While GM CEO Rick Wagoner was on Capitol Hill this week fighting for his company’s financial survival, Vice Chairman Bob Lutz was occupied with a wholly different mission. The product czar was tasked with evaluating the progress of GM’s latest Chevrolet Volt prototypes. The Volt is, of course, a plug-in hybrid that promises to restore GM’s relevancy as a forward-thinking automobile company. Lutz took the opportunity to write a report about his experience.
“We have moved on to the next phase of engineering development for the vehicle,” Lutz said in a blog post on the company’s website. “I ended up putting in about 30 miles behind the wheel, and I couldn’t be more pleased with the vehicle, the development, or the team behind it.”
Lutz said engineers have moved from using previous-generation Malibu bodies (affectionately known as “MaliVoltsâ€) to test vehicles built on the actual platform the production Volt will use. The architecture underpins the new Chevy Cruze, and at first glance that’s exactly what the new prototypes appear to be.
“I have to say, after driving it with the Volt system placed within, I feel terrific about the driving dynamics of that architecture,” wrote Lutz. “The chassis integrity felt outstanding to me — the steering response was good, the brakes were good, the turn-in was good and so on. I think it needs very little in terms of additional tuning. So I have very high hopes for when we get some test vehicles running with the actual Volt production body aboard.”
His test began with a 60 percent battery charge in 30-degree weather. He said he drove 19 miles on electricity alone, at which point the generator engine engaged. “And when it did, it was so quiet and non-jarring that they had to tell me it had come on, because I wasn’t looking at the tach,” wrote Lutz in his report.
“I know there were concerns about what it would be like when the engine kicks on, whether it would excite the structure and cause all kinds of vibrations and such, but I have to say it wasn’t an issue.” He said as testing continues, he expects the overall experience to become even more seamless.
So could rumors about an early production start for the Volt be true? The current timetable points to a late-2010 launch date. It might be wishful thinking, but if GM could accelerate that schedule by a few months, it would be a boon to a company in need of good news.
