I have long dreamed that GM-Volt.com will morph into a Volt owner’s site when the cars finally arrive at people homes later this year and next. I still hope and expect that will be the case. GM has similar dreams for such a website too, and plans to leverage OnStar data to make it especially compelling.
Volt marketing director Tony DiSalle describes the unique Volt owners site that users and their cars can interact with. That site finally went live (sort off) this week and its called MyVolt.com.
“It will be something for owners,” says DiSalle of the site. “It will be a really cool experience.”
“When you boot up (the site) the car and the website will talk to each other and the website will get all the latest data off of the Volt,” he adds.
He explains that the site will load the data from the vehicle and populate the owners’ unique page with that information which can be graphed, trended and shared.
Owners will also be able to interact with each other on the site.
“You see on your site how engaged these folks are,” said DiSalle. “Just imagine all the stories that are going to surface once this vehicle hits the market.”
The site will also allow users the functionality of remotely controlling their Volts like can be done via a smartphone. Apparently it can only begin operating when you enter your VIN# and the server can start to interact with the car’s OnStar , which we know is included free for five years.
Here’s how Chevrolet officially describes the site:
MyVolt.com, an owner website like no other, lets you control your Volt online. You can communicate with the vehicle to start charging, pre-condition the interior, lock and unlock the doors and program the vehicle charging schedule. The driver can also check the charging status, EV range and other pertinent vehicle information.
Enhanced OnStar Vehicle Diagnostics monthly e-mails are specifically designed to address the unique characteristics of an electric vehicle.
I suggested to Mr. DiSalle that perhaps GM would give me a module to plug that site’s data into GM-Volt.com. He didn’t answer, but hey it was worth a try.
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (6:36 am)It would be great if GM-Volt.com had some of that functionality.. I would like to see cumulative statistics for ALL the Volts that sign up.. You are still #1 Lyle.
I would like to see total miles driven, average daily miles, total gas used and so on. Then we could have some fun seeing who is a lead foot and who is not
+3
Sep 14th, 2010 (6:40 am)Now that is cool! Uploading car data automatically for the owner to view and share. This car is really amazing.
+3
Sep 14th, 2010 (6:42 am)“I suggested to Mr. DiSalle that perhaps GM would give me a module to plug that site’s data into GM-Volt.com. He didn’t answer, but hey it was worth a try.”
Lyle, they may still do it. If not there are some pretty tallented techies here (myself included) that should be able to come up with something without destructive hacking. Of course it is always better to do it in a fully supported manner so that security is not compromised. (Listen up GM).
-16
Sep 14th, 2010 (6:42 am)(click to show comment)
+6
Sep 14th, 2010 (6:42 am)For those who are bored to tears with silver cars (all three of us), it’d be nice if GM could program the myvolt.com entry page to show a different colored Volt every time one entered the site.
+6
Sep 14th, 2010 (6:46 am)Hope it takes a bit more than the VIN# because anyone could potentially interact with your car…
NPNS
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (6:48 am)“When you’re not sure where you’re going…” Perhaps the marketing people could rewrite the paragraph about eNAV. Reads kind of like “If you’re clueless in life…” But, whatever, being able to send your destination from MapQuest.com directly to the Volt’s nav is pretty cool. How about Google maps as well?
+6
Sep 14th, 2010 (6:49 am)I assume there will be more than just a VIN # to access this data!!!
Maybe I am old school, but I prefer that only I have the keys (real or virtual) to my car…..
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (6:52 am)I have a 2009 Chevy Equinox with the OnStar system, but I cannot activate it in Puerto Rico. I have written twice to OnStar and they don’t know if or when Puerto Rico will be covered. So if I get my own Chevy Volt by 2015 or ealier, I may not be able to use the MyVolt page.
I will keep trying, but maybe someone here has a direct contact to the OnStar managers who can help me. Meanwhile, I will wait and watch this page and any other Volt -related page for new information. By the time I get my Volt, HelmInc would have the Service Manual available and I can work on it somehow, maybe even try to reprogram it. There will be an aftermarket for the Volt, and I can be part of it.
