[J in MN]

I must be either dumb or missing something, so please help.

If the Volt's battery will only lose 20% of its capacity after 10 years or 150k miles, and if the Volt has a gasoline powered internal combustion engine, why would you EVER want to or need to replace the battery????

J in MN

 

[kubel]

The electric motor in the Volt should outlast the batteries many times over. Since the batteries are expected to have a 10 year lifespan and can only provide 40 miles AER, some people might upgrade because the batteries are dead, or some people might upgrade because they want more range.

In 10 years, Li-ion has doubled its energy density and the price has dropped 75%. In another 10 years, who knows what kind of advancements will be made to Li-ion technology.

 

[omegaman66]

I wont. The ten year is just a minimum target for the batteries to still have 80% of their original capacity. Doesn't mean you have to trash them or even should.

 

[J in MN]

Who would provide "upgrade" batteries? I am sure GM would rather sell you a new car than a new, improved battery for an old car.

So, by the year 2020, it seems to me that a 2010 model Volt with 32 mile AER (80% of 40 miles) and costing about $5000 is a more attractive choice than the much talked about 2020 model Volt with 20 mile AER costing potentially $15-20k.

This still leaves me wondering where all those "used" batteries that the electric utility companies are drooling over are going to come from.

 

[MrBogey]

What's interesting to me is the simplification of the drive-train and the total cost of buying a new car might help bring back the desire to change out busted components, assuming they don't make it too overly complex.

I remember back in the day if a transmission or engine went out it was relatively cheap to just swap it out rather than buying a new car and a lot of people did so. Now it seems like once someone starts getting engine troubles it means they sell it and get a new one.

 

[willdryden]

I remember back in the day if a transmission or engine went out it was relatively cheap to just swap it out rather than buying a new car and a lot of people did so. Now it seems like once someone starts getting engine troubles it means they sell it and get a new one.

I can remember when you could change out an engine and get another 100,000 miles. The cost of changing an engine is more than half of the cost of a new car and you are lucky to get another 40,000 before the transmission goes.