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Money
GM Stops Production of Unpopular Chevy Volt
General Motors is halting production of the poorly selling Chevy Volt to accommodate a redesigned Chevy Impala. The impending four-week shutdown of the electric car represents yet another setback following news of disappointing sales for the second year in a row:
General Motors Co. (GM), the largest U.S. automaker, is planning to stop production for about four weeks in September and October at the factory that makes Chevrolet Volt cars, two people familiar with the plan said.
Sales of the plug-in hybrid sedan haven’t met Chief Executive Officer Dan Akerson’s projections this year. Through July, GM sold 10,666 Volts in the U.S., according to researcher Autodata Corp. Akerson had aimed for sales of 60,000 globally, of which 45,000 would be delivered in the U.S. In June he said sales would probably total 35,000 to 40,000.
GM says that it has planned for the production shutdown by building Volts ahead of anticipated demand while the car’s production is offline — a different reason than earlier production suspensions this year tied to poor sales:
Malcho said the company “built ahead” with Volt production anticipating the shutdown so it will have enough vehicles on hand to meet demand.
The assembly line shutdown will begin Sept. 17 and continue through Oct. 15, as GM readies for production of the all-new 2014 Chevrolet Impala, the brand’s flagship full-size sedan.
About 1,500 workers will be idled during retooling because the automaker builds multiple models on the same assembly line.
GM was forced to idle Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly for two stretches this year because of sluggish demand for the Volt.
The report said that GM expected August’s sales to be the best ever for the Volt — at just over 2,500 units. That’s about half of the number needed to reach the lower end of Akerson’s U.S. sales projections for 2012, which have been abandoned for now.
But even slightly stronger consumer demand is buoyed by massive tax incentives and other government subsidies designed to make the electric vehicle — priced in the mid-$40,000 range — more enticing.
For example, according to Chevrolet.com, residents of Colorado can combine a federal tax credit of up to $7,500 with a Colorado state income tax credit of up to $6,000 — the most generous offer nationwide. For Californians, the federal tax credit can be combined with a state rebate of $1,500. In Tennessee, in addition to the state income tax credit of $2,500, residents will receive a free charging station.
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Comments
I would say, it is sad
I would say, it is sad reading all the left wing liberals trying sell hogshit as nose plugs, and cheryl bombs as ear plugs. So, let's see, here is what the socialist record is.
COAL = BAD ELECTRICITY = GOOD???? Hey all U socialist Einstein's ELECTRICITY IS COAL Therefore making the VOLT A COAL FIRED CAR. Ok, now, read slow I know Liberals have a hard time dealing in reality based facts. Just refer to your , "A socialist guide to rebuffing the truth" under the defenition; WHY COAL IS BAD ? And you can submit the above answer; ""electricity is burnt coal"" after all, your WV coal miners union cronies state that as a fact" your people not mine. So, now, as a liberal you support electric cars powered by what?? Correct answer=COAL Now see, that wasn't that hard, now was it? Now so you understand the process of " THINKING FOR YOURSELF" I am going to type it for you so you can print it out and carry it with you, so that if you are temped, or catch yourself, thinking or saying ; YES WE CAN, or Obama, in a crowd of mindless Obama Zombies that on que,lose all mental capabilities whenever the word Obama is mentioned. Grab your little facts are truth reference card and read it to yourself , it will anocqulate you against stupidity. You will find that ""THINK IT THROUGH"" will apply to; any subject, any question, anywhere, anytime, and anyplace. Once you start applying your new found educational tool that allows you to think for yourself, by simply doing what? THINK IT THROUGH. That's right, very good, see, your not stupid, you were just brain washed. Ok, now that you have your tool, let's see if you can answer one question on your own. GM as a company, is still open why? Now use your little tool. If you answered; because Obama illegally funneled GM billions of government tax dollars belonging to your children, to pay off massive debt that the unions ran up, by stealing from the employees retirement funds to buy off politicians to hide their crimes and maintain power so they don't go to prison for stealing. See, your little "think it through card works, no go, free yourself of your mental disorder.