I wish to read some feedback from the first Volt owners on the results of using the MyVolt page.
Raymond
-6
Sep 14th, 2010 (6:54 am)I suggested to Mr. DiSalle that perhaps GM would give me a module to plug that site’s data into GM-Volt.com. He didn’t answer, but hey it was worth a try
.
Reminds me a lot of my 2-year-old grandson. ..by myself!
.
GM has done great engineering for the Volt, but gm marketing seems to be wandering around…. They are driving me away from gm ….
+2
Sep 14th, 2010 (7:01 am)I was curious as if HelmInc already had something on the Chevy Volt. It does:
http://www.helminc.com/helm/Result.asp?session=425C2D7FCEF74F62A3559B986E24F3BF&Style=helm&Mfg=GMC&Make=CHV&Model=VOLT&Year=&Category=&Keyword=&Module=&selected%5Fmedia=
This gives us future owners some hope!
Raymond
Sep 14th, 2010 (7:03 am)You have to enter a username and password to access the functional aspects of the web site.
Sep 14th, 2010 (7:25 am)Has anyone who has an OnStar account tried to register there yet???
+13
Sep 14th, 2010 (7:26 am)“I suggested to Mr. DiSalle that perhaps GM would give me a module to plug that site’s data into GM-Volt.com. He didn’t answer, but hey it was worth a try.”
Lyle,
As long as you continue to maintain GM-Volt.com as you have, it will remain THE place to go for volt information. As people here get their volts, we are going to get so much information and feedback, it will dwarf anything that a GM managed site can. There are lots of interesting things you can do here and I’m sure you thought of many of them, to keep this place fresh and full of information that isn’t found anywhere else.
Somehow you managed to build a legion of volt followers with scraps of information here than there over the last three years. Can you imagine how great it’s going to be once you own a volt and the followers here do also? The information is going to go through the roof! If anyone wants to know anything about a volt all they will have to do is come here.
My guess is that myvolt.com will be nothing more than a little sister to this place.
Sep 14th, 2010 (7:26 am)I havea 2010 Chevy Traverse and my access to On-Star diagnostics, etc needs the OnStar account number and my zip code. I could then setup a password. Of course I can not start my car from the site like I will with my next car.
Sep 14th, 2010 (7:33 am)I would like the Volt to be able to access a cloudspace via OnStar so I could get to my files wherever I am (and also store files to that cloudspace). I would also be nice to stream music or maybe have a Pandora ap.
Sep 14th, 2010 (7:48 am)Good ideas Kdawg, does Onstar have that much bandwidth?.. you should be able to do that now with a high end cell phone and bluetooth.
Sep 14th, 2010 (7:53 am)Yeah, over in the forums yesterday someone tried it with their Buick’s OnStar account and it said “You do not have permission to view this page.” and “Please contact the administrator because you do not have any pages configured.”
Sep 14th, 2010 (7:53 am)Actually that data would be perfect for an XML feed. Some MMORPGs and things do this, allowing fan sites or third-party programs to retrieve data from the game’s website and use it in various ways. For example, you can post on a fan site and have it automatically show your character’s current name and level next to your post, or the site can generate trend analysis based off of statistics it retrieves. I can picture MyVolt.com doing this and making it possible to post here with your Volt’s lifetime MPG statistic and stuff under your name, and the main GM-Volt.com page having a big graph showing how many barrels of oil are being “unburned” collectively by the site’s users as time goes on.
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (7:55 am)Lyle, when you get that module working I would like to see a map of the US color coded with the average results that Volts are getting.. average gas used and mpg, and be able to index the data by the season of the year. It would be neat to see an MPG graphic, broadly blue colored northern portion of the US and Canada, turning to red hot as you go further south. Perhaps it would just be an even color, telling you temperatures have little to do with it.
Lots of possibilities.
+3
Sep 14th, 2010 (8:38 am)It’s great to see GM taking the lead here. It’s like watching Apple pull the entire consumer products industry behind it.
GM – the leader in the electrification of transportation
Oh yeah.
