Chevrolet Volt will have liquid cooled batteries.
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I guess this would be a good thread to post this link: http://www.killacycle.com/
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Thats a Lotus chassis. Using a standard (read cheap to produce) chassis is going to add a lot of weight.
Water cooling is a given and has been. I want to say several of the production hybrids today already have had water cooling systems designed for their batteries.
I bet that using lithium for the battery isnt the thing holding the volt back - but I bet the cost of that battery is causing a few headaches.
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I guess this would be a good thread to post this link: http://www.killacycle.com/
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I wonder if the engine/generator rig will generate enough power to charge the car while driving, or if it will only generate enough to drive the car, leaving the battery reserve unaffected. And if it can indeed charge while driving, how long would it take to go from "empty" to "full", at whatever actual charge points GM sets on the battery?
I also wonder what kind of performance we can expect out of the Volt. It looks fast, but is it going to be? I'm not expecting a 12-second car or anything... but is a 15-second timeslip out of the question? If it's too slow to merge into heavy interstate traffic easily, I would be very hesitant to buy one.
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"Available to test" is a heck of a long ways from being tooled-up, validated, PPAP'd, and ready to produce. The 2010 SOP date is still very aggressive, given the amount and type of info available at this time.
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The engine/generator makes 53 kW of electrical energy. Assuming that it takes about 10 kW (~15 HP) to propel the car down the road at 55 MPH, sufficient extra power would be available to charge the 16 kWh battery pack in under a half-hour. That would be an extremely aggressive charge, to say the least.
Well, the 120 kW electric motor ought to provide some very impressive performance; GM is claiming 0-60 times in the 8-8.5 sec range. I should certainly hope that'd be fast enough for any real-world driving conditions.
Well, the 120 kW electric motor ought to provide some very impressive performance; GM is claiming 0-60 times in the 8-8.5 sec range. I should certainly hope that'd be fast enough for any real-world driving conditions.
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No, they just now determined that it will work well enough for a production car with a warranty. What do you think, some engineer has an idea and the company immediately sends out press releases stating that they're going with that idea?
Modding electric cars... well, there aren't many things you can do. Increase voltage, increase current, reduce resistance, increase motor efficiency. That's pretty much it as far as increasing power. Then there's always weight reduction and gear ratio changes (although some electric cars have motors that drive the wheels directly, so no gears).
Modding electric cars... well, there aren't many things you can do. Increase voltage, increase current, reduce resistance, increase motor efficiency. That's pretty much it as far as increasing power. Then there's always weight reduction and gear ratio changes (although some electric cars have motors that drive the wheels directly, so no gears).
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I think this is one of the most exciting car to come from GM in YEARS. This is second to the 5th gen Camaro, of course. My nostalgia for Camaros is pretty strong, but I'm also very curious/interested in an electric car.
I'm guessing a first-gen volt will be something you'll want to own new, as in the second development cycle the batteries and other components will advance significantly. Also, you'll be stuck owning it for life because I bet the resale value disppears upon the introduction of the 2nd gen.
I'm guessing a first-gen volt will be something you'll want to own new, as in the second development cycle the batteries and other components will advance significantly. Also, you'll be stuck owning it for life because I bet the resale value disppears upon the introduction of the 2nd gen.
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I think this is one of the most exciting car to come from GM in YEARS. This is second to the 5th gen Camaro, of course. My nostalgia for Camaros is pretty strong, but I'm also very curious/interested in an electric car.
I'm guessing a first-gen volt will be something you'll want to own new, as in the second development cycle the batteries and other components will advance significantly. Also, you'll be stuck owning it for life because I bet the resale value disppears upon the introduction of the 2nd gen.
I'm guessing a first-gen volt will be something you'll want to own new, as in the second development cycle the batteries and other components will advance significantly. Also, you'll be stuck owning it for life because I bet the resale value disppears upon the introduction of the 2nd gen.
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no, but i figured it would have been in place since the introduction of the car since the batteries need cooling. Or at least as something they'd look into.Modding electric cars... well, there aren't many things you can do. Increase voltage, increase current, reduce resistance, increase motor efficiency. That's pretty much it as far as increasing power. Then there's always weight reduction and gear ratio changes (although some electric cars have motors that drive the wheels directly, so no gears).
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I've been following GM's Zeta car development for 4 years. When the Camaro was finally officially announced and the US Zetas all but common knowledge, I figured that was the end, and that no other vehicle would spark as much intrest in me ever again. The Volt came out, and to be honest, I shruged and wrote it off as a design excercise for some future GM product. Now, even though I've always viewed hybrids as barely more than public relations ploys, the Volt has finally got me very intrested, and is the perfect vehicle program to turn my attentions to now that Camaro and Zeta is no longer news of high intrest.
What's going into the car, the problems that are being overcome with simple cost effective solutions, and the potential of the Volt to revolutionize the automobile industry and it's technology to bleed into other models makes this car perhaps the biggest automotive news since the automatic transmission, or even the Model T (if the car is profitable).
I think it's impossible to underestimate the impact the Volt will have if GM pulls if off and it does even just most of what's promised.
What's going into the car, the problems that are being overcome with simple cost effective solutions, and the potential of the Volt to revolutionize the automobile industry and it's technology to bleed into other models makes this car perhaps the biggest automotive news since the automatic transmission, or even the Model T (if the car is profitable).
I think it's impossible to underestimate the impact the Volt will have if GM pulls if off and it does even just most of what's promised.
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Agreed. It has the potential to be a segment buster. I was walking with some female co-workers near the Capitol, and we saw a Volt parked on a curbside as a GM PR ploy. The girls were quite taken by it. They knew nothing about "E-Flex," but they were sure that this car looked cool as hell. Whereas the Prius has at best a nerdy Japanese charm, the Volt looks brash and American. If GM can make the technology truly seamless, they'll sell more of these than they think, and more importantly, will drastically change the way the company is perceived.
I think it has alot to do with the people who drive them. Perhaps, it's different in other cities and areas, but around here in California, especially in the Bay Area, people drive them simply because they want the world to know they are saving the enviroment. There was a "South Park" episode that included buying a Prius about "Smug" that was a perfect bullseye. These types of people won't buy any hybrid or enviro-friendly car unless it looks like an egg on wheels and screams "I'm not like everyone else". Prius' real world fuel economy is no better than their own conventionally powered Yaris.
Ford Escapes and Honda Civics have been available in Hybrid versions for some time, and the Toyota Rav came in an electric powered version briefly. Most seem to either gather dust on lots or sold below wholesale to government agencies.
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I think it has alot to do with the people who drive them. Perhaps, it's different in other cities and areas, but around here in California, especially in the Bay Area, people drive them simply because they want the world to know they are saving the enviroment. There was a "South Park" episode that included buying a Prius about "Smug" that was a perfect bullseye. These types of people won't buy any hybrid or enviro-friendly car unless it looks like an egg on wheels and screams "I'm not like everyone else". Prius' real world fuel economy is no better than their own conventionally powered Yaris.
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I think it has alot to do with the people who drive them. Perhaps, it's different in other cities and areas, but around here in California, especially in the Bay Area, people drive them simply because they want the world to know they are saving the enviroment. There was a "South Park" episode that included buying a Prius about "Smug" that was a perfect bullseye. These types of people won't buy any hybrid or enviro-friendly car unless it looks like an egg on wheels and screams "I'm not like everyone else". Prius' real world fuel economy is no better than their own conventionally powered Yaris.
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