Infiniti EMERG-E on Display at Geneva Auto Show

Images of Infiniti’s much anticipated Emerg-E range-extended electric sports concept car might have leaked onto the Internet long before its 2012 Geneva Motor Show unveiling -- but now we know the sexy sports car isn’t all looks.

Officially unveiled this morning, we’ve learned that the Infiniti Emerg-E can accelerate from 0-60 mph in four seconds, has a 0-130 mph time of 30 seconds, has an all-electric range of 30 miles, and emits less tailpipe emissions than a 2012 Toyota Prius.

Featuring a classic mid-engine design, the Infiniti Emerg-E is driven by twin electric motors capable of producing 300 kilowatts of power.

Those motors are in turn fed by four inverters, powered from the Emerg-E’s battery pack.

When the battery is depleted -- or when extra power is needed -- the Infiniti Emerg-E uses its three-cylinder range-extending gasoline engine to generate additional electricity.

Infiniti hasn’t confirmed details of the Emerg-E’s 3-cylinder engine.

But we suspect it may be the 1.2-liter 3-cylinder direct-injection, supercharged Miller-cycle engine developed by sister company Nissan for its supermini range.

Source: Green Car Reports

Chevrolet Volt Wins Canadian Award

Yesterday, the Volt received yet another honor, this time from north of the American border by the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC), which named the Voltec propulsion system as the winner of the “2012 Best New Technology” award.

The occasion was the Canadian International Auto Show, and following “rigorous” judging of 10 new technology entries by AJAC’s Technology Jury made up of 12 of Canada’s leading automotive journalists, the Voltec system came out on top.

“We are very proud to receive AJAC’s 2012 Best New Technology award for the Voltec propulsion system,” said Kevin Williams, president and managing director at GM of Canada. “The Voltec propulsion system is the heart of the Chevrolet Volt, which combines pure electric drive and an efficient range-extending engine to create the only electric vehicle on the market today that does not require a customer to make compromises on when and where they can travel.”

This is now the second major award won in Canada by the extended-range electric Volt this year. The car was also recognized not long ago as Motoring TV’s “2012 Best New Green Car of the Year.”

The budding Canadian list of acknowledgments also adds to a long list of awards and accolades won by the Volt in 2011, and yesterday’s honor won’t likely be the last.

Source: GM-Volt.com

Will Quad 0 Leases Help Boost Sales in California?

With last month's sales of the 2012 Chevy Volt less than half what they were in December, Chevrolet has stepped up its efforts to sell its innovative but pricey range-extended electric car.

And it's doing it the old-fashioned way, by "putting money on the hood," as salespeople say.

According to Chevy salesman and certified Volt specialist Randall Blaum, the company has come out with what it calls the "Quad $0" lease program for the 2012 Volt.

That means no down payment ($0 down), no security deposit ($0 deposit), no payment for the first month of the lease ($0 first payment), and no cash due when the sale is completed ($0 at signing).

Owners are still responsible for their local DMV and registration fees, plus a small amount in taxes that cannot legally be rolled into the lease amount.

The base payment on a 36-month lease ranges from $369 to $425 per month, depending on the options on the specific Volt leased, and allows 12,000 miles per year.

The base price of a 2012 Chevrolet Volt is $39,995, and adding a healthy number of options can take the price toward $45,000.

The downside to this seemingly attractive offer? It's only available in California--and it applies only to 2012 Volts built before production halted in mid-December.

Traffic

Those cars do not have a very desirable feature to be included in 2012 Volts built for sale in California when production restarts this month: the added emissions equipment to certify them as "electric Advanced Technology-Partial Zero Emission Vehicles."

Volts with that "e-AT-PZEV" certification qualify to receive one of 40,000 "green sticker" permits allowing owners to travel in High Occupancy Vehicle lanes with only a single occupant.

So California Volt buyers will need to assess carefully whether the financial advantages of the Quad $0 lease for an existing 2012 Volt outweigh the benefit of solo HOV-lane travel in an updated 2012 Volt later this year.

You can draw your own conclusions as to whether this will juice sales of the Volt in its most crucial market, or simply act as a clearance sale for cars that may be viewed as less desirable once newer 2012 models arrive at California dealers.

Meanwhile, Blaum says his dealership--Quality Chevrolet in Escondido, California--has 10 Volts that qualify for the Quad $0 lease in stock now.

Source: Green Car Reports

Volt sales decrease in wake of ‘Batterygate’

Not surprisingly, Volt sales dropped in January following “right-wing” attacks from media pundits who had plenty of fodder before House Republicans heard testimony from federal officials and GM’s CEO regarding the battery fire in June 2011.

The total number of Volts sold was 603 in January, according to GM. It was the worst month since August, when GM sold just 302 Volts.

This number is also well down from the Volt’s fourth quarter average of 1,259 sales per month.

Pictured in front of Philadelphia’s Independence Hall, where America was born, is a car that threatens a revolution leading to energy independence.

Also retracted was Nissan which sold 676 Leafs in January, down from 954 in December.

The decline in Volt sales happened also as GM dipped some as a company. Yesterday GM reported total sales of 167,962 vehicles in the U.S in January, down 6 percent compared with a very strong January 2011.

