In case you missed it this morning, General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson made some big news just one month after the “new” GM emerged from bankruptcy protection.
The biggest bombshell is Henderson’s announcement that the “230” marketing campaign floating around for the past week is related to the 2011 Chevrolet Volt. The EPA has released a new methodology for determining a draft fuel economy standard for extended-range EVs like the Volt, and under this new procedure, the Volt will have a composite urban fuel economy rating of 230 mpg! On the electric side, the Volt will consume 25 kW/hours per 100 miles. That makes the Volt the first car ever to get a triple digit fuel economy rating.
Of course there is no mention of what the new methodology entails although we strongly suspect that hallucinogens, and bad math are involved. Quite frankly nothing pisses us off more than skewing figures and statistics to make a product look like the Holy Grail. When the Volt is released it will a miracle if it gets more than a true 100MPG for your hard earned dollars. Cockpit looks like a distraction waiting to happen. Plug me in Scotty.
It’ll probably get 100 miles per 25 kWh, but only have a 25 kWh battery :-\