Sep 14th, 2010 (8:44 am)I dont know if I like the VIN# as the password. Anyone can get the VIN# off my car. Also, what if I want to change my password? Is it just a VIN# for access or is it a VIN# and a password?
Sep 14th, 2010 (8:46 am)I am sort of an artist with Microsoft Excel and I will of course be doing my own spreadsheets and graphs. It all starts sometime in March 2011.
Take Care,
TED
Sep 14th, 2010 (8:51 am)Lyle- I think you should see if GM allows you to manage their site’s forums. (Or just keep doing a superb job on this site and provide a link to theirs and it may morph that way regardless.)
-5
Sep 14th, 2010 (8:52 am)Can this be disabled? If we don’t want to use it can it be made so noone else can? So can GM access the info from our car even if we don’t want them to?
This really sounds a little to much “Big Brother” to me. What % of GM is owned by the Government?
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (8:57 am)I think people are misinformed about all this. You need the VIN# to register your account, but if you go to the site right now, it asks for an onstar account and password as well. No less secure than any other site with a name and password.
Sep 14th, 2010 (9:02 am)Ok say 3 years from now I an looking at a used volt I find the vin and then can I see all the data on the car that would be great is repair and maintenance data going to be included?
Tom
+2
Sep 14th, 2010 (9:12 am)I think the fear is one’s Volt being vulnerable to hackers. A nightmare scenario would be to have your Volt hacked into, stolen and sold on the black market.
+2
Sep 14th, 2010 (9:27 am)No earthly idea why anyone finds this offensive. Pretty straightforward observation. +1 to Lyle for trying!
Probably doesn’t have that kind of bandwidth. Voice takes up very little bandwidth. Files a lot more. For tunes you can get a 32 Gig USB drive for $50. That should more or less do it. And yes, either a iPhone or Android phone can stream Pandora. My guess though is that the Bluetooth will be spotty and of course coverage isn’t always 100%.
Would be very cool. As you say, lots of possibilities.
Sep 14th, 2010 (9:46 am)With all this talk of clouds and apps, I still think GM should call this the iCar. Or maybe KITT. Really, all it needs is a voice and the ability to jump over badguys.
Seriously, I hope that car thieves will realize that Volts can easily be found by their owners so stealing them is useless.
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (9:47 am)The Volt already has a 30 Gig “hard drive” for tunes, standard.
.
Sep 14th, 2010 (9:51 am)Looking forward to your response to this competition, Lyle. Should be fun.
+2
Sep 14th, 2010 (10:04 am)I still haven’t signed up for the Volt, on the Leaf waiting list. I still have questions because the Volt doesn’t get me my daily 70 miles AER.
1) Will the Volt display where the nearest charging station is like the Leaf does?
2) If I drive 33 miles to work and plug it in for a charge during the day, how will that impact the battery and if I lease as I probably would, do they care if I end up charging it twice a day? Seems like i’d be bringing the battery back a lot more used up then they expect?
I believe my driving pattern for a commuter is very common and to make the Volt as good a commuter value I need to be able to charge during the day, and I need to be able to program it I would guess from this website so that depending on how many stops if any after work, that I only charge it enough at work to get me home on empty so to speak.
+2
Sep 14th, 2010 (10:17 am)1. I think that would be an easy functionality of the GPS/Google Maps system that is built into the Volt.
2. The battery will be fine charging twice a day. I think one of the intended uses they thought of was exactly what you want: commute to work, charge during the 8 hour work day, commute home, charge overnight.
If you lease, they only care about how many miles you drive, not how many times you charge, they can;t control that. Considering how much they over-engineered the battery, multiple charges won’t be an issue. It only charges from about 30% up to about 80%, and that is only using 8 of the 16 kilowatt hours in the pack. So as the battery ages, you will still get the 40 mile range.
Sep 14th, 2010 (10:30 am)Mike D,
Thanks for your input on my questions #33/#34.
Guess I need to sign up soon for the Volt. Hard to get to excited in Ohio as it is so long to wait, but I assume if I don’t sign up soon I won’t have my place in line.
In fact thats primary reason for keeping my place in line for the Leaf, just in case Israel attacks Iran or something like that and Gas is $10 gallon, want to be sure I have affordable transportation lined up.