“Chevrolet drove our performance once again and sales of our fuel-efficient new cars were especially good,” and Don Johnson, vice president, U.S. Sales Operations. “The strength that the economy and the auto industry showed in the fourth quarter carried into January, so we believe the year is off to a good start.”

Chevy passenger car sales increased 13 percent. GM’s total passenger car sales increased 3 percent in January, led by a 30-percent increase in sales of fuel-efficient small and compact cars, which include the new Chevrolet Sonic, the consistently strong-selling Chevrolet Cruze and the new Buick Verano.

In addition, the Buick LaCrosse, which now offers the 36-mpg highway eAssist powertrain as standard equipment, posted a 6 percent year-over-year increase, and the Chevrolet Camaro was up 20 percent.

We have heard GM’s executives say the Volt will have to rebound, and efforts are underway for this.

Automotive News reported that it’s unknown exactly what the effect of the House subcommittee hearing was. It reported some dealers have not taken as many Volts because of reduced customer demand.

GM North America President Mark Reuss also said the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration’s Volt battery investigation had an unquantified negative impact, and it will take time for Volt sales to rebound.

The Detroit News also reported Reuss saying when GM restarts production at the Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant this month, Volts will be built in a “very reasonable” volume, while noting some pent-up export demand.

As previously reported, it won’t be until May or June that GM’s executives know actual Volt demand. GM has previously said it is willing to adjust production to meet demand from its previous goal of 60,000 units worldwide with tentatively 45,000 of these destined for the U.S.

With hopefully the worst behind it, signs of the Volt’s being turned into a political lightning rod are evident. We would not be surprised to see more push back to unjustified attacks, and acknowledgement that a wrong was perpetrated.

Already, some consumers have seen through the tactics, and the underlying value represented by the extended-range electric Volt remains.

It’s been said that the darkest hour is just before the dawn.

Source: GM-Volt.com

GM says if necessary it will cut Volt production

Yesterday GM said although it’s too soon to tell, if demand is perceived as insufficient, it will not rule out reducing the Volt’s production this year from its present goal of 45,000 for the U.S., and 15,000 for export.

This statement came from the company’s Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson when asked whether GM could meet output targets for the Volt.

“We’re going to match production with demand,” Akerson said just after the start of the North American International Auto Show. “There’re new variables in the equation, so we’ll see.”

Observers and pollsters note the battery investigation by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration – which is reportedly close to concluding – did make an adverse impact on Volt sales that could linger.

The upside for GM is the positive customer service gestures it gave particularly with regard to the battery and cooling system updates. This was noted not just by GM-Volt.com, but also by NHTSA and the U.S. Department of Transportation.

NHTSA’s administrator, David Strickland, was quoted as saying the company “really did put customers first” and Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood has been said to be pleased with GM’s response.

Yesterday GM’s global product development chief Mary Barry told Reuters she did not know exactly when NHTSA’s probe would close, but said, GM is optimistic based on feedback received.

“We’re a short time frame, not an extended, protracted period” she said with regards to a resolution.

But still in question is demand for the Volt later this year. An industry analyst at IHS Automotive, Rebecca Lindland was quoted by Businessweek as saying GM’s worldwide sales target will require more than just retail deliveries to be achieved.

“I think fleet customers will help but it is going to be tough to reach that 60,000 mark without them,” Lindland said. “These contracts can be lucrative when structured correctly. It is also a good way to get more consumers familiar and comfortable with the technology so it is worth the investment for GM.”

Also potentially muddying the outlook is a congressional subcommittee which later this month which will inquire whether news of a June NHTSA post-crash-test fire was deliberately withheld.

But while GM has said it is willing to be flexible with production, it has not said it won’t build the expected allotment of Volts this year either.

GM’s North American President Mark Reuss said the automaker is still filling orders and may not know until around the second quarter.

“There’s no trend because we haven’t satisfied demand,” Reuss said to reporters. “I told everybody that we’d be looking at satisfying demand right around second quarter. We’re not there yet, so I don’t know.”

Source: GM-Volt.com

Chevrolet Volt Review - VIDEO

Jason Cullinane purchased his Volt Feb. 2, 2011 after he passed on another one where the dealer tried to hit him for an additional $2,500 over sticker.

“Fremont Chevrolet was honest and charged only MSRP,” Cullinane said. So it got the sale.

Now approaching his first year, he is still so gung ho about his Volt, has on occasion generously offered test rides to people, and at Chevy’s request, he now offers this video (which he said will be followed by another one).

Keep in mind also, all this enthusiasm is being offered although this is his first American-made vehicle.

“I have driven many kinds of cars in the past but I have never owned an American car,” he said. “My parents drove plenty of American cars during my childhood and I grew up with their frustrations at the lack of quality and reliability. I have owned vehicles from VW, Toyota, BMW, and Subaru. Having owned the Volt for almost a year now, I can say that the quality of the vehicle is at least as good as any other car I have driven.”

Plans are to keep this Volt for “10 years or more,” and the car has grown on his wife who first had to get over misgivings about it.

“My wife initially hated the car because of her experiences with American vehicles,” Cullinane said. “Now that she has been in it and had quite a few miles under her belt, she is impressed. This is no small feat by the way. She is still ambivalent about the exterior design, especially the nose and she thinks that the center stack controls (physical and digital) need to be redesigned but she thinks the interior is comfortable and that the engineering is awesome.”