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GM predicts 230 MPG for Volt
Pacific Business News ^ | 8/11/2009 | Thomas Hartley

Posted on 08/11/2009 6:43:58 PM PDT by SeekAndFind

General Motors Co. predicted Tuesday that its Chevrolet Volt rechargeable electric car will get 230 miles per gallon of gas in city driving.

If confirmed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which tests for mileage figures posted on new car stickers, the Volt would be the first car to exceed triple-digit gas mileage, a GM official said.

Toyota’s Prius, the most efficient car now sold in the U.S., gets 48 miles per gallon.

The Volt is powered by an electric motor and battery pack with a 40-mile range. After that, a small internal combustion engine kicks in to generate electricity for a range of up to of 300 miles. The battery pack can be recharged from a standard home outlet.

The downside is that the Volt is expected to cost nearly $40,000, nearly double the sticker price of some economy hybrids.

The Volt is scheduled to appear in showrooms in late 2010.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: automakers; chevyvolt; electriccars; generalmotors; gm; volt
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To: dangerdoc
I get 16-18 highway in my truck.

In many states you pay a cheaper elec rate for the first amount on your bill and about double that for anything over the low amount they deem you should use.

I figured it with the higher number because the car battery charge would all be at the rate above your normal elec use.

121 posted on 08/12/2009 10:50:09 AM PDT by Beagle8U (Free Republic -- One stop shopping ....... It's the Conservative Super WalMart for news .)
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To: Beagle8U

Fraser, prototype, small production
runs.

I was off on a medical, when I could come back to work, they wouldn’t do work for them. They had been burned by a couple of company’s that left them holding the bag, when they went bankrupt.

They had let three people go, and I had to find something else.


122 posted on 08/12/2009 11:31:32 AM PDT by Springman (Rest In Peace YaYa123)
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To: Beagle8U

My brother gets a break on electricity price because he converted to an all electric house.


123 posted on 08/12/2009 11:36:42 AM PDT by dangerdoc (dangerdoc (not actually dangerous any more))
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To: Charles Martel

Found it.http://www.nypost.com/seven//news/nationalnews/general_motors_volt_gets_230_miles_per_g_.htm


124 posted on 08/12/2009 2:58:54 PM PDT by SkyDancer ('Those who hammer their guns into plows will plow for those who do not..' ~ Thomas Jefferson)
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To: RangerM

EPA might rewrite the rule, but the proposed test is what it is.


125 posted on 08/13/2009 5:52:59 AM PDT by naturalized
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To: SeekAndFind; TheBattman
SAF, I chose your thread because it had the most replies... Might want to read this: GM in cahoots with EPA makes up 230-mpg number
126 posted on 08/13/2009 1:11:46 PM PDT by jurroppi1 (We need to reward the people that carry the water instead of the people that drink the water!)
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To: SeekAndFind; All
It should be easy to calculate the “MPG” for electric cars.

1. Calculate the number of Joules from battery storage it takes for the car to go the required distance at the required speed.
2. Using the value from step 1, calculate the total number of Joules (allowing for loss in transmission, charging, etc.) it requires from a power plant to charge that battery with those Joules from step 1.
3. Divide the result from step 2 by 1.3x 10^8 (the Joules per gallon of gasoline) to get the value in gallons of gasoline.

Presto! You're now comparing apples and apples.
I'll bet a dozen donuts that you will NOT get “230 MPG.” In fact, I suspect it will make most compact cars look pretty good.

If your vehicle is a plug-in hybrid, you can use the result from step 3 along the efficiency of the hybrid's IC power plant.

Of course, since this is allegedly about the environment, you could calculate the mass of “pollutants” produced at the power plant to create those Joules at step 3, vs. the “pollutants” produced by a comparable automobile for the same speed and distance. It might make the electric car look better. Maybe.

And, of course, we're not including the toxic products from building and disposing of the battery. We might need to add that our electric car's wastes.

Anybody see any holes in this?

127 posted on 08/13/2009 1:40:10 PM PDT by Little Ray (Do we have a Plan B?)
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To: Little Ray

Yes, coal is cheap and domestic, gasoline is expensive and imported.


128 posted on 08/15/2009 2:16:56 PM PDT by dangerdoc (dangerdoc (not actually dangerous any more))
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