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GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)

By | January 11, 2012, 9:53am PST

Summary: Come June, the automaker may produce electric vehicles on a build-to-order basis.

General Motors is closely watching sales of its Chevrolet Volt electric vehicle and will adjust its production of the car accordingly, potentially by June, according to a report Wednesday in The Wall Street Journal.

Actually, it sounds like the company’s Volt electric vehicles may be available strictly on a build-to-order basis in the future.

The revelation comes amid continued reports of disappointing electric vehicle sales to mainstream consumers. GM only sold about 7,700 Volts during 2011, missing its 10,000-vehicle projection. It also has put the brakes on its original prediction that it would sell 45,000 Volts in 2012. GM CEO Dan Akerson told attendees of the Detroit auto show this week that the automaker will only build as many Volts as it needs.

But GM executives intend to keep experimenting with electric vehicle design and pricing. “The worst thing we could do is back off the technology and the commitment because of things we can’t control,” GM Vice Chairman Steve Girsky told the WSJ.

[via The Wall Street Journal]

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Wall Street Journal, Electric Vehicle, General Motors Corp., Automotive, Heather Clancy

Heather Clancy is an award-winning business journalist with a passion for green technology and corporate sustainability issues.

Disclosure

Heather Clancy

Writing publicly about what the high-tech industry is actually doing to help itself and the world get greener or more sustainable is one way I figure I can contribute more meaningfully to said effort. I am also a big OMG-kind-of-fan of smart leadership, which is why the goodly folks who publish this blog let me go on about this topic and why I am always on the hunt for forward-looking business management ideas.

My daily writing is focused on looking for topics for my blogs, GreenTech Pastures and Business Brains. I also write often about emerging technology trends such as mobile computing, unified communications and cloud computing. Occasionally, I will pop up at an industry conference in some sort of speaking capacity. In cases where a speaking engagement involves a sponsor that may be covered in this blog, that fact will be disclosed in coverage as appropriate.

My corporate writing work usually consists of crafting research white papers about some aspect of technology. In the event that my commentary (in written, audio or video form) mentions a company for which I have provided consulting advice, I will disclose that fact. However, there is no connection between these projects and the topics that I am covering in my blog.

Biography

Heather Clancy

Heather Clancy is an award-winning business journalist with a passion for green technology and corporate sustainability issues. Her articles have appeared in Entrepreneur, Fortune Small Business, The International Herald Tribune and The New York Times. In a past corporate life, Heather was editor of Computer Reseller News, where she was a featured speaker about everything from software as a service to IT security to mobile computing.

Heather started her journalism life as a business writer with United Press International in New York. She holds a B.A. in English literature from McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, and has a thing for Lewis Carroll.

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Hydrogen from water
Martmarty Updated - 12th Jan
@gltarsa
Depends on the source of your Hydrogen.
If water is the source of your Hydrogen then I doubt it will create side effects.
I think this technology is being blocked due to tax being received by governments from fossil fuel (oil). Search youtube with Daniel Dingel. He has a Toyota Corolla prototype which converts Water into Hydrogen using a modified combustion engine. Some German scientists and Chinese researchers has verified this prototype. But according to interview with Daniel Dingel, this alternative fuel from H20 will cause economic collapse, due to the taxes/vat received by all governments from fossil fuel (oil).
View in thread
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
seeknosy@... 11th Jan
In other words, green car experiment = dead.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
bobiroc 11th Jan
@seeknosy@...

I wouldn't say that... 7,700 is not bad for a new car introduction of this type in a niche market. Owners of the Volt seem to be very happy with it but until the infrastructure is put in place to accommodate these electric cars they will grow slowly and not be widely adopted. That being said I think GM did it right by making it a hybrid of sorts that uses total electric and when that runs out it goes to gas. I have already heard horror stories of people with all electric vehicles like the leaf running out of juice in rush hour traffic jams with no way to charge their car.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
Rick_Kl Updated - 11th Jan
@bobiroc there are drawbacks to any vehicle. My truck has 4WD, so I have to put up with lower fuel economy, but I get better traction in the snow, and mud around here. The volt has lower emissions (these electrics cannot be called zero emission vehicles, until we stop using coal to generate electricity).
I have also heard of the vehicles running out of power in traffic jams. The motor is not running, but the fans( heaters in the winter), lights. etc. The best comprise at the moment are the hybrid vehicles. You give up performance, but you do gain fuel milage...
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
ManoaHI 11th Jan
@bobiroc - I have to agree with you. These are bad economic times and I believe a lot of people are sticking to the cars they have now. The only ones you are going to get are people who have money and are somewhat environmentally conscious and need a new car. What is not said is how the other electric car makers are doing in sales (I'm talking about the major makers, not exotics).
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
WozNotWoz 11th Jan
@seeknosy@...
I wonder how "green" those cars really are, anyway. I know refining oil into gasoline isn't exactly clean, but there are some very nasty chemicals involved in the manufacturing of the batteries for the hybrids.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
wendellgee@... Updated - 11th Jan
hydrogen fuel cells charged by the sun/water. let's do that.

