Re: We should buy a Chevy Volt
Remember, the propaganda films (commercials) said it's the car America "Had to build".
I agree we "had to" because it was basically shoved down our throats, not because we wanted it. I contend that the VOLT exists solely because Chevy's lobbyists are good at their jobs, not because it was the correct or necessary response to the economic situation. Kind of like how they reported paying back the bailout, even tough they did it with $$ from a different US Treasury bailout account. It's all bullshit.
PS- the issue with the burning volts isn't that some caught fire in wrecks... it's that they were cars used in NTSB crash testing, and the car still got approved. THAT is why people are angry about it. Some of the cars took several hours to "flame up"- hypothetically it may have been towed away or even driven home and caught fire in a garage or something. IMHO that poses an undue risk to the consumer (and other people/property).
The corruption issue is bad enough, but when the product is total shit it's just salt on the wound.
BTW- if you haven't seen the reports, GM expected to sell at least 10k units in 2011... as of Feb. 2012, they still have not hit that target (since release in fall 2010). 2,300 of those were "demo" cars, so they didn't even make all of that 10k as retail models anyway. Also, 600 of them were sold to fleet customers, but reported as retail sales (just like if you or I bought one), in order to skew sales statistics. Many dealers are now refusing to stock the Volt, and many have sold theirs to dealers in other markets. GM has dealer "allotments", many have chosen not to order most (or any) of what they were alloted.
Today's GM is dishonest beyond all recollection. I used to be a Chevy boy, but I wouldn't touch their shit with a ten foot pole these days. I won't even swap their drivetrains into my jeep projects. I want ZERO to do with them, which saddens me a bit because I was really looking forward to owning a new camaro... but now, no way. Fuck 'em all, cheatin' bastards.
Please don't confuse my disdain for GM with hatred for efficient cars. Eco boxes, including hybrids and EV, have their place in this world. Even in America, they may work good for "some" (ex most VOLT sales were in Washington DC). What I dislike is having my tax dollars subsidize corrupt corporations and the garbage they puke out and insist we all must have it. Last time I checked, I can't haul lumber or dead elk in a Volt. It can't plow snow, pull out stumps, drive through deep mud, or tow anything. Besides, the range of the current EV cars just doesn't work for those of us that live out here in the middle of nothingness.
Not to mention, an EV is great where the grid is efficient and clean (hydro, nuke, etc.) but for most of the USA where the grid is coal-fired, the CO2/pollution produced to make the electricity to charge the EV is greater than if you had just driven the fucker on gas to start with. Then add in the battery mfg like TNT said... plus remember the metals for that Lithium battery were mined (probably in China) by diesel heavy equipment. So the green agenda here is just that, an agenda... not fact.
lastly, they call this thing an EV, but this fucker has a gas engine... I know it's not the same mechanically as previous hybrids, but how is this any different in overall scope? Many of those designs got far better mileage and range than the Volt, and did not depend on the grid. IMHO, it's a solution looking for a problem.
