The 2011 Chevrolet Volt. Powered by electricity without being tethered to electrical outlets. It drives gas- and emissions-free for most commutes(6). But if life takes you a little further, as it tends to do sometimes, the gas-powered onboard generator can take you wherever you need to go, giving you up to 375 miles(9) of total range. So you can just sit back and drive. Isn't that what cars are for?
General Motors has been working for nearly four years to bring the Volt electric sedan to the market, and, based on what we have experienced, the end result is an electric-powered sedan surprisingly good, brilliant technology. Four-seat Volt.
Chevrolet Volt uses a large 420-pound, T-shaped lithium-ion batteries, installed right in the middle of the car, under the center console and rear seat, to power the car through a large 149-horsepower, 368 foot-pounds of AC electric motor with planetary transmission and transaxle driving the front wheels. Chevrolet says a fully charged battery will run an electric car alone for almost 47 miles.
The battery, developed in conjunction with Korean LG Chemical, a leader in this technology, using a slim cell 288 is divided into four 72-cell packs. The battery has its own separate heating and cooling system to allow it to operate efficiently in extreme temperatures. The battery can be fully charged at the normal household current in 10-12 hours, according to Chevrolet, and with 240-volt charging station, in about four hours. Since the electricity tariff varies wildly across the country, Chevrolet is estimated from the cost of one night will cost $ 1.00 to $ 1.50 per day, far less than a few gallons of gasoline it would take most of the commuters get to work and back. Chevrolet will cost you $ 490 for rapid charging station, plus whatever your local electric power will be charged for installation, and some electricity companies are ready to offer discounts on installation to promote the idea. The first 4400 Chevrolet Volt buyers will get a free charging station.
When the battery depletion, the future felt by the electronic control system that connects the battery, motor, clutch, transaxle, and starter / generator together, starting 1.4-liter gasoline engine, and convert the starter into 55-kilowatt generator, which then supplies electrical power to the battery and motor so that the journey can continue.
The journey may continue for 9.3 gallon fuel tank runs out of fuel, which calculates the distance to be about 350 miles Chevrolet, or 47 miles on battery and 310 miles using gasoline to charge the battery. the battery is never completely discharged, and operated continuously between 50 and 65 percent of capacity, but this system is directed to preserve battery life and under extreme conditions of heat, cold and continuous duty.
The 1.4-liter dual-overhead-Volt's cam, four-valve, fuel injection petrol engine is the same engine used in the Chevrolet Cruze, without a turbocharger, and rated at 84 horsepower at 4800 rpm. Because there is the possibility of a long period of storage of gasoline, Volt is built with the system, sealed pressurized fuel, and Chevrolet has determined that only premium unleaded fuel is used because it can stand up to long periods of storage without damage. There is a warning system that tells the driver to go out for a drive to burn every solution that has achieved fuel.
Although the Volt can be characterized as hybrid series by some definitions, is to affirm the Chevrolet Volt extended range electric vehicles with onboard generation, and that the gasoline engine, because it adds power via a generator / starter, never directly drives the front tires.
Battery Volt can drive in one of three modes, Normal, Sport and Mountain, both within the range Drive or Low in the planetary transmission, offers a lot of situational flexibility. Volt engineers suggested using low range all the time driving a car in heavy traffic bumper-to-bumper or other, so the brakes can be an additional electrical regeneration.
If the $ 41,000 price tag seems high, considering the amount of new technology and expensive parts on this car, and be reminded that there is a $ 7,500 federal tax rebates available, which dropped the price down to $ 33,500. There is also a federal rebate of $ 2000 on home charging unit. And some states offer refunds or rebates ranging from $ 2000 to $ 5000. Chevrolet Volt offers on rental prices of $ 350 per month, with a limit of 36,000 miles and $ 2,500 advances. While all vehicles carrying normal GM warranty (three years, 36,000 miles), the battery itself took eight years, 100,000 miles warranty.