1,000 miles between fill ups

Can the Volt drive to Dallas and back like I did this weekend? Can it haul a boat or trailer? Can it go off road?

It's probably fine for driving around town, but I doubt you can get on the interstate and go 1000 miles in this car before getting off and filling up....am I wrong?
 
I hear that it could make a cross country trip no problem...the issue would be with towing, but are you really going to tow something with a volt? it could have issues with going into the mountains in say Colorado??? I read that cooler or warmer temps can affect the battery life...at least this is a problem in the leaf.
 
I tried to find a link, but something like 70% of car trips are under 5 miles in length, and about 25% are under one mile in length. Small commuter electric cars are ideal for the majority of automobile trips.
No, they aren't ideal for hauling road graders to Alaska. You have to get a different vehicle for that use. But you don't have to drive it on the street every day to go down to 7-11 when you want a moon pie and a Dr. Pepper.
 
msd- You would not haul a boat in a Volt much like you wouldn't in a Toyota Camry- yet, there is a high need for both. Do not ask if the Volt can accomplish every single task meant for automobiles- it is not everything and it's greatest accomplishment will be that it's technology will one day be incorporated into something else that could tow your boat.

TexasGolf- I strongly disagree that there is plenty of supply, as Saudi Arabia again reduces output this week- but that is a topic for another thread.

Accurate- I think it is 95% of automobile commutes in the USA are 40 miles or less, thus even the Nissan Lead with a 100 mile range is plenty sufficient.

The EV can be a great car if you have 2 cars right now, and one day when batteries improve- you won't need to worry about the time you take an 800 mile trip.
 
mcbrett,
I read an article recently that said that the observed range of the Leaf was just 72 miles. That really isn't a lot. Sure, that would be fine if you are urban only, but most people only own one car, so that does take out a major issue of driving to see family from Austin to Dallas or Houston or such things as that.
That is why I actually think the Volt is great. EV only for short distances and the majority of driving, and then gas for the longer trips.
 
THEU- Agreed- the Volt overcomes the range anxiety, plus it marks itself as a bridge to better cars and SUVs that may also plug in. Ultimately the goal is full EV however. If a magazine said it got 72 miles of range- they're probably truthful- however weather, activity and driving performance all affect that- you could also get 110 miles in different conditions.

msd- Right- for 2011, it would be best to use a full EV as a second car. I'd look for prices to drop big time if you watch these over the next 5 years and beyond. You can see I am clearly excited- and a future owner once the right car/SUV is made.
 
OK, realistically, how many times per week do you drive more than 70 miles in one day? I rarely do unless going on a planned road trip. It's practical right now for the majority of Americans' daily driving, not all of them.
And if the demand goes up, the price, selection, styling choices and battery designs should all improve over time.
 
Are we subsidizing GE to buy all those Volts from GM? What do sales look like outside of GE?
 
You drive more than 70 miles a day? I know you are not the only one- but wow, that kinda sucks. I could never do that- too much time in a car wasted when I'd rather be home with my daughter. I know living inside the loops cost more- but to me- it's worth it to reduce daily commute times.

Sure Oilfield- how about research the GE/GM conspiracy angle and report back to us. Probably 100% of the sales..
 
I drive more than 50 per day on many weeks so a EV is not practical YET, for me, but it is for my wife who makes 4 trips a day to the grocery store, soccer field and whateve else.

It may not be the car for a single person YET but it is only 3 years into its lifecycle. I expect that we'll get similar technology advances as we experienced in so many other applications (cell phones, computers). In just a few years we're probably looking at 200 miles per charge or so, and that would solve almost everyones transportation needs.

I already have the ability to turn my AC, TV, coffee maker and such on while I'm sleeping so I don't think engineering a car charging plug that can kick on during off-peak hours will be that big of a technical hurdle. Taxing the grid is a 15-20 year down-the-road issue. We need to plan for it, but honestly grid upgrades/maintenance seemed to be coming our way anyway.

Ideally, solar tech will evolve a little more and many of us will be pulling enough juice off our roofs to handle 30-40% of this new EV demand.

It is unlikely we will move completely away from ICE anytime in the near future but the great thing is, we don't have to, we just need to reduce demand by 15-20% and then OPEC will not have the pricing power that they have now. Oil will drop back to 35-40$. Unfortunately this is part of the cyclic problem that EVs face. Their very presence in large numbers will seemingly make their presence financially untenable. That's why we need either a floor on price per gallon of gas, subsidies for solar/EV, or mandates for auto manufacturers guaranteeing certain % of vehicles sold are EV or hybrid.
 
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