General Motors may have fallen just short of its 2012 goal for combined sales of the Chevrolet Volt and Opel/Vauxhall Ampera, the company continues to predict that sales for its plug-in hybrid products will grow in 2013. And rightfully so, as Volt sales did manage to triple in 2012 compared to 2011, selling precisely 23,461 units in the United States, and 89 percent more in January 2013 than the same time a year ago.
There’s also the addition of the Cadillac ELR, which has the Volt’s propulsion system, but with more power, to help sales climb. Specifically,The General anticipates as much as a 20-percent growth, or as many as 36,000 units globally, according to insiders whispering to Automotive News.
Doable? Considering the growth pattern, definitely.
Comments
When the Voltage system:
1) Becomes a bit more affordable,
2) Is in a small SUV on the same chassis,
then I will get one.
Would you be content with a Volt MPV5 on the Voltec 2.0 coming in 2015?
Chevy has designated the Voltec CUV as the “CrossVolt”. Do a search for that name.
Not doable.
I projected 18-19k Volts sold for 2013 , and deep customer discounts,
lease programs and dealer incentives by late summer/fall.
Why? For once, the Volt has competition. C-Max Energi and C-Max
hybrid will cut into sales – and to a lesser extent ( 5 seats, 20 mile AER,
more interior cubic feet, nosebleed-high price ) Fusion Energi will
take it’s cut also. PIPrius is slowly gaining ground and will sell to more
Prii faithful in 2013 with adjusted pricing. Add to this the BEV city cars
( or “compliance cars” to be realistic ) available to the public this year
in Honda FitEV, FocusEV, and of course, the EV segment leader:
Nissan LEAF.
GM has stated ELR is a “very limited” production run car, and I predicted
1,000 – 1800 max. Problem with ELR is that for a horrendous price
you get basically a Volt with modified software, paddle-shifted REGEN,
one second improvement to 60, and a gorgeous 2 door body. Add great
leather and a very cramped ( much moreso than Volt ) rear seat, and you
have one expensive toy that underperforms per segment – when you can
buy a Tesla Model S ( 40kwh battery model ) for less – that’s faster,
seats 7, is sexy and has hatchback practicality – not to mention goes
140 miles not using ANY gasoline!!
So ELR as an excercise – YES…as a sales success on any level – NO.
If ELR was to keep Hamtramck buzzing when Volt sales lagged –
it won’t accomplish this feat , not even close.
Don’t get me wrong – I am Volt’s biggest fan. No car today for the price
does what it does. Not even close.
Even BMW’s i8 ( now in testing phase ) only goes 20 miles electric until
it’s 3 cylinder range extender kicks in – It does go 0-60 in 4.8 sec but
it’s ICE sounds like a Mini Cooper with headers…The gas engine kicks
in with any aggressive throttle input and…..hold on for this – COSTS
$130,000!!! i8 seats 2 comfortably and is priced sky high.
BMW also is introducing the i3, which is a taller, more practical form
factor, kind of like a CUV meets mini minivan. Extensive carbon fiber
and a generous battery pack give it 84-ish miles of all-electric range.
It’s basically an EV, yet BMW offers a 650cc motorcycle engine range-
extender for $4,400 U.S.. So get this – for $53-65,000, the i3 can
putt-putt you along with it’s narrow motorcycle-esque tires until you
can plug in for many hours to keep going on AC….
I think this is great proof that Volt and Voltec tech is far superior to
even what the big German marques can produce. Even with
an off-the-shelf, caste iron block 4 cyl., the Volt goes 40 miles
on pure electricity and gives you hybrid mileage after that for
another 300 miles!
Volt’s main problem is that it’s a $40,000 4 seater Chevy. Kind of
a hard sell to folks with a mainstream mindset. It’s just not gonna
sell at high volume until it’s price goes down and/or capabilities
become more understood and improved.
Ford’s approach is to ease folks into hybrids and PHEVs by
simpifying the explanations and giving many options (+more seats).
GM may have proven Volt is superior, winning the battle,
but Ford may win the war with better marketing savvy.
Ampera and Holden Volts won’t take up the slack. They aren’t selling
in Europe . 7 Months into 2013 production, GM has only built 2,141
Amperas. Only 69 have sold since November. If we nix out sales
in EV-gonzo Netherlands, Volt-Ampera sales are near nil. The
Netherlands gives ungawdly incentives to EV buyers.
Nearly 75% of MY2012 Amperas sold in Europe were fleet sales. Selling
the Chevrolet-branded Volt in Europe now seems like a big
mistake.
To meet GM’s 36,000 Volts projections, 4,000 or so Amperas-Volts will
need to be sold in Europe. This does not look likely. There’s no
viable explanation why GM is losing it’s shirt with international
Volt-Ampera sales. At $50-60,000 equivelant cost there, and 4 seats –
it seems Euros are still buying it’s traditional-known luxo brands over
the EREV option.
Holden has a new Volt TV ad campaign – it’s like GM’s early efforts
and forgets to emphasize the “Electric When You Want It, Gas
When You Need It” message. Sales in Oz are extremely low.
69 & that’s with govenment subsidies, countless money spent on adverts and all the rah rah from the press. Didn’t somebody comment 50 sales was a joke on a car that makes a profit & was largely sold through word of mouth. This car is yet to make a profit.
Yes, I would take a serious look at the Volt MPV5. I would also take a serious look at the Voltec drivetrain in a Trax like vehicle.
Which car is more attractive to buyers, the Chevy Volt or the Chevy Corvette? Obviously the Corvette! And which car sold more? The Chevy Volt!! If a 60-year old model sells fewer that a three-year old one, shoudn’t GM cancel the older one on accounting reasons?
Volt will sell better in 2013 than in 2012!