http://www.switch2hydrogen.com/h2.htm
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
Roger Ramjet 11th Jan
@wendellgee@...
The hydrogen filling station is something of a concern for me. Even though there are warnings everywhere at gas stations - people still smoke while filling up. Can you say Hindenburg?
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
derekgore Updated - 11th Jan
@wendellgee@...
I agree, although I am invested in a real electric car company, Tesla. To the gentleman that invoked the Hindenburg, that is more likely with Gasoline than hydrogen. Hydrogen is so much lighter than air it goes straight up and fast. You'd almost have to put the lighter or cigarette into the stream of escaping gas. Gasoline fumes on the other hand are heavier than air and pools along the ground and tend to swirl around in any wind. Thus the big whoomp! when some are foolish enough to use gasoline to start a fire instead of diesel.

They also just had a breakthrough on the electrolysis of Hydrogen from water making is faster and much cheaper than making it from oil stocks was.

A2 Heather Clancy,
MS Clancy, could you perhaps if you are going to write about green things please be accurate. The Volt is a hybrid gasoline and electric. It is not an EV which is electric only, like the Tesla and the Leaf.

Tesla sold all of their production of their roadsters with 250 mile ranges and performance that beat the other super cares in its class that cost more like the 91 Targa. And they did that in full production in 2008 before any of the big three even had one on the drawing boards. Tesla comes out with its luxury sedan this year and discontinues the roadster. The news will be clearer in mid 2012, this year, when the performance and 7 seater all electric Tesla Model S comes out. See it will perform better than the Mercedes and BMW luxury cars in its class, and sell for about the same. And go up to 300 miles on a charge.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
ManoaHI 11th Jan
@derekgore - Agree the Hindenburg is entirely different. There were other flammables including diesel fuel for the motors. Also, the duraluminum, once ignited would also burn. Gasoline is indeed explosive when in vapor form, hence how internal combustion engines work. Although, I believe that @Roger Ramjet was stating with tongue-in-cheek.
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It's a battery
Robert Hahn 11th Jan
@derekgore
    They also just had a breakthrough on the electrolysis of Hydrogen from water making is faster and much cheaper than making it from oil stocks was.
Just don't tell us that you know how to get more energy from combining Hydrogen and Oxygen than it took you to break the Hydrogen free of the Oxygen. If you do I will send Isaac Newton to haunt your house.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
wendellgee@... 12th Jan
@derekgore

Gosh you people are dense. Obviously you don't store it as a gas, you chemically bond it and then its safe. Good grief! As if someone is going to run around with hydrogen GAS tanks in their cars - use some common sense!

"Typically, the tanks are filled with granulated Hydrides, and Hydrogen is pressurized into the material. The Hydrogen becomes chemically bonded to the chemical. Even opening the tank, or cutting it in half will not release the Hydrogen gas. In addition, you could even fire incendiary bullets through the tank and the Hydride would only smolder like a cigarette. It is in fact, a safer storage system than your Gasoline tank is."
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
Dknopp 12th Jan
@wendellgee
Come on wendellgee, you googled that bit about bounding the hydrogen chemically, didn't you? At one point it will have to be a gas, whether while filling the tank or when it is burned off from the hydrides,(I googled that).
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
iouzero 11th Jan
Yet another liberal social engineering project takes a nosedive.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
bmgoodman 11th Jan
@iouzero This car served its main purpose--to give GM something to crow about for over 3 years. I still remember the ads on the radio YEARS before the first Volt ever rolled off the assembly line. GM really wanted the "halo effect" from making such a car. And I think they got a bit of it, though I'm not sure the story has yet been finished.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
Dknopp 12th Jan
@iouzero
Alternate fuel cars are not a social engineering project, liberal or otherwise. We will run out of cheap oil eventually, just like we started to run out of whale oil in the 1800's. The oil based internal combustion engine ( whether it is from the ground or we get rid of the middle man and get it straight from plants ) has been here for 100 years - give or take a decade or two, and it is time to move on, just like we have with other technologies, that is unless you are the type that just can't give up your vitrola and still talk to an operator when you make a phone call.
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i'd buy one in a heartbeat(chevy pun intended)
REDPINXC 11th Jan
if the price of the car wasn't so out of line. No way would I ever recover the cost of going green. Make the car more affordable and I bet these will move.