Sep 14th, 2010 (10:35 am)It’s great that Onstar can interact with the site…the downside is that Onstar is a service that you have to continue to pay for after the introductory period expires. I’m wrestling with that with my current GM vehicle. It’s a nice to have kind of thing, but not sure if it’s worth the money I’m paying every month.
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (10:41 am)5 Years of free OnStar included isn’t too shabby…
Sep 14th, 2010 (10:45 am)MikeD
. The battery will be fine charging twice a day. I think one of the intended uses they thought of was exactly what you want: commute to work, charge during the 8 hour work day, commute home, charge overnight.
If the grid is already stressed to the breaking as it is here in SoCal I would not think the utilities will be open to millions of electric cars charging during the day. They already have to have rolling blackouts and have millions on a cycling program where they cut off your AC when the need to cut use. I am on that program and I occasionally do get cut off. They have a program to charge after 9pm to get a lower rate.
Roy
Sep 14th, 2010 (10:54 am)Theres no doubt that during peak air conditioning days they would need to limit cars that charge during the day, but that can be done by having higher charging rates during the day. Thats all you need to do to level off charging. People will charge their cars when it is the cheapest for the most part. Just like people can hold off drying their clothes or other things if they knew it would save them money.
This is really as easy as having the proper meters installed everywhere to assign the approprite rates to level off the charging.
But the dirty secret is Electric Companies have been resistent to this because they want to have to build more power plants to handle the highest load, rather than level their load by adjusting rates.
Sep 14th, 2010 (10:56 am)Well, it is only a few thousand cars at first anyway, and that is only in California. here in NJ we don’t have that problem. Not to say it won’t happen in the future, but hopefully by the time it would become an issue, they will have solved, or come close to solving, the problem at hand.
Also, I think I remember GM saying the Volt only draws as much power as a refrigerator. Could be wrong though.
Sep 14th, 2010 (10:58 am)Actually a 70 mile a day commute a day is ~25,000 miles a year depending on weekend driving; this is not common at all. Most commutes are less than 40 miles a day (~75%), hence the reason for the choice GM made with the 40 mile AER range. With that being said you should be fine with charging twice a day the battery managment on this car is top notch, as well as the fact that only 50% of its capacity is used. With the Leaf you will actually be causing more damage to the pack as it uses more of the total capacity in charge an discharge cycles, of course this is just my opinion only real world testing will actually prove it.
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:06 am)also, it would not be millions of cars charing during the day, especially if cheaper overnight charging rates, it would be millions of cars charging overnight, with a smaller percentage of cars getting partial charges during the day at a higher rate.
This would result in a huge assist to power companies leveling their load and forcing them over time to lower rates.
But thats not what power companies really want, they want to have to have higher loads and build more power plants and charge higher rates.
I’m against most of what government forces businesses to do, but this is an example of something government should require out of just common sense. Power companies that are monopolies should be required to have meters that allow for different rates at different times.
By charging higher rates during periods of higher demands, consumers will level off the demand for the power companies, and electric cars that charge at night will help them to that.
Leveling off of the demand to a more consistant level 24 hours a day will lead to lower power costs for all.
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:12 am)Cool. There’s a link to sign up for when the manuals are released. I did that of course
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:14 am)In CA it’s more about big transmission lines. The cost of the electricity is a pass-thru but they get a return on distribution. Hence rather than have roof top solar in cities they want big solar projects in the middle of nowhere.
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:19 am)A 70-mile per day commute is on the higher edge of the bell curve don’t ya think? With 40 miles being the (median?) average.
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:25 am)#14
Amen. +1
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:25 am)Ha ha. Actually the power companies want to implement TOD pricing. The resistance comes from so called “consumer advocates” who never managed to absorb what they should have learned in Econ 101. http://www.ucan.org/energy/electricity/sdge_offer_different_electric_rates_different_times_day_devil_details
Basically people hate to change. It doesn’t matter how compelling the change is, most people just resist having to adjust. Part of what you see are exaggerated concerns about small new risks — will the battery in my Volt burst into flames? — and diminished concerns about much larger risks — no problem that my Ferrari has just burst into flames cause it’s got a tank of the most flammable material around.
