GM: Chevy Volt battery tech on track
General Motors plans to build prototypes of its Chevy Volt electric car this summer based on successful development of its battery powertrain technology to this point.
Despite GM's grave financial problems, the Chevy Volt is still scheduled for release in November 2010, company executives said in a conference call with reporters on Tuesday. The four-door sedan can go 40 miles on a full charge and has an internal combustion engine to charge the battery for longer trips.
During the call, executives said GM engineers have been able to meet its battery performance goals and that the company is already working on second- and third-generation battery systems.
Inside the Chevy Volt's battery pack.
(Credit: Screen capture by Martin LaMonica/CNET)GM expects to reuse different elements of the T-shaped battery pack in the Chevy Volt in other vehicles. For cars that are about the same size as the Volt, a very similar battery pack can be used. Other vehicles can borrow the thermal management and power electronics that GM is developing for the battery pack.
GM in January announced that it intends to do auto battery engineering itself, rather than rely exclusively on partners, because it is strategic to its long-term plans. The company applied for and received a Michigan state grant to build a manufacturing facility, said Bob Kruse, GM's executive director of global hybrid, electric-vehicle, and battery engineering.
The battery cells themselves will be supplied by Korean company LG Chem. At a Michigan facility, GM worked with an industrial-design partner on the battery pack, which holds more than 200 cells, and the associated control systems. That battery design plant will be officially opened later this year, Kruse said.
A look at how the T-shaped battery pack affects the interior of the Volt.
(Credit: Screen capture by Martin LaMonica/CNET)The T-shape battery pack, able to hold 16 kilowatt-hours of electricity, fits under the car and can be assembled in a way similar to gasoline cars, Kruse said.
The shape of the battery, where a "battery tunnel" runs down the middle of the car, means that the Chevy Volt will be a four-passenger car because there is only space for two seats in the back.
Costs remains a significant challenge for GM's Volt program and for all electric vehicles aimed at the mass market. GM executives have said they expect to lose money on the first version of the Volt--expected to be priced around $40,000--which makes federal and state tax credits for electric-car purchases very important.
"The first-generation technology is expensive. That's why some of the incentives at the state and federal (level) help with vehicle electrification," Kruse said. "I think it makes a fairly viable business proposition for first-generation technology."
Its second- and third-generation battery programs are focused primarily on bringing down the cost, GM executives said. Engineers are looking to take advantage of the latest battery technologies and find efficiencies in manufacturing, such as using fewer parts.
Automakers have played with the idea of owning the actual auto batteries, which would allow consumers to get new and presumably better batteries after a few years. Kruse said GM still has not decided on its "go to market strategy," with regard to batteries.
Batteries could be used for other applications, after they have run their useful life in cars, said Andrew Farah, the chief engineer of the Chevrolet Volt. For example, they could be used for backup power. Utilities, too, are exploring lithium ion batteries for storage.
The lithium within the batteries could also be recycled and reused, Kruse noted. With so many automakers choosing lithium ion batteries, there are growing questions over the available supply of lithium, much of which comes from China and Chile.
Even though the price of gasoline has fallen to below $2 a gallon in many places in the United States, Kruse said GM continues to add resources to the Volt program because electric powertrains are the future of the industry. The price of gasoline when GM releases the Volt will play into how the company fixes its price, he added.
"I will tell you that a $1.50 (gallon of) gasoline is not necessarily helping with the business case (for the Volt), but who knows what the cost of petroleum will be in the future?" he said.
Martin LaMonica is a senior writer for CNET's Green Tech blog. He started at CNET News in 2002, covering IT and Web development. Before that, he was executive editor at IT publication InfoWorld. E-mail Martin. 
And yet we're still far away from seeing any hint of a production volt, while the prius has been kicking butt for years, and the new insight is due out in a few months. You shouldn't start bragging about a car until it actually has production versions out on the road - especially considering GM's history of push the volt back farther and farther... for now you are left with hybrids like the saturn vue, in which 1 out of every 4 has had hybrid system electrical problems (accord to consumer report's recent reliability survey).
By the way, what's this about toyota batteries catching fire? Please, point me to the article, or did you just make that up? Not that it really matters, considering the only car on the road today with lithium ion batteries is the tesla roadster. (unreleated to toyota or GM)
The Volt is impressive, but GM may not be around before its perfected. Their poor management may kill the Volt before it's "born".
Ford in Europe had a diesel Escort that got 50 MPG in the mid 80s. Why didn't they dust that off and bring it to market? I know there are now strict envrio-rules, but VW, BMW and Benz all figured them out. And we know the big three know diesels. They've been making light trucks and SUVs with them for years.
People were waiting months for the new diesel VW Jettas. Why didn't GM or Ford or Chrysler try to tap that market. In this economy there are a lot more people looking for a car that gets 40+ MPG highway. Right now diesel Jettas can get better highway MPG than hybrid Priuses.
Electric cars may be the future, but without a massive investment in improving the grid (and I'm not talking about the big-brother "smart" thermostats) and building nuclear power plants, they're gonna be a pipe dream. Wind and solar are not reliable enough or cost efficient enough for us to use.
What a joke. Consider this, does GM make money off of each gallon of gas that burns through their current cars? NO.
But that is exactly what they are trying to do with the volt, they want to make money off of the electricity that the car runs on. That is unacceptable to me, and to the car buying public.
1. build cars people want
2. sell them at a low price (and make the batteries as cheap as possible)
3. make normal profits and be happy
They are attempting to make some money on the car and HUGE money on the batteries!!
If they want to make and sell cars then do it, but STAY OUT OF THE ENERGY BUSINESS. This is the equivalent of Ford buying Exxon Mobile, the car buying public wouldn't stand for that, and we WONT stand for GM's volt.
Yes, the electric car propaganda ballon has finally been deflated down to reality..
http://gm-volt.com/2008/04/11/volt-gas-tank-shrunk-maximum-range-reduced/
But as long as it is using gas, who really cares? The only reason range is a big deal in electric cars is because they can't be recharged as fast as a tank is filled up. When it has an ICE to recharge it, maximum range isn't as big of a deal.
http://jalopnik.com/5129433/byd-e6-250-miles-per-charge-electric-car
And Warren Buffett's company invested in the Chinese Company.
http://www.autobloggreen.com/2008/09/29/warren-buffetts-company-buys-stake-in-chinas-byd/
It's like Stem Cell research, the US is far behind.
"Sorry, those are only GM hybrids. Toyota's waiting list for the prius would respectfully disagree. "
Based on the number of unsold new Toyda Prius models on dealer lots, and the first loss for Toyota in more than 50 years along with the drop in demand for the Prius models would tend to dispute your comments.
The day of the waiting list for a Prius are many years gone by the wayside.
- by NBaldwinUSAF March 19, 2009 6:35 AM PDT
- The Chevy Volt is a great idea, the only problem is the price of $40,000 puts it out of range for most Americans. Plus, how long will it take for you to actually save money on gas? My sister's Scion tc get's 30mpg and only cost $20,000. You would have to drive alot of miles in the Chevy Volt to make up that extra $20,000 you paid.
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