40,000 for a car that should cost 20,000 as a non hybrid is too much of a differential.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
bladerunner13 11th Jan
@REDPINXC
I agree! I looked into buying one and they are $44000 in Saskatchewan. I find they are $34000 in the states so I asked the salesman why I don't just buy one there and he said you void the warranty as soon as you bring it back. Total crap. If they sold them for about $25000 I'd be in like a dirty shirt. Just another way to keep the eclectric car off the roads. You can do your own hydrogen on demand system, been looking at that lately.
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I agree
Hal_9001 12th Jan
@REDPINXC
I totally agree. The high price is the reason it did not reach its targets. It may have achieved the GM goal with the "halo" effect but it was a totally miss on any other metric.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
cerving 11th Jan
I wonder how Nissan is doing with its REAL all-electric Leaf... I see a fair number of them in SoCal. The Volt is NOT an electric vehicle, it's an extended range plug-in hybrid with bigger batteries so it will go a significant distance on the batteries. I think the $40,000+ price tag probably is the biggest issue... it if was the same price as a Malibu, for example, they'd probably sell a lot of them.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
glm3072 11th Jan
I bought a new car last year and would have loved to look at a Volt, but in my area none could be found. So I would have to buy, one sight unseen, plus pay all the dealer extra costs, $45,000 plus and not sure if was a dog. Not gonna happen, they need to produce more, so thye can a least be seen, then lower the price and maybe it would take off.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
huygens1962 11th Jan
Gas will have to go to $5 or $6 a gallon and stay there for electric cars to gain a real foothold in the US market.
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Wrong
pizzaman7 11th Jan
@huygens1962 even at that price gas is a better deal. we should not be altering something to artificially creating a demand. let the consumers decide. let's not kill the economy in the name of "green" energy. actually the consumer is already deciding. we don't want it. look at my post below. in addition, don't get into a car accident with one of these match boxes...you'll be dead meat.

make a good product at a good price and people will come. alternative energy is not competitive at this time.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
cmwade1977 11th Jan
@huygens1962 Actually, that still wouldn't do it, because the higher gas prices would result in higher electricity prices.

Bottom line is electric vehicles are not the solution, because of where we get the majority of our electricity from.

The other problem is range and how long it takes to recharge. I can go 350 miles in my gas vehicle and refill in the matter of 2-3 minutes. Electric vehicles usually can't go more than 150 miles on one charge and take hours to recharge. So as a result, they are not a viable option for most people.
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Wrong: No matter how high the cost, it will never be cost effective
wackoae Updated - 11th Jan
@huygens1962 The Volt can barely get 30 miles out of the batteries. As some owners have pointed out ... the battery life already started degrading after a few months of usage and no longer get the promised 30 mpc.

That means that for most commuters, the vehicle will be running on the VERY INEFFICIENT gas engine for a good part of their daily round trip ... an inefficiency that will be worst as time passes. The Volt when using the engine gets about the same MPG as a small SUV (low 20s).

Because of that, even if the gas price was $20 per gallon, there is NO WAY a Volt owner will ever be able to recover the extra investment.
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Another "Green" Dream
pizzaman7 11th Jan
$40,000-50,000 for a car that will need to have it's battery replaced in two years costing another $2300-$7000....will go perhaps 25-35 miles on a charge depending if you have the A/C or heat on, stereo, or other things people typically have on....requires 220 Volt service at your garage for the daily charge-ups that will need to last 12 hours.....it will pratically knock out electricity demand for your house while charging because of the required load...cold winters are harsh on the battery thus lowering both the longevity and performance......

very expensive and not saving the environment. no wonder why consumers don't want them ! I have a minivan and Altima. the Van comes in handy when I need to haul things from the hardware store. try hauling wood in one of these matchboxes !

another expensive failure for the taxpayer....govt is trying their best to subsidize this. add to the fact that CO2 is not a dangerous gas....it only comprises .2% of our atmosphere.....plants absorb it for food thus producing oxygen....is only 385 ppm in the air and needs to get to 10,000-20,000 ppm to be even considered lethal.....

