Take a look at the production version of General Motors much-touted plug-in electric car, the Chevrolet Volt, due to go on sale in November 2010. GM certainly didn't want you to see it just yet: these photos were mistakenly posted on the Volt's dedicated media site in an apparent mix-up ahead of the car's official debut, and they have since been pulled down.
The photo gallery looks like a calendar, with proud GM execs posing by the car. The Volt is propelled by an electric motor—on which it can exclusively run for about 40 miles—with a small gasoline engine to recharge the batteries and extend the range to about 400 miles. Plugging in the car recharges the batteries between uses.
The full images of the Volt confirm what the teaser shots foretold: it is much more conservative than the concept that bowed amidst a media frenzy at the 2007 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
Gone are the squinting headlamps and three-dimensional grille of the concept, but the front is unmistakably Chevy. The overall car looks a bit like a nondescript compact but with a lower opening to feed and cool the massive battery pack and the small engine/generator. It appears black plastic has been used to mimic the neat, curved side windows of the concept.
We know the focus is on the alternative powertrain, and it appears GM has concluded that styling must be distinct, but not necessarily sexy, as evidenced by the popularity of the Toyota Prius hybrid and the copycat Honda Insight hybrid.
While the cat is out of the bag on the Volt, GM will continue the hype tour with the first real showing of the Volt to employees and media as part of the automaker’s 100th anniversary celebrations in Detroit in mid-September. The public will get its first look in October at the 2008 Paris auto show.
The photo gallery looks like a calendar, with proud GM execs posing by the car. The Volt is propelled by an electric motor—on which it can exclusively run for about 40 miles—with a small gasoline engine to recharge the batteries and extend the range to about 400 miles. Plugging in the car recharges the batteries between uses.
The full images of the Volt confirm what the teaser shots foretold: it is much more conservative than the concept that bowed amidst a media frenzy at the 2007 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
Gone are the squinting headlamps and three-dimensional grille of the concept, but the front is unmistakably Chevy. The overall car looks a bit like a nondescript compact but with a lower opening to feed and cool the massive battery pack and the small engine/generator. It appears black plastic has been used to mimic the neat, curved side windows of the concept.
We know the focus is on the alternative powertrain, and it appears GM has concluded that styling must be distinct, but not necessarily sexy, as evidenced by the popularity of the Toyota Prius hybrid and the copycat Honda Insight hybrid.
While the cat is out of the bag on the Volt, GM will continue the hype tour with the first real showing of the Volt to employees and media as part of the automaker’s 100th anniversary celebrations in Detroit in mid-September. The public will get its first look in October at the 2008 Paris auto show.
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