I’ve been seeing a lot of commercials for the Chevy Volt, and this advertising blitz might be paying off. The Chevy Volt outsold the Nissan Leaf for the first time in October. In October GM sold 1,108 units of the Volt, which is a significant increase over the 723 units sold in September.

The Volt is still running behind GM’s sales targets, and it seems like the company was banking on all the PR buzz around the vehicle to drive sales. Perhaps a marketing push was also needed. The commercials are pretty good. They stress the gas savings of an electric car with some humorous situations at gas stations.

As more and more automakers go electric and introduce plug-in hybrids, it will be interesting to see if this segment really takes off. Right now the sales numbers are miniscule but that could change quickly.

Bullz-Eye has plenty more shots of the Woodward Dream Cruise for your enjoyment. Check back often, since we should have more photos as they come from GM.

Slot of us still have questions about the new Chevy Volt. Our friends at the Detroit Free Press put together a well written Q & A that dives deep into what the Volt is all about.

QUESTION: Can people come and take a tour of the plant and watch the Volt being built? Is there an education center about the Volt? — reader John C. Tyrrell

ANSWER: The Detroit-Hamtramck plant where workers assemble the Volt will have interactive, educational displays in its lobby next year. GM is also planning a reservation-based tour program for the public that will start next year.

Q: Why is the Volt considered an electric vehicle when actually it is a hybrid? — reader Dennis Bonucchi

A: The Volt is very different from hybrids like the Escape, Insight and Prius. The Volt’s wheels are turned by electricity only — not by the gasoline engine. The gas engines in hybrids turn the wheels most of the time. A Volt owner driving 40 miles or so between charges may hardly use gasoline.

Read the full article.

The Chevy Volt has been named Motor Trend Car of the Year according to the Detroit Free Press.

The 2011 Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric vehicle has been named Car of the Year by Motor Trend magazine, for General Motors’ second title in four years.

The Volt beat out contenders that include the Ford Fiesta, Hyundai Sonata, Lincoln MKZ hybrid, BMW 5 Series, Jaguar XJ, Infiniti M and Audi A8.

One of the Detroit 3 won the award every year from 1986 to 2002, until the Infiniti G35 broke that trend in 2003. Since then, domestic and foreign automakers’ models have split the award evenly, with the 2010 Ford Fusion midsized sedan winning last year.

The Volt also was named Automobile of the Year today by Ann Arbor-based Automobile Magazine.

Read the full article.

There is a lot of confusion out there on how the new Chevrolet Volt works. Count us in as those who are still trying to figure out the high price tag when compared to other hybrids. Oops! I forgot that the Volt isn’t a hybrid but rather an electric car that uses a gas engine to create electricity. Our friends at Insideline.com break it down for those of us who need a lesson or two on the Volt!

Imagine a straight line across a piece of paper. All the cars that have ever been made exist somewhere on that line, including the 2011 Chevrolet Volt.

At the left endpoint, let’s write “Gas” to represent vehicles powered by gasoline. Go ahead and add diesel, E85 or any other combustible fuel along with gasoline if you must. Point is, our left endpoint is not associated with batteries or electric motors.

That’s because “Electricity” is the label we’ll apply to the right endpoint of our line. This represents the pure electric vehicles — EVs for short. These have an electric motor, a battery pack and a place to sit. You plug them in and charge them up. When the battery runs out of juice, you’re walking.

Read the full article.

Looks like demand is there for the new Nissan Leaf but how many can they build? With this type of excitement and demand around vehicles like the Leaf and the upcoming Chevy Volt electric cars might finally be for real in the marketplace. Both companies need to answer the call and get these machines rolling off the assembly lines early and often.

From AutoNews.com:

In three days, U.S. consumers gave $656,865 to Nissan for the chance to buy a Leaf electric sedan when it arrives in December.

Ain’t capitalism grand.

Starting on Tuesday, April 20, consumers could pony up $99 for what was called a refundable reservation fee. By Friday morning, 6,635 would-be buyers had charged the fee to their credit cards.

For their money, they got…well, nothing, really.

This is not a deposit on the car. It doesn’t count against the $32,780 sticker price.

Read the full article here.

Photo from fOTOGLIF
]]> http://www.dashboardnews.com/2010/04/26/nissan-collects-650000-from-buyers-who-just-want-to-be-first/feed/ 0 http://www.dashboardnews.com/2010/04/16/chevy-volt-to-get-50-mpg/ http://www.dashboardnews.com/2010/04/16/chevy-volt-to-get-50-mpg/#comments Sat, 17 Apr 2010 03:49:51 +0000 Staff http://www.dashboardnews.com/?p=857

The jury is still out on the Chevy Volt but news like this will help it’s case. AutoGuide.com is reporting that once the electric charge is used up the Volt will achieve 50mpg with the gas powered engine powering the vehicle. That is very impressive and will be a big selling point for those traveling over 40+ miles per charge.

Remember all that nonsense about the Chevy Volt getting 230-mpg? Well, after the EPA denied coming up with the number and Chevy admitted there was no standardized way to compare the fuel consumption of a range-extended electric vehicle like the Volt with a conventional gasoline vehicle, the whole business died down for a while – or at least it did after Nissan claimed its fully electric Leaf gets 367 mpg.

Read the full article here.

Back to the Volt here. That is one out of this world looking battery pack for those of us seeing it for the first time. I have now seen the future and it is shiny!

From the Detroit News:

Brownstown Township — General Motors Co. assembled the first lithium-ion battery pack for its Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric car today.

The event drew U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, Gov. Jennifer Granholm and GM Chairman and CEO Ed Whitacre and a host of federal, state and local politicians who heralded the battery’s production as a symbolic step toward remaking Michigan’s economy and the nation’s manufacturing sector.

Chu’s presence underscores the importance that the Volt and other alternatively powered vehicles could have on cutting consumer reliance on foreign oil.

Read the full article here.

Chevy appears to be stepping it up with these new apps via OnStar to make the Volt even more unique and trendsetting. Maybe it’s a sign of things to come!

From the Detroit News:

Las Vegas — Chevrolet Volt owners will have access to smart phone monitoring and control applications for their vehicles, officials from General Motors Co. and OnStar announced Tuesday at the Consumer Electronics Show.

OnStar President Walt Dorfstatter and Maria Rohrer, director of Chevrolet Volt marketing, made the announcement during a press preview event Tuesday that precedes the world’s biggest electronics and technology show.

The announcement follows Ford Motor Co.’s recent release of advanced smart phone apps for Sync-equipped vehicles.

Read the full article here.

Royal Oak — Even on their days off, the engineers creating the Chevrolet Volt are working.

They’re testing, measuring and evaluating what is arguably the most important vehicle in General Motors Co.’s history. They take their work home with them, literally, commuting in the vehicles, strapping baby seats in the back or picking up groceries.

When the official auto show season kicks off next month in Los Angeles, the Volt will play a starring role. On Monday, at Athens Coney Island, a group of Volt engineers talked about the car and how its development is progressing.

Click here to read the rest of the article.