Just another "Green" dream.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
Canticus Updated - 11th Jan
@pizzaman7 Where do get the idea that a battery will have to be replaced in 2 years? It sounds like the same sort of claim that appeared with the introduction of the first hybrid Prius. I bought one in February 2001. In August 2011 I had to change batteries because one of the cells had failed. I paid $1000 to do this. No problem after over 10 years of faultless performance. Today's batteries are better built and will last even longer I suspect. All the best to you.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
msalzberg 11th Jan
@pizzaman7

GM is guaranteeing the battery for 10 years, I believe.

The required load on your electric to charge the car is about the same as a refrigerator.

This car is great for people who drive 40 miles or less most days, with occasional longer trips.

http://www.voltstats.net/
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
gltarsa 11th Jan
As I understand it, hydrogen vehicles create water as a waste by-product. Would 100M cars produce a significant water problem?

Climate change already threatens to raise water levels, but at least there is a closed system involved. But it seems to me that hydrogen vehicles would be adding new water to the system and that seems like an invitation for unanticipated side-effects.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
bunkport 11th Jan
@gltarsa
the hydrogen comes from the H is H2O, which in case you forgot H.S.chem IS water. So water produces water as a by-product? hmmmmm?
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Hydrogen from water
Martmarty Updated - 12th Jan
@gltarsa
Depends on the source of your Hydrogen.
If water is the source of your Hydrogen then I doubt it will create side effects.
I think this technology is being blocked due to tax being received by governments from fossil fuel (oil). Search youtube with Daniel Dingel. He has a Toyota Corolla prototype which converts Water into Hydrogen using a modified combustion engine. Some German scientists and Chinese researchers has verified this prototype. But according to interview with Daniel Dingel, this alternative fuel from H20 will cause economic collapse, due to the taxes/vat received by all governments from fossil fuel (oil).
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
photog7 11th Jan
For many Americans, once a car costs more than $25,000, it might as well cost $125,000. And they didn't have to make it so boring. The concept vehicle they first showed us was beautiful. Then they redesigned it to look as forgettable as possible.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
Dknopp 12th Jan
@photog7
yeah, what is up with the concept car? You never see anything even close to them on the road. I don't even pay attention to them.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
hgdolfan 11th Jan
Actually the Volt is an electric vehicle. The gasoline engine is not connected to the drivetrain itself. It is used to generate electricity when the batteries are low. Only the electric motors actually propel the car. Forget all the social experiment crap. The car isn't selling because of low availability, no electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and ridiculous prices of $45k. Re Hindenburg post - it's time to thin the stupidity herd anyway.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
JoeFoerster 11th Jan
"Actually, it sounds like the company???s Volt electric vehicles may be available strictly on a build-to-order basis in the future." Heather, the WSJ article says nothing like that at all. The comments from those above who don't understand the car are pretty funny too. I can tell you as a satisfied owner, this is a great car but it's not an "economy car" like a Kia. People who say they could never recoup their investment haven't been reading the financial rags that have done their homework and found they were indeed cheaper to own than a comparable vehicle. But the rewards for owning one of these goes beyond just that. And the guy who said these are a liberal social engineering project doesn't know this car began planning and construction under a conservative administration; also doesn't seem to recognize how much social engineering conservatives do with restrictions on women's right to choose and full equality for all Americans,etc. But I digress...
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
bjyng 11th Jan
Have you been living in a hole that you have not heard recent news GM is moving EV production to China? It's only closing production in the USA.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
gil_seiler 11th Jan
Remember Volt has about 40 mile range on batteries and then switches to gas. Leaf has advertised 100 miles on batteries period and way less bucks.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
HackerJ 11th Jan
Guess it is time to MANDATE that a certain number of green cars be sold, or else taxes get raised on those who don't buy one. It is the only FAIR thing to do.
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RE: GM may put brakes on Volt electric vehicle production (WSJ report)
pete8743 11th Jan
"TAXPAYER" money For this Experiment????
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Another alternative from India
kashyap.bikram@... 11th Jan
If I am correct, an Indian company called Maherdra is launching a new model of its electric car Reva, called Reva NXR. Want to see its pricing. They said 120 kms on full charge and the driving cost/km is about a fraction of a petrol car(40 paise per km vs 3 to 4 Rs for my dad's petrol car, where 1 Rs = 100 Paise).
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My Volt
thermoid 12th Jan
I got my Volt back in September and have put 1800 miles on it and used about 2 gallons of gas (I am still on the tank the dealer gave me), and in Illinois we are mostly nuclear powered. The car has a lot of thought put into the engineering and is an absolute thrill to drive.

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