KF, you are missing just
KF, you are missing just about everything important about this subject. First of all, coal accounts for less than 45% of electricity generated in the US now, and that number is dropping fast. The Volt uses more natural gas generated electricity in a lot of areas, in other areas it uses more hydro or nukes, all of which are great in my book. Second, around 40% of Volt buyers are conservatives. Using American electricity instead of gasoline, nearly half of which is refined from imported oil? That is what conservatism is all about, lets keep our dollars at home and support our neighbors. Sure we should drill for more oil here at home, but do you think the nutters in California are going to let us use some of the best oil fields in the lower 48? Not likely. So more oil out of North Dakota and Montana is a good thing, but American electricity powering my car? That is win-win. That is what Reagan would want today. Third, you are talking about thinking for yourself? Do some of that regarding the Volt. Think about what GM is building now, the new Corvette coming soon, the newish Camaro, the new Cadillacs, heck, even Buick is starting to build decent cars and the Cruze and the Sonic are both doing pretty well. And don't get me started about the Silverados, I had a '77 3/4 ton that still brings a grin to my face just remembering it. Fourth, yeah, GM got bailed out by the government. I didn't back that decision, but now that it is a done deal, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. The better GM does, the more of our tax dollars we get back. The Volt is a cool car, drive one. Your rant proves you haven't driven one of these cars. They are silent like a Rolls, and I have driven both. The Volt is the equivalent of a BMW 1-series or an Acura, it is a nice, near luxe level car. It is sporty up to about 40 mph then the acceleration tapers off, but it is a fun car to drive. Will it keep up with my 350Z? Not a chance, but they are totally different cars. Drive a Volt, it will open your eyes. This isn't about the Amateur, Bush is the guy that signed the bill that ensured that this car would be built. Even Fox News knows that George W. is the "Father of the Modern Electric Car." http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2011/05/26/george-w-bush-father-modern-electric-car/
Thank god the Prius is
Thank god the Prius is manufactured here. GM should just shelve it and tweak it as battery technology improves. They already paid for the research and dev costs so put a better body on it and bring it out again when gas prices go up. I don't know why they don't lower the price to competed head on with the Prius.
I'm uncomfortable with the
I'm uncomfortable with the use of they. It's our money Obama is using to push his 21st Century Hitler mobile. The huge difference is that Hitler's VW turned out to be something that people wanted not something to enrich his cronies.
Dear ross80477, Both GM's
Dear ross80477,
Both GM's Volt project and the $7,500 tax credit started *well* under the George W. Bush administration, so you should be calling Dubya "Hitler" instead of Obama.
Please educate yourself before commenting, although I'm not sure you're educable considering the nonsensical Hitler references in the first place.
I'm sure there were not many
I'm sure there were not many cronies on this one. "Solyndra" yes. Basically he saved millions of jobs and probably many more millions on their pensions. GM had an electric car 10 years ago in California and gutted it when California dropped their zero emissions plan. Nobody wants to build electric because their is no money in it. The parts business for gas engines is huge.
The Volt doesn't compete with
The Volt doesn't compete with the Prius: it blows it out of the water, including the new plugin Prius that is a much lesser car at the same price point as the Volt. See below for details.
I see the problem as it's
I see the problem as it's competition with the Toyota Prius. They both get great MPG and operate on electric and some gas. The mileage is about the same. However, the Volt is more than 35% more expensive. I see very few Volts on the street here in a Southern California suburb not far from Los Angeles or on my travels around Southern California...maybe I have seen 5 in the past many months...you see a Prius every few minutes. The base price of a Volt is $39,000 the Prius, $24,000. You can argue politics and morals but the bottom line is dollars spent.
Wow, commenters really need
Wow, commenters really need to educate themselves before commenting, cluelessly.
The Prius is a little underpowered (0 to 60 in about 11 seconds) econobox that runs on gas almost all of the time, because it has only a tiny 1.4kWh battery (in the non-plugin version) that won't run the vehicle for very long, and not at all above about 30MPH. It's what's called a *parallel* hybrid, where the gas engine and the battery work in parallel, and it's a totally different kind of drivetrain from the Volt. It's cheap and it's certainly a fine car if you like econoboxes and aren't looking for what is commonly called an "electric car", i.e. one that will run solely on electricity for much of the time.
