The Chevrolet Volt may be well over a year away from rolling into dealer showrooms, but General Motors is already working on the second and third-generations of the revolutionary plug-in hybrid. GM is working so far in advance to help bring future costs down.
GM has yet to officially price the Chevy Volt – which should hit the market in November 2010 – but early estimates suggest the range-extending electric vehicle will list from at least $40,000. Government rebates should reduce that cost by several thousand dollars, but even with a price tag in the $30,000 range, the Volt would still be out of reach for many families.
By working on future iterations of the Volt, GM is hopeful it can bring the car’s price tag down quickly. Robert Kruse, executive director of GM’s global vehicle engineering, hybrids, electric vehicles and batteries, told the Detroit Free Press that one of GM’s top priorities is to reduce the Volt’s cost, thereby making it “more viable for the mass marketâ€.
Although future versions of the Volt will see improvements to virtually all components, GM’s main focus is on making the Volt’s batteries smaller, more powerful, more efficient and, most importantly, cheaper.
