Yes, I forgot about that. The Bloomberg guy was talking about the Volt while the others where talking Bolt (thanks Chevy marketing!).Guy from Bloomberg mentioned that the Bolt EV was on a "Cruze" platform. Which is not correct.
GM needs to come up with a way to sell a LOT more EVs than it's selling now in order for that kind of factory to make any kind of economic sense for them. Until they can get to the kind of sales numbers that Elon is expecting it's far smarter to contract someone like LG who can gain the necessary economies of scale by selling to multiple manufacturers.The one point they do bring up that I think needs to be addressed is, when is GM going to get serious? I mean, really serious. Has there been any word about GM building a domestic plant capable of fabricating the batteries, motors, controllers, etc.? Because that needs to happen. GM needs to have their own Gigafactory, just to start. The Bolt EV was fast-tracked, and as much as I think it is a huge step in the right direction, the LT's MSRP does need to be dropped to about $25k. That can only happen with domestic fabrication.
I agree that it does not make economic sense when framed with past and current sales figures; however, they know this is the direction consumers, governments, and the auto industry as a whole are moving. Most companies fall into the trap of reacting rather than being proactive, and the sooner GM builds a domestic plant, the better it will be for them. At the very least, they need to establish a unit number at which it is no longer defensible to source parts from a third-party. I'm not saying that GM needs to start building the battery cells themselves, but I do think they need to create additional domestic facilities where LG and other contributing companies build GM specific parts.GM needs to come up with a way to sell a LOT more EVs than it's selling now in order for that kind of factory to make any kind of economic sense for them. Until they can get to the kind of sales numbers that Elon is expecting it's far smarter to contract someone like LG who can gain the necessary economies of scale by selling to multiple manufacturers.
That having been said, it sounds like a few of the European manufacturers can foresee this future and are placing their bets on in-house battery production. That's probably at least partly because of the very favourable EV regulatory and incentive environment in Europe. In America where federal tax credits are going to run out for GM and where the administration is sending signals right and left that it's going to throw up roadblocks to environmental initiatives the outlook is a lot more pessimistic.
LG's Holland MI plant added a 4th production line sometime in early spring I remember. I wonder what that was for.I'm not saying that GM needs to start building the battery cells themselves, but I do think they need to create additional domestic facilities where LG and other contributing companies build GM specific parts.
I thought I remembered reading that it was a non-GM.LG's Holland MI plant added a 4th production line sometime in early spring I remember. I wonder what that was for.
What happens to that huge investment when a whole new battery tech (like solid state) emerges? Outsourcing gives GM flexibility and no need for capital expenditures. Of course for all I know something like automobile worthy commercial solid state batteries may be 20 years away.The sooner GM jumps onto that production bandwagon, the more cost-effective their EV offerings will be.
I agree that it's a risk, but that's kind of what successful businesses are built on. GM would need seven Gigafactories worth of capacity just to convert its domestic vehicle production to all electric. A single factory to start with seems like a no-brainer. So even if battery technology changes, you've only invested in one of seven potential factories that might still be of value. And that is assuming that new technology is so radically different that the plant can't be retooled or retrofitted.What happens to that huge investment when a whole new battery tech (like solid state) emerges? Outsourcing gives GM flexibility and no need for capital expenditures. Of course for all I know something like automobile worthy commercial solid state batteries may be 20 years away.
In a sense, they did. They noted that Teslas use of standard cylindrical sizes was a huge cost advantage for them over the use of prismatic cells. Teslas Gigafactory is actually producing the cells with different chemistries. (E.g., Powerwall cell chemistry is different than car cells.)What happens to that huge investment when a whole new battery tech (like solid state) emerges? Outsourcing gives GM flexibility and no need for capital expenditures. Of course for all I know something like automobile worthy commercial solid state batteries may be 20 years away.
What did the experts on Autoline have to say about that? Nothing. They did not even know what chemistry the Bolt uses. It really reminded me a a group of guys just shooting the bull. The "in depth tear down" was click-bait with no real substance backing up the headline.
They did not seem really sure what the proportions are for the Bolt's battery.Yeah, the also mentioned the 8:1:1 LiCoMn battery chemistry,
Well, whatever the Bolt EV's battery chemistry is, it's worse than the i3's. :/They did not seem really sure what the proportions are for the Bolt's battery.
Expert, "It's going to be really cheap when we get to 8:1:1. Right now I think it's s..."
John, "What's 8:1:1?",
Expert, "If you drop the cobalt content, I don't want to guess, but if you get the report..."
Blue shirt, "Right now they're saying it's 8:1:1.",
Expert, "No, no, no we want to go to 8:1:1.",
Blue shirt, "I thought we wanted to go to 1:1:1?"
So they never let him say what he thought the Bolt's chemistry proportions are. The only thing I can find is that they are "nickel-rich lithium ion chemistry"![]()
The expert does not actually state this. I posted the text of what he said above. But if you have a link to that ratio for the Bolt it would be great to post it. Seems a guarded secret.My understanding about the 8:1:1 ratio (and I believe they did state this)
Ah, I must have read that somewhere else. As for GM's chemistry for the Bolt EV, I don't know that it has ever been published. If it is patented, I'd think that information would be publicly available.The expert does not actually state this. I posted the text of what he said above. But if you have a link to that ratio for the Bolt it would be great to post it. Seems a guarded secret.
I think GM will get serious only if forced by competition or when they can identify additional margin over SUVs and pick-ups (which is highly unlikely any time soon).The one point they do bring up that I think needs to be addressed is, when is GM going to get serious? I mean, really serious. Has there been any word about GM building a domestic plant capable of fabricating the batteries, motors, controllers, etc.? Because that needs to happen. GM needs to have their own Gigafactory, just to start. The Bolt EV was fast-tracked, and as much as I think it is a huge step in the right direction, the LT's MSRP does need to be dropped to about $25k. That can only happen with domestic fabrication.