The Volt has a huge 16kWh battery (which is the major contributor to its cost, as lithium-ion battery technology is still very expensive). It's drivetrain is a *series* hybrid, in that it operates solely on battery for about 40 miles: the gas engine *never* runs, even if you floor it and go 101MPH (the software-limited top speed of the Volt). If you drive less than 40 miles between charging, you use *zero* gas. In addition, the Volt has tremendous performance (0-60 in about 8.5 seconds) and sports tons of luxury features, including free OnStar remote-everything service. The MSRP is $39,125.
The regular Prius is a much lesser vehicle than the Volt, and it's priced accordingly. That's fine for some people, but for those that want an all-electric car (with a range extender if they need to go further than the battery allows rather than coasting to a stop) and some nice luxury features, the Volt is literally the only thing on the market that fits the bill, and it's priced reasonably and properly, for early adopters and those that are into it....kind of like those that would buy a Corvette or a Lexus, etc, but for different reasons.
But.... then Toyota debuted the *plugin* Prius in 2012, a (mostly) series hybrid with a larger 4.4kWh battery (still only about a fourth the size of the Volt's) that will take it about 11 miles without using the gas engine (as long as you don't exceed 65MPH). Loaded with the same options as the Volt (but with only about a fourth of the electric range), this version of the Prius MSRP is $39,525, for a much, much lesser electric vehicle. Does that price sound familiar? Because of the relatively small battery, it only gets a $2,500 tax credit, costing the end-user $37,035.
Of course, the Volt doesn't really cost the end-user the MSRP. The federal government (starting under *George W. Bush*, BTW, for those that cluelessly think it's an Obama thing) gives a $7,500 tax credit to offset the known high cost of lithium-ion battery technology in electric cars. Various states also have similar programs. These programs subsidize the cost for early-adopter consumers to jump-start the adoption of electric vehicle, and it has worked very well. This brings the cost of the Volt down to $31,625 for the end-user....more than $5,000 less expensive than the Prius version of a series hybrid, and for a much better electric car.
In Pennsylvania, California, Colorado, and other states the combination of the federal and state subsidies top $10,000, bringing the cost of the Volt even lower.
Please get the facts before you blow smoke...it really would save me a lot of time debunking the nonsense. :-)
I think the volt had an
I think the volt had an electric-only mode as well... Still, the price gap is way to high, especially as a competitor to the prius.
Furthermore, $40K for a car that's not really all that impressive, it's a horrible deal! Or perhaps I'm biased against electric cars because the majority of them are piles of crap.
lvcsslacker, You're incorrect
lvcsslacker,
You're incorrect about the Prius, see my comment above for details on why.
There's still a large amount
There's still a large amount of sticker shock. And even when all's said and done, it's still really expensive!
The sticker shock of the
The sticker shock of the Plugin Prius is identical (actually a little more) than the Volt:
http://www.toyota.com/prius-plug-in/trims-prices.html
$39,525 for the "Advanced" model....and it's not advanced enough, because the Prius electric range is pathetic compared to the Volt (11 versus 40 miles), the Prius only uses electric mode up to 65MPH (the Volt uses electricity at all speeds, up to it's software-limited 101MPH max speed), and frankly the Prius just feels cheap and cheesy compared to the Volt (yes, I've owned both).
GM/Chevy has simply chosen to not compete with the non-plugin Prius: they just don't offer a parallel hybrid like the Prius. In that space they are betting on the Cruze Eco (for about 19K), which applies some advanced technology to a gas-only vehicle to get it up to 42MPG.
So comparing the Volt to the non-plugin Prius is just about the worst example of apples to oranges I can think of: it simply makes no sense, and anyone with complete knowledge of the two cars and the technologies involved will see it as the nonsensical comparison it is. It's actually a great litmus test for journalists: when they're comparing the Volt to the Prius, their credibility is instantly nil, as they're either clueless or they've got an axe to grind).
And if it isn't obvious enough: the proof in the pudding is that when Toyota ventures into the same space as the Volt, the price is at the same level (actually a little more) and the offering is sub-par compared to the Volt.
ok, granted, I'll admit I
ok, granted, I'll admit I don't much care for hybrid/electric cars. But it's natural for the comparison between the Volt and the Prius. Both are marketed towards eco-minded consumers. The Prius has had marketing for a long time. The Volt, on the other hand only recently started it's major ad campaign, 2 months before it's death date.
