![]() ![]() While running on gasoline at high speeds the engine may be mechanically linked (by a clutch) to a generator set, improving efficiency by 10% to 15%. From there, its internal combustion engine powers an electric generator to extend the vehicle's range as needed. The Volt operates as a pure battery electric vehicle until its battery capacity drops to a predetermined threshold from full charge. As of December 2019, the Chevrolet Volt is listed as the all-time top-selling plug-in hybrid in the American market. Until December 2018, the Volt/Ampera family of vehicles was the world's all-time bestselling plug-in hybrid vehicle. Just over 10,000 Opel/Vauxhall Ampera cars had been sold in Europe as of June 2016. is the leading market, with 157,054 Volts delivered through the end of 2019, followed by Canada with 16,653 Volts sold through September 2018. Global combined Volt/Ampera-family sales totaled about 177,000 units by the end of October 2018. ![]() Sales of the 2011 Volt began in the United States in mid-December 2010, followed by various European countries and other international markets in 2011. As is, the Chevrolet Volt is quite close to being the ideal electrified car for most buyers.The Chevrolet Volt is a plug-in hybrid manufactured by General Motors, also marketed in rebadged variants as the Holden Volt in Australia and New Zealand and the Buick Velite 5 in China, and with a different fascia as the Vauxhall Ampera in the United Kingdom and as the Opel Ampera in the remainder of Europe. Suggestion to General Motors: drop a derivation of this drivetrain in an Equinox, price it under forty grand, and maybe keep some plants open. Regardless of whether poor marketing killed the Volt - how many regular car shoppers know what a plug-in hybrid is, really? - or whether blame rests on an overall move away from traditional cars, the writing was on the wall. It's not perfect, but it does a good number of things very well. Shame, because this Volt is very nearly a brilliant car. Ultimately, the business needs to do whatever it takes to survive. The corporation exists, as they say, to service the shareholders. I feel for those in the several factories slated to close, but I struggle to lay all of the blame at General Motors. The Volt arrived in my driveway two days after GM announced the impending closure of its Detroit-Hamtramck plant. You lose a few nice features, certainly - namely wireless cell phone charging, heated leather seats, the fast (7.2kW) charging system, and parking assist - but for the money, a more basic Volt is both attractive and competitive with other plug-in hybrids.įor those who haven't heard the news, the Chevrolet Volt ceases production soon, part of GM's plan to rationalize in the face of increased competitive and regulatory pressures. I'd be doing you, the car-shopping public, a disservice were I not to mention that the Volt LT can be had for $34,395. ![]() This Volt is the Premier trim, mostly because automakers typically want journalists to sample the best of the best. It's the real-world way to go green.Ĭheck that price - yeah, it's a bit strong for a four-seat* hatchback. While it can run for over 50 miles without using gasoline, the gas engine charges the batteries, allowing for range similar to that of a traditional car. That's where a plug-in hybrid, like this 2019 Chevrolet Volt, makes all the difference. I need the flexibility to drive across several states without plugging in. Until nationwide infrastructure and car charging technologies allow for both a 300-mile range (typically the range of a kid's bladder) and a 10-to-15 minute full recharge time, the internal combustion engine will always find a home in my driveway. But I'm not ready for them, and likely neither are you. Fully electric cars keep popping up, from startups and legacy automakers alike.
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