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:26 am)Im surprised GM-volt missed the Big news,about Tesla and Toyota teaming up to bring us the new and updated RAV4-EV. The old one was a great electric despite being a toyota.
THere are millions out there who need more passenger room like myself. Come on GM wheres your electric Van or SUV .
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:36 am)I’d think the median is more like 30 miles. Your distribution isn’t going to be symmetrical. It’s going to have a long tail at the higher end. Isn’t the party line that 75% of drivers go 40 miles or less? Average would no doubt be higher since one car going 300 miles can bring up the average quite a bit.
As a practical matter drivers going over 100 miles are probably not relevant. It doesn’t seem realistic to assume that someone who buys a small car like the Volt will drive as many miles as the average driver. I’d think if you were going more than 75 miles or so you’d want to use a larger vehicle. While the Volt doesn’t have range limits per se, its size suggests that it isn’t well suited for freeway cruising. Occasionally wold be one thing but a steady diet of long trips would be another.
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:37 am)Yes but one driver with a 70 mile round trip commute is worth 3 drivers with a 23 mile daily commute in the big picture which to me is to eliminate Oil imports.
So if the Volt can get a 70 mile commuter off of oil, without range anxiety, then thats a big piece of the solution to end the importing of oil.
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:41 am)I would assume OnStar would have 3G bandwidth (when available). I’d like the car to have the streaming/file service built-in so a peripheral device isn’t required (sort of like XM/Sirius sat radio). I also would like to have WiFi built in so my car could synch when I got home to my personal Wifi network.
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:44 am)I think actually that was posted on here a few weeks ago… maybe i can find a link. I know it was at least discussed a lot.
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:53 am)When I go to this website I get an alert saying the following: “The certificate for this website is invalid. It may be a site pretending to be Facebook.com. Are you sure you want to accept the certificate?” Sounds like they are not quite there yet.
Sep 14th, 2010 (11:56 am)When you go to WHAT website?
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (12:02 pm)The “Chevrolet Volt Overview” video featured on the main page is really bad. First of all I noticed they mentioned you could fill up on E85. I thought this was dropped on the 1st generation volt. This video must be a really old one that I missed.
But mostly I noticed the production value of the video is VERY amateur. And to top it off, it’s being displayed scaled in Flash which produces all sorts of unnecessary aliasing.
It’s about as good as the stuff I was doing in high school. They didn’t even get rid of the green screen splash cast on the host. For a multibillion dollar company, they should hire somebody who can really make an instructional video sing. Fire me off a few thousand dollars and I’ll re-write the bad and inaccurate bits of the script, reshoot the video on our RED camera on our green screen and re-animate it to today’s standards.
Sep 14th, 2010 (12:10 pm)Well, considering it was not officially launched, isn’t functional, and has news articles from June on it, I think it is safe to say it is “up” but not “live”. I think GM will make a bigger deal about it launching when it can actually work the way it is intended.
Sep 14th, 2010 (12:24 pm)Q#1 – yes
Q#2 – the warrantee does not care HOW many times the battery is charged – you can charge it 3 or 4 times a day (or more).
Sep 14th, 2010 (12:29 pm)Hey fellas and Lyle, what about the MyVolt.com ability to track the status of your Volt order? Wasn’t that one of the big things about this site? Obviously the primary input to this functionality should be order number, not VIN. BTW, when does the VIN come into existence? Does it happen before the parts come together on the assembly line?
Sep 14th, 2010 (12:35 pm)Bless you! +1
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (12:45 pm)Just got a jolt of positive excitement. Went to check home email and there was one from the Camero order tracking site that seems to accept Volt order numbers. My order now shows as status 1100 (preliminary order accepted). (there is a post in the forums on how to do this)
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (12:47 pm)Lyle: With the enthusiastic VOLT readership daily this site’s really in front of internet competition. Read Julie Carnahan. Her insights will open ideas for you to entice GM tying-in.
http://www.sae.org/mags/AEI/ELECT/news#8730
Sep 14th, 2010 (1:37 pm)What is the service interval for the Volt? Corvette Guy, do you know? While I like the ability to access my Volt data online (a lot!), I’m a bit worried that if I don’t get the vehicle in for service **promptly** when required, GM might use the data to pro-rate, reduce, or otherwise compromise my warranty.