That's a lot like a certain production that just got done with it's run in Vegas.
The problem with the
The problem with the government mandating higher gas mileage cars is this: by and large, consumers don't want them. In the first 7 months of 2012, GM sold 10,666 Volts, which projects to just over 18,000 for the year. Compare that to the Ford F-150 that sold 390,000 units in 2011.
Auto manufacturers know this, and that's why the whole thing is a farce. According to Car and Driver, "the rules will allow automakers to average their fuel economy across a number of models. A guzzler that doesn’t meet the standard can be “canceled out” by one or more vehicles that better the mpg standard." So your biggest seller is a truck that gets 15mpg, but you have to average 35.5mpg? Fine, make trucks that get 15mpg, but also make an ugly, uncomfortable, low-power, loud car that gets 56mpg. Sure, few will buy the car, but the average of the two meets the government mandate.
So that's what they do - make high MPG cars that consumers don't want for a variety of reasons (like cost - an F-150 standard cab starts in the low 20's, compared to the Volt which starts at 39), which then allows them to sell the cars and trucks people actually want. In 2011, three of the top five selling vehicles were trucks or SUVs. Indeed the F-150 gets around 13mpg. The average MPG of the top seven selling cars is less than 30mpg.
In 2011, the highest selling hybrid was the Prius. 131,000 of them were sold. Compare that to the Ford F-series, which sold almost 585,000. Or the Silverado (415,000). Or the Escape (254,000).
So the manufacturers are forced by the mandate to spend the time and money to make cars that they know will not be popular, but that allows them to sell the vehicles consumers really DO want.
Obama & the GOP had little
Obama & the GOP had little difference on the auto-makers. What mattered...was that they started listening more & producing better cars again, although the Volt was not the success they'd hope it would be.
Obama's bailout didn't save them. Them building better cars did. Obama gave them that chance & time. If the GOP idea of letting them go bankrupt had happened, they would have been in a Bain Capital scenario or handled by others for oversight for awhile. They would then have been forced under better leadership that would choose to make better cars, cut costs, become more efficient, etc., then re-emerge from bankruptcy as leaner, better companies, more able to compete. Either way, we'd get back to this same scenario. Difference is, now the govt has bought into corp. debt, which doesn't always turn out well, and it isn't a good signal to send -- that the USA will always be there to bail out corp. America for being foolish.
Sad sort of hack job. I like
Sad sort of hack job. I like the Heritage Foundation on 90% of the issues, but they have drunk the koolaid on the 'hate the Volt because GM got bailed out' issue. This isn't a cut and dried issue, but any car that can allow you to use American electricity the vast majority of the time instead of gas produced from oil, nearly half of which is imported is a great car. If that car is using brand new technology most of which was designed here in the US by an American company? Even better. Yes it costs too much this year, but the net price you could drive a base Volt off the lot for has dropped from a dealer gouging $44k in December of 2010, down to $30k in just under 2 years. If you want to support Al Qaeda and the Saudis, indirectly but in a very real fashion, keep driving your old fashioned ICE car.
Meh....consider the source
Meh....consider the source and move on. The Heritage Foundation is about the most biased hyper-right-wing "think tank" in existence. They were doing Faux News even back before it was cool.
That's a pretty easy (and
That's a pretty easy (and useful) dust off. I wonder if you use that kind of reasoning any time Heritage has something to say which you do not agree with?
When the Heritage
When the Heritage Foundation's stated goal is to "formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense", it's pretty clear that they're a very biased source, and they should be taken as such.
Those are actually pretty lofty goals, some of them very worthwhile, and needlessly trashing the American-made Chevy Volt that runs on American electricity (versus gas-powered cars using foreign oil that decrease our national security and put our troops in harm's way) is not respecting them.
It's a shame that biased sources don't just stop at giving the facts any more, nowadays they feel free to make things up out of thin air and plain just lie.
I miss the truthful, intellectual conservatives such as William F. Buckley and George Will: the conservative movement has gone off the rails, embracing the "kooks" (as Buckley called them) like Ayn Rand.