Bob Collins
General Motors picked a great day to roll its first Chevy Volt off the assembly line. The price of gasoline in the Twin Cities jumped overnight to near $3 a gallon. This is the highest price we’ve seen since the economy collapsed in 2008.
| Twin Cities Historical Gas Price Charts Provided by GasBuddy.com |
Is the Volt the answer to higher gas prices? Maybe. But when it came off the assembly line today — it’ll be in showrooms in a few weeks — it came with a price tag of about $41,000.
It also came with broken promises. The EPA says the car will get about 60 miles per gallon when it’s using its electrical and gas systems. But after about 50 miles or so, it’s a pretty ordinary car, according to PC World:
According to the EPA, Volt drivers will only be able to get around 35 total miles of operation before the car’s battery goes kaput and the gas engine takes over. After that, you’ll be able to continue on for around 344 miles gas-only, but the car’s fuel economy drops to around 37 miles per gallon sans electrical assistance.
That’s a substantial drop in performance from the promises GM made about the Volt. Early predictions were it would get more than 200 miles per gallon. And it still might if you drive only short trips and are able to tool around town on battery-only.
But don’t expect to negotiate much with the dealer. GM will only make about $1,000 on each car.
Gas mileage hasn’t been a big concern for a few years now, but from the indications on the signpost today, that’s about to change.
