GM says Chevy Volt could top 230 miles-per-gallon (page 2)

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Boomer187
Spicy Hotdog

Registered: Aug 2001
Location: USA

bummer, although I still think they will get good gas mileage. I just wonder about my electricity bill running up now!

Article

quote:

So Much For That; EPA Won't Back Up GM's 230 MPG Claim
Wed Aug 12, 2009 4:47pm EDT

By Christopher DeMorro

Oh GM, I knew you were getting ahead of yourself.

Early this morning, CEO Fritz Henderson claimed thatthe Chevy Volt, a gas-electric plug-in hybrid would earn an EPA-estimated rating of 230 MPG.

But according to Green Car Advisor, the EPA has said no such thing.

The EPA had this to say in response to GM's 230 MPG claim:

EPA has not tested a Chevy Volt and therefore cannot confirm the fuel economy values claimed by GM. EPA does applaud GM's commitment to designing and building the car of the future - an American-made car that will save families money, significantly reduce our dependence on foreign oil and create good-paying American jobs. We're proud to see American companies and American workers leading the world in the clean energy innovations that will shape the 21st century economy.

So how did GM get to the 230 mpg figure, and why did they jump the gun without the right credentials?

Probably something like this; the average city testing cycle for a new car under current EPA rules is 11 miles long at various speeds, inclines, and conditions (traffic, open road, etc). The Volt can travel 40 miles on electricity alone, so by the time the gas engine kicks in, the Volt will have traveled 40 miles without a sip of gas. The next 11 miles would drain just under a quarter gallon of gas.

Just like magic, GM has a 230 MPG car.

I mean hey, technically, it works. Who among us drives more than 40 miles a day for work? My average commute consists of about 60 miles round trip, but in a Volt that would only cost me twenty miles worth of gas, probably under a half-gallon since the Volt will still get very good gas mileage. But my commute is almost all highway; how the Volt's battery fares at highway speeds is yet to be seen.

I thought you all might want to know this, even though I'm sure I'll catch all hell for it. I still believe in American cars...I just wish Fritz would have been more...up front.

Source: Green Car Advisor

Aug-13-2009 06:13 United States

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noikeee
dubstep convert

Registered: Apr 2002
Location: lost and wandering looking for directions.

I never understood the whole "Krypton is a moron" bashfest on the COR, but now that he wants to build a perpetual motion machine, I might just change my mind.

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sempre contra a corrente do jogo

Aug-18-2009 21:34 Portugal

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Krypton
83.798 g/6.022x10^23

Registered: Nov 2003
Location: Texas

quote:
Originally posted by noikeee
I never understood the whole "Krypton is a moron" bashfest on the COR, but now that he wants to build a perpetual motion machine, I might just change my mind.

The goal would be a car you never even have to plug in, gas up, or add anything to. A self-fueling car. Probably would come from several sources. Wheel friction, wind power (from the car moving at high speed), solar power (they are making very thin/flexible solar material), etc. Think about how hot your car gets when you park it for several hours in the sun. That heat is energy that could be used to power the car. In fact, everything is essentially energy, so if the car can harness the energy around it, it can power itself.

If I had the engineering know how and the money, I just might try to build something like that. Whoever does would be rich beyond their wildest dreams. I think something like this could be done in the 21st century.

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Aug-18-2009 22:06 Korea-Democratic Peoples Republic

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noikeee
dubstep convert

Registered: Apr 2002
Location: lost and wandering looking for directions.

That is slightly different from what you were saying before. Solar energy is external to the car's own propulsion energy. However, solar cars already exist and I believe they are horribly slow.

Also, the car industry is already looking at some of these angles, with devices like KERS (see this wiki article), which use some of the energy released under braking to save fuel. The problem is that, although the technology is relevant and promising, they can't generate anywhere near the energy used up by the car in the first place. Which is obvious, because otherwise you'd get close to a perpetual motion machine and that's physically impossible.

Please note that I struggled through physics classes and might not actually have a real idea of wtf I'm talking about.

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Last edited by noikeee on Aug-18-2009 at 23:02

Aug-18-2009 22:57 Portugal

Krypton
83.798 g/6.022x10^23

Registered: Nov 2003
Location: Texas

quote:
Originally posted by noikeee
That is slightly different from what you were saying before. Solar energy is external to the car's own propulsion energy. However, solar cars already exist and I believe they are horribly slow.

Also, the car industry is already looking at some of these angles, with devices like KERS (see this wiki article), which use some of the energy released under braking to save fuel. The problem is that, although the technology is relevant and promising, they can't generate anywhere near the energy used up by the car in the first place. Which is obvious, because otherwise you'd get close to a perpetual motion machine and that's physically impossible.

Please note that I struggled through physics classes and might not actually have a real idea of wtf I'm talking about.

I'm thinking of the ultimate solution. I'm under no illusions about our current lack of technological know-how to make it happen any time soon...