One of the things I hope for in the Volt, is very infrequent servicing requirements. I would love it if it needs only one servicing per year (e.g., oil change), if I don’t run the ICE very often.
I haven’t seen anything on servicing requirements yet, and am very interested in that aspect.
Sep 14th, 2010 (1:56 pm)Is there any capability of logging in to see the status of the build of our individual Volt for those of us who have placed an order? Any information would be appreciated – Looking forward to driving one!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sep 14th, 2010 (1:56 pm)I don’t know about the Volt requirements, but I can tell you something about OnStar from my neighbor who has OnStar with her Buick. She gets service notices from OnStar when the Buick is due. She gets email and OnStar talks to you when you get in and start the car. Something like, “get this vehicle in for service, you sorry excuse for a person with memory.”
-2
Sep 14th, 2010 (2:03 pm)the fact that it is “no less secure than any other site” is part of the problem; sites can be hacked – and in this case, the cost of the hack could be a lost automobile. intuitively, i’m not so keen about this feature either because the practical reality of user names and passwords is that they are frequently quite easy to break.
Sep 14th, 2010 (2:12 pm)I guess if that is your concern, don’t use it. The data will be in the car.
Sep 14th, 2010 (2:17 pm)of course where the “range anxiety” comes into play is: are you SURE that you will always be able to get 70 miles on a single charge? when you are driving at night, during the winter, and listening to the radio?
the problem with running low on juice in a BEV is unlike that of running out of gasoline: when you run low on gas, you can pull into a gas station and 5 minutes later you are back in business. on the other hand, when you run low on juice, you are out of commission for hours.
i too wish that the volt had a longer operating range in CD mode. and i wish that it had better performance when you are in CS mode. but these are tradeoffs that everyone has to make. you have the leaf, with a longer EV range but there is no “plan b” if you run low on juice – thus there is “range anxiety” where you had better be sure that you can get back home from where you are at all times. on the other hand, you have fiskars, which reportedly provides comparable performance when the generator kicks in as is available when the vehicle operates in EV mode. however, the fiskars uses generators that are considerably larger than those used in the volt, and as a consequence, you get a bigger car.
given that tradeoffs are the way that it goes with the current state of battery technology, i happen to think that GM did the best job of balancing the tradeoffs.
-1
Sep 14th, 2010 (2:20 pm)but you don’t want someone else to be able get enough information to sign up and enable some of the features available on this website. then even if you don’t use the features, someone else could. some of the features do sound useful; i’m more ok with some of the information gathering stuff – i just don’t want someone to be able to log on and start the car up.
Sep 14th, 2010 (2:27 pm)if you live in a major metropolitan area and commute into the city from the suburbs, a 70 mile/day commute is not unusual. however, i suspect that in some of those major metropolitan areas a large number of such commuters would likely use commuter rail, in which case their auto “commute” is between the train station and their homes.
-2
Sep 14th, 2010 (2:33 pm)from what i have read, the volt appears to be quite well suited for freeway cruising (although if you lived in a major metropolitan area, “freeway cruising” during the ever-expanding “rush hour” is a lot slower than you think it is). apparently there is a slight torque roll-off above 50 mph but the acceleration at highways speeds is reportedly quite adequate. however, if you get into CS mode, i would imagine that you would see a fairly significant drop-off in performance in comparison to CD mode.
Sep 14th, 2010 (2:44 pm)I have disagreed with this ‘range anxiety’ all along. The issue should be more like ‘inconvenience anxiety’.
If I drive my 33 miles to work, in a Leaf on a day where I’m blasting my AC etc., then I have to go somewhere else after work, say to watch a kids game, then i don’t have enough juice to get home, i may have to stop for 15 minutes to get a quick charge.
Within a few years quick charge stations may not be on every block, but they will be every few miles, so its not an issue of being stranded but of being inconvenienced.
