A day after Barack Obama fingered American automakers as environmental enemy #1 for ignoring fuel-efficient vehicles (a falsehood, but never mind), General Motors made a dramatic bid to become the industry’s green leader by announcing it will put into production its electric concept car, the Chevy Volt.
The Volt, unveiled to much press fanfare (though little public interest) at the 2007 Detroit Auto Show is an electric-gas “plug-in” hybrid. It would eclipse the reigning green champ, Toyota’s Prius, by going one step greener: Because its batteries can be recharged overnight, the Volt can be run up to 40 miles without any gas engine assistance.
GM acknowledges that the lithium ion technology it needs to achieve this task is not yet available, but by targeting a showroom date of 2010, GM will be putting enormous pressure on its suppliers to develop the batteries it needs.
Cost is clearly no object.
“A niche vehicle like the Volt isn’t likely to generate big profits,” deadpans Autoweek, “but GM executives think it could help establish GM’s green credentials and would be an effective answer to the Prius.” Like the money-losing Prius, GM recognizes that green is an image investment – a crucial PR tool at a time when Democrats are scapegoating automakers for global warming and when high-profile buyers like Hollywood celebrities can instantly generate fawning press attention for green products. More importantly, Toyota has used the Prius as cover to expand into huge, gas-guzzling SUVs – a status coveted by GM which is the industry’s truck leader.
Autoweek reports that GM is committing $500 million to the project and is placing it under the supervision of Bob Lutz, GM’s influential product czar.