primary head lights LED or xenon? What do you guys think will make it to production? LED would use less energy but I don't think any car on the market has used LEDs as its primary source of forward lighting except for the Lexus LS600h... a 100k dollar car.

It would be nice if LED headlights made to production. I wonder what the power consumption of a super bright headlight type LED would be? Standard halogen headlights use what 55-65 watts?
I just bought a new HDTV that is powered by LEDs and its super bright, and I should never have to replace the bulb like in traditional DLP projection TVs. Supposedly my HDTV uses less power than any other TV on the market, but I've never seen what that is.

It would be nice if LED headlights made to production. I wonder what the power consumption of a super bright headlight type LED would be? Standard halogen headlights use what 55-65 watts?
I just bought a new HDTV that is powered by LEDs and its super bright, and I should never have to replace the bulb like in traditional DLP projection TVs. Supposedly my HDTV uses less power than any other TV on the market, but I've never seen what that is.

Per lumen I think I recall hearing that LEDs are typically 30-40% more efficient than xenon while producing an even more natural color of light, allowing almost 100% reliability for the life of the car. Plus something about them makes them easy to manipulate on the fly for different directional lighting and patterns... taking the whole "dynamic lighting" thing so many luxury branded cars are doing this day (my car does it up to 15 degrees) a step further.

I guess at this point the primary issue is cost.

Does the new Cadillac CTS-V use LED headlights, I haven't heard of it but from googling LED headlights I came across this image. Must be some kind of after market headlight capsule.

http://www.gizmodo.com/assets/resources/2006/10/led_headlights.jpg

Does the new Cadillac CTS-V use LED headlights, I haven't heard of it but from googling LED headlights I came across this image. Must be some kind of after market headlight capsule.

http://www.gizmodo.com/assets/resources/2006/10/led_headlights.jpg

Unless the headlight system is totally different on the CTS-V, I don't know why they wouldn't include the same headlight options on all the CTS cars. :shrug: My blind guess is that no, the CTS-V doesn't get LED headlights. There have been plenty of reviews on it already, I don't remember reading any mention of LEDs

Does the new Cadillac CTS-V use LED headlights, I haven't heard of it but from googling LED headlights I came across this image. Must be some kind of after market headlight capsule.

http://www.gizmodo.com/assets/resources/2006/10/led_headlights.jpg

That is a picture of the SAE STS car that had a SC 6.2 (LS9), 6 speed auto (6L80E), and LED headlights as well as a bunch of other stuff that isn't in production. Basically some stuff that has come out and some that hasn't.

Has anybody worked up some photoshopped pictures of the Volt in different colors yet?