Its not all about convenience, to me its about not using Oil.
-2
Sep 14th, 2010 (3:01 pm)i am curious about where you would go to recharge an electric vehicle in 15 minutes. to get that kind of recharge time, i would think that you would need more like a 450-500 volt charging station. i know of no such thing – at least not in existence today.
Sep 14th, 2010 (3:41 pm)Perhaps the folks in California can speak to where they are starting to put the quick charge stations.
I would think the logical place would be at truckstops. In Ohio on turnpike rest areas (every 20-30 miles) and other rest areas.
Seems like on any interestate a charging station should exist every 20 miles or so to begin with.
BUt it is going to be several years. But I’m not going to hold off buying a car at the end of 2011 just because it might be another 2-3 years until charging stations are adequately dispersed.
I probably will get a Volt not a leaf anyways, but as mentioned before thats with expectation of charging during the day because the whole point to me is to use virtually no gas.
Sep 14th, 2010 (3:43 pm)I think i misunderstood your question first time i answered it. You weren’t asking where, but you were questioning the 15 minutes.
That was based on original point about the needed charge to get home, not to fully recharge.
Quick charge stations only charge to 80% anyways. The point is to charge enough to get home then, get a full charge overnight.
+2
Sep 14th, 2010 (3:55 pm)WOW Tough Crowd! LOL -6 just for asking questions. @#25
-1
Sep 14th, 2010 (4:07 pm)It was big news back in May when they announced their partnership, and news in July when they finalized the details (after the successful IPO of Tesla). What’s happened this week is just that Toyota says they’ll have they’re Tesla-fied EV RAV4 at the LA auto show. Nothing about production or shipping, just that they’ll have it there.
Did you just enter your order there a day or two ago? That’s how long it takes for them (Camaro Tracking) to get the initial data load for your order. Or had you been in their system for a while? In that case your order has indeed reached the first step in the GM order sequence. We’re all sitting at 1100 now.
Sep 14th, 2010 (4:14 pm)Yeah. Seems quite the over reaction.
Sep 14th, 2010 (4:25 pm)My ordered copies of the Volt Owner’s Manual still not here. I don’t know official service intervals. Right now I’m at the Cruze seminar looking at the LTZ model. Very nice. Also, I just got access to the Service Guy’s Training 101 for Volt and I will be taking notes on that for you. I hope to have something presentable later this week. There is a ‘Smartphone App’ for the Cruze similar to what the Volt will have. Not as many features, of course, but impressive for a Compact Class car. More later.
Sep 14th, 2010 (5:44 pm)at current charging rates, i would think that a 15 minute charge would only get you a few miles of driving range, and to charge to 80% would take hours.
one of the tricky things about the evolution of electric cars is that driving range will be influenced by both infrastructure and advances in battery technology. there are battery technologies which, in theory, could result in electric cars with driving ranges of 500-1000 miles on a single charge. in that event, you would need a lot less infrastructure. on the other hand, if you put in a lot of infrastructure today when battery range is relatively limited, it could be rendered largely obsolete in the future by advances in battery technology.
+1
Sep 14th, 2010 (5:46 pm)maybe i’m missing something because they seemed like reasonable questions to me.
Sep 14th, 2010 (8:25 pm)Thought for the day…
Sep 16th, 2010 (4:51 pm)Where’s the Blackberry version? Are they really stupid enough to ignore 50 million customers? Blackberry makes up about 40% of the smartphone market, and it’s going to be a long time, if ever, before it shrinks to oblivion.
RIM shipped 12.1 million units in Q2 (4th straight quarter over 10 mil). Can you name ONE quarter in which the iPhone sold more than 10 million in one quarter? Answer: one doesn’t exist. How can you just ignore something that simple?
http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2010/09/16/whats-rimm-really-worth/
http://money.cnn.com/2010/09/16/technology/research_in_motion/index.htm
Oct 5th, 2010 (8:54 pm)Thank you for your nice post. It took me a while browsing through your blog and I liked this post particularly, I just subscribed to your RSS Feed and I think I need to add some more to your post here.