Autoblog

Video: Chevrolet tries to make sense of Volt mileage figures

Chris Shunk — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Hybrid, Sedan, Videos, Chevrolet, GM, Electric

Click above to watch the video after the jump

The 2011 Chevy Volt is, in several ways, like every other car on the road. Four wheels, four doors, a steering wheel... but not every vehicle has a gas engine, electric motor, massive lithium ion battery and a spot to plug into the wall. It's a bit complicated at first, and perhaps more so when looking at the Environmental Protection Agency's official fuel economy figures.

The EPA tells us that the Volt averages 35 miles on an electric charge, but that number can vary anywhere from 25 to 50 miles depending on the conditions. In gas-only mode, the Volt manages 37 miles per gallon. Combine a full tank of gas with a maxed-out electric charge and you can travel a total of 379 miles. Then there is the EPA equation that compares the cost of electricity compared to the typical cost of gasoline, with a resulting efficiency estimation of 93 MPGe. That's miles per gallon equivalent. All-told, the EPA gave the Volt a 60 mpg combined score. So... we're looking at mpg numbers of 37, 93 and 60 mpg. And 35 miles with virtually no gas whatsoever, but really it's between 25 and 50 miles.

You know what... we can explain this until we're blue in the face, but we probably won't do as well as the 2:20 video that is available after the jump. General Motors breaks down the EPA's Mensa label in a language just about anyone can understand. Click through and enjoy.

Gallery: 2011 Chevrolet Volt: First Drive

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: Chevrolet tries to make sense of Volt mileage figures

Video: Chevrolet tries to make sense of Volt mileage figures originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 23 Dec 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Why the sub-30 MPG claim for Chevrolet Volt is misleading [w/video]

Autoblog Staff — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 10:31:00 EST

Translogic Episode 5.4 - Click above to watch video after the jump

One of the last big technical questions about the 2011 Chevrolet Volt is how much gasoline it will consume when the engine starts up to sustain the charge of the battery. Since the beginning of the development program back in 2007, General Motors has remained extremely reluctant to discuss details about the Volt's fuel efficiency, but a few days ago, the world got its first hint from an outsider.

Previous media drives with the Volt were done with 65 percent calibration level prototypes and we didn't get to see any of the mileage data on the displays. A team from our sister publication, Translogic, recently tried out a newer pilot production car at GM's Milford Proving Ground during a video shoot. Once they ran the battery down, the car continued for another 16.1 miles and apparently used 0.59 gallons of fuel for an average of just 27.3 miles per gallon. Needless to say, that's nowhere near the 50+ mpg that had been surmised from the big 230 mpg announcement a year ago. Read on after the jump for an analysis of what the video crew experienced, as well as the video itself.

Gallery: Quick Spin: 2011 Chevrolet Volt pre-production prototype

[Sources: Plug In Cars, GM-Volt, Translogic]

Continue reading Why the sub-30 MPG claim for Chevrolet Volt is misleading [w/video]

Why the sub-30 MPG claim for Chevrolet Volt is misleading [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 26 Aug 2010 10:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EPA still not settled on MPG labels for plug-ins, Volt unlikely to get 230 mpg

Sam Abuelsamid — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 11:29:00 EST

Filed under: Hybrid, Government/Legal, Chevrolet, GM, Electric

Last week at the Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress in Detroit, we spoke with Dr. Pete Savagian of General Motors about what the Chevrolet Volt's fuel economy sticker would look like. Last summer former GM CEO Fritz Henderson made a big splash when he announced that the Volt was getting approximately 230 miles-per-gallon combined. However, that number was based on a draft proposal by the EPA for a testing methodology for plug-in vehicles.

That proposal has never been made public, although it was believed to include running through the 11-mile test cycle repeatedly until the battery was depleted and then going through the cycle once more. The fuel consumption was then calculated based on the fuel used and the total miles driven. The 230 mpg figure drew a lot of criticism as being unrealistic, and for many drivers it would be. For others who drive short distances and charge regularly, it could actually be a conservative figure.

With only six months to go until Volt production begins, The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the EPA still has not finalized the mileage calculation procedure for these vehicles. The results you get are highly dependent on the driving duty cycle and a panel discussion at the SAE Congress on the subject of ratings did little to clarify the subject. GM's Savagian is confident that the EPA will finalize a test and labeling procedure soon, however. And they'd better, because by law, all new cars are required to carry a MPG sticker.

[Source: The Wall Street Journal]

EPA still not settled on MPG labels for plug-ins, Volt unlikely to get 230 mpg originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 20 Apr 2010 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Posawatz: Volt range-extended mileage to be "better than any conventional car." But what about hybrids?

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 17:59:00 EST

Filed under: Hybrid, Sedan, Chevrolet, GM, Electric

So, plenty of time has passed since General Motors first made the announcement that its Chevy Volt extended-range electric vehicle would score 230 miles per gallon on the yet-to-be-completed EPA testing procedure for such vehicles. Still, plenty of questions remain, such as How many miles per gallon with the Volt achieve after it has traveled the 40 or so miles necessary to deplete its battery pack?

