[Dave B]

I think GM should follow Tesla one more time. Tesla decided with their upcoming Whitestar sedan, that they would offer an E-Rev version as well as an all electric version.

It would be great if GM would follow suit, offering two versions of the Volt. For those of us that want to pay extra for the full EV version, GM need only offer a battery pack with more range. They would not need the range extender, lightening the load. The engineering is virtually identical. I'd imagine the battery suppliers would be capable of providing packs of 150-200 miles. Thoughts?

 

[Jason M. Hendler]

The additional batteries would actually be heavier than the range-extender, fuel tank and fuel.

In time, I suspect that GM might offer an all electric vehicle under the Cadillac nameplate, since it will be expensive.

 

[Koz]

GM spoke clearly at Voltnation that a BEV option was not in the cards for the first generation of Volts. This and no V2House were 2 decisions that I think are mistakes on their part, but not because they aren't offering a 150-200 miles range. For the least risk and cost they could simply remove the ICE components and offer a BEV only option with the same battery pack. With the reduced weight and allowing for user overrides of the max and min charge points they pack as is could probably provide 55-60 initial range (more for city only) for occasions when it is needed. Another possibility would be to add battery capacity in equal weight to the ICE components removed. This would still add little risk to the design.

Personally, I need the range extender and I think the vast majority of consumers would as well but there are definitely BEV only enthusiasts and certain markets that the BEV only option would work nicely.

 

[Dave B]

GM spoke clearly at Voltnation that a BEV option was not in the cards for the first generation of Volts. This and no V2House were 2 decisions that I think are mistakes on their part, but not because they aren't offering a 150-200 miles range. For the least risk and cost they could simply remove the ICE components and offer a BEV only option with the same battery pack. With the reduced weight and allowing for user overrides of the max and min charge points they pack as is could probably provide 55-60 initial range (more for city only) for occasions when it is needed. Another possibility would be to add battery capacity in equal weight to the ICE components removed. This would still add little risk to the design.

Personally, I need the range extender and I think the vast majority of consumers would as well but there are definitely BEV only enthusiasts and certain markets that the BEV only option would work nicely.

I didn't know they addressed the BEV issue at VoltNation. Sonner or later there will be breakthroughs in the technology that may permit longer range at reasonable prices. But the E-Rev option seems to be a happy medium. Still, I'm one of those people that thinks we can do better than the 40-50 miles promised. I'll just have to remember to plug-in daily.

 

[DaV8or]

For the least risk and cost they could simply remove the ICE components and offer a BEV only option with the same battery pack. With the reduced weight and allowing for user overrides of the max and min charge points they pack as is could probably provide 55-60 initial range (more for city only) for occasions when it is needed. Another possibility would be to add battery capacity in equal weight to the ICE components removed. This would still add little risk to the design.

There's no way GM should allow user overrides of the battery charge parameters. Doing so shortens battery life span. You can imagine all the people using the over rides all the time to extend range and them bitching to the world when their battery craps out in four years instead of the ten years GM promised. Remember, we live in America, where no one is responsible for their own actions.

I just don't get the BEV version idea. Why would anybody pay more money for less capability? In any case, there's nothing stopping you from buying a Volt and then ripping the ICE and related components out yourself. In addition, I'm sure it won't be long until some after market supplier will sell you a battery pack to go in it's place. I don't believe at this point in battery technology, that GM needs a BEV version.

 

[Koz]

DaV8or

There's no way GM should allow user overrides of the battery charge parameters. Doing so shortens battery life span. You can imagine all the people using the over rides all the time to extend range and them bitching to the world when their battery craps out in four years instead of the ten years GM promised. Remember, we live in America, where no one is responsible for their own actions.

I just don't get the BEV version idea. Why would anybody pay more money for less capability? In any case, there's nothing stopping you from buying a Volt and then ripping the ICE and related components out yourself. In addition, I'm sure it won't be long until some after market supplier will sell you a battery pack to go in it's place. I don't believe at this point in battery technology, that GM needs a BEV version.

It seems very simple to me, but perhaps I'm missing something. In all likelihood GM will not be offering solely 10 year warranty on their battery. Some long commuters (50+ miles) will plug-in at work and GM has no control over the battery calendar life. Their warranty will probably be full of disclaimers and something like"x" KWh or "x" years, whichever comes first. For me and nearly everyone else with less than a 20 mile commute (much less in my case), we will never get 100K miles out of the battery. Most, also like me, can only hope to get significantly less. Less than 25 mile commute represents more than 50% of drivers. So, we will already be at significant cost disadvantage compared to those able to get more out of the battery. I sincerely hope that GM will offer a reduced warranty to coinside with the ability to overide default charge/discharge limits. Otherwise, it will cost me a lot of extra $ for nothing or I'll have to use an aftermarket hack or I will buy a warranteed solution from a competitor.

I agree that it would make no sense to pay more for less. It would only make sense to offer a BEV for less money if it has the same battery pack. Many have posted on this site, that they drive BEV's now with similar or less range and many others have expressed interet as well. This is not for me. I need the range extender. Removing a 50+KW genset, exhaust, gas tank, etc. etc. should represent a significant savings. For those people with no interest and no need for the range extension, the Volt with RE will force them to pay significantly for something they don't want. Similar to my dilemma with battery usage, not offering these options leaves more of an oportunity for competition.

BEV option and user overides for battery usage add very little to development risk or cost. Why not offer them?

 

[john meschede]

Koz, I like your idea about a reduced warranty cost for commuters like you and me who commute less than 20 miles to work. How about GM offering an additional warranty for low mileage commuters to be worked into the monthly payment offered as an option at time of purchase? I'd be willing to shell out a little more to have my batteries covered past the regular warranty period.

 

[nlh_90210]

maybe they should provide a car with less battery

While I fully support the idea of a large electric only range, I think it would be nice if there was a small battery version as well as the normal version. It would be great for people like me who don't have a garage or a driveway and may only get an hour or so to charge the car in the morning (under some supervision). Besides it would cost less, and make it more accessible to people with less income, bad credit or those who just commute under 20 miles and don't want to pay for capacity they seldom use.

GM could build their battery chamber such that it could hold 1 2 or 3 battery sets, so I could upgrade in the future (yeah...I know...wasted space... blah blah blah).

 

[Koz]

I'm with nlh_90210 on the smaller battery option. I've been advocating this too. I understand if this can't make it for version 1.0, but 12KWh battery would do nicely for me. Especially, if I could add another 4-10KWh at a later date when my driving patterns change or the price of batteries comes down enough or gas prices go high enough.