GM’s designer Ed Welburn said the automaker will speed up distribution of the Chevrolet Volt electric car so it’s sold in every U.S. state by the end of this year. It is major acceleration in the rollout of the plug-in hybrid.
It’s equipped with a 16-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery. It has a 1.4-liter, 16-valve, 4-cylinder, in-line gasoline engine fed by a 9.3-gallon fuel tank. It’s got front-wheel drive and does a peppy 8.8-second zero-to-60
Volt sales opened in December in California, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Washington, D.C., and Texas. It’s scheduled to go on sale in Michigan next. GM said customers nationwide would be able to place an order for Volts through dealers beginning in the second quarter. Deliveries will begin in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Oregon, Washington and Hawaii in the third quarter.
The Volt, which provides up to 50 miles of battery-powered driving before a gasoline-powered engine kicks in, is priced at $41,000 before accounting for tax credits. GM plans to make 10,000 Volts this year. GM CEO Dan Akerson has been pushing to increase production of the car and plans to extend its technology to other vehicles. He has said he views the Volt as a technological breakthrough that boosts GM’s reputation for innovation. The automaker said on Thursday it has 300,000 consumers registered as interested in buying a Volt.
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