Is GM just blowing smoke about new battery tech? The Car Connection thinks so

We know what Sam thought of his visit to GM's Technical Center earlier this week, and a lot of AutoblogGreen readers were quite happy with the level of detail that he was able to get out of the future producers of the Volt (maybe). But, writing over at The Car Connection, Marty Padgett writes that GM's presentation to the media was just the latest in a long history of Wizard-of-Oz-style hype. The key issue: GM says all it needs to get the Volt rolling is better batteries. TCC says: well, duh. And TCC doesn't think 2010 is a reasonable goal for a mass-produced Volt.

I'm fairly new to automotive journalism, and I haven't been through the hybe/bust cycles that Padgett mentions, so maybe I'm missing something. But GM's back is up against the wall. A PR stunt might buy them time, but a great Volt would make people buy GM cars. And that's what GM needs most of all.

UPDATE: Here's hybridcars.com's take on the event.

[Source: The Car Connection]

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