Well, we still don't have an exact answer, which is partly due to the fact that GM hasn't yet finished developing the vehicle's complex software systems. In an interview with Fox Car Report Live, vehicle line directory Tony Posawatz sheds some light on the topic, saying that the Volt's sustained mileage will be "better than any conventional car, and we're trying to figure out how close, or if it will actually be better than any hybrids."

To put that figure into perspective, we'd imagine that means the Volt would fall somewhere between the 32 mpg rating of the Toyota Yaris and the 50 mpg rating of the Toyota Prius when running under charge-sustaining mode with an otherwise depleted battery pack. Whatever the case, don't expect this hot-button topic to go away any time soon. Click past the break to see the exchange on video.

Gallery: 2011 Chevrolet Volt

[Source: Fox Car Report]

Continue reading Posawatz: Volt range-extended mileage to be "better than any conventional car." But what about hybrids?

Posawatz: Volt range-extended mileage to be "better than any conventional car." But what about hybrids? originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 17:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Autoblog Podcast #140

Dan Roth — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 18:58:00 EST

Filed under: Podcasts, Hybrid, Performance, Etc., Cadillac, Chevrolet, Ferrari, Design/Style

Click above for the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes, RSS or listen now!

Episode #140 of the Autoblog Podcast is going to just squeak under the wire for the weekend. It's late, and we're going to blame the new guy. Jonny Lieberman joined Chris and Dan for a few moments between bouts of Skype-drop-itis, and the trio started off blithely to discuss the Autoblog Garage and then the Ferrari 458 Italia before giving up on J-Leib for the night. Down a man, Chris and Dan carry on and cover the Cadillac ATS and XTS, along with the Chevrolet Volt's controversial 230 MPG city rating. In between, of course, is plenty of Autoblog inside baseball, including an especially good tangent where Shunk starts psychoanalyzing the team. We cap it off by answering a bunch of questions, and that's it. At least there's value there, as we continue for 80 minutes. Let us know what you think by sending a note to Podcast at Autoblog Dot Com, or hit up our survey, and iTunes users can also leave reviews at the Autoblog Podcast iTunes page. Thanks for listening, we'll see you again early next week!

Continue reading Autoblog Podcast #140

Autoblog Podcast #140 originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 14 Aug 2009 18:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EPA backs away from GM claim of 230 mpg for Volt

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Hybrid, Sedan, Government/Legal, Chevrolet, GM, Electric

2011 Chevy Volt - Click above for high-res image gallery

Apparently, we're not the only ones trying to figure out the exact methodology that was used to determine the supposed 230 mile per gallon city rating claimed by General Motors for the upcoming Chevy Volt. In response to a query from the boys at Green Car Advisor, the EPA issued the following statement:

EPA has not tested a Chevy Volt and therefore cannot confirm the fuel economy values claimed by GM. EPA does applaud GM's commitment to designing and building the car of the future - an American-made car that will save families money, significantly reduce our dependence on foreign oil and create good-paying American jobs. We're proud to see American companies and American workers leading the world in the clean energy innovations that will shape the 21st century economy.

Although it deserves noting that GM CEO Fritz Henderson didn't exactly say the 230 mpg rating was an official figure from the EPA, it sure is being bandied about as if it were gospel in the huge marketing campaign launched ahead of today's announcement.

When contacted for comment, GM told AutoblogGreen that the EPA is not backing away from the 230 numbers and that it's unlikely that the EPA will come out with a much lower number when they actually get to run a Volt through the official cycle. Further, GM believes that coming out with the 230 rating at this point in time is one way to change people's perception of what kind of car the Volt is.

Gallery: 2011 Chevy Volt

[Source: EPA via Green Car Advisor]

EPA backs away from GM claim of 230 mpg for Volt originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 11 Aug 2009 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Volt's EPA rating could be cut by new standards

Dan Roth — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 09:01:00 EST

Filed under: Hybrid, Green, Chevrolet, GM

EPA mileage estimates can be such fuzzy things when you're dealing with hybrid powertrains. We've seen plenty of contention already about real-world results versus EPA numbers for current hybrids, and Chevrolet's upcoming Volt has GM butting heads with the Feds over how the series hybrid eFlex powertrain should be rated. Because the Volt can cover about 40 miles before it needs to fire its range-extending internal combustion engine, it can breeze through the EPA's test cycle with the engine off for 85 percent of the time. With the engine running so little, the Volt could earn an EPA rating above 100 mpg, but the agency is not comfortable with that and wants to change the test for the Volt.

GM argues that altering the test in the way the EPA proposes -- requiring the Volt finish the test with batteries near full charge -- is unfair and won't reflect reality. Moreover, in everyday commuting, the Volt will be an electric car for its first 40 miles, not ever even firing its engine for drivers with commutes short enough or recharging ability at work. The EPA's motivation is to come up with a meaningful mileage rating for the Volt, which will ace the current test. If the Volt gets a rating that is artificially low because the EPA can't figure out a test that correlates to reality, it could also hurt the Volt's case with consumers looking at the $40,000 price tag next to numbers barely better than what a diesel or parallel hybrid can earn.

[Source: Motor Trend]

Volt's EPA rating could be cut by new standards originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 08 Sep 2008 09:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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