Production Chevy Volt Photos Leaked!

The moment we've all been waiting for has arrived. After months of spy shots and teaser photos we finally get to see shots of the production version of GM's wunderkind, the Chevy Volt.

Props to gm-volt.com for bringing us these leaked studio photos but I must say I am totally underwhelmed. I knew the Volt was going to look different to the out-there concept but they've managed to make it look boring. Then again, it could just be the weird angles most of the photos are taken from.

Understandably the production Volt is a lot more rounded than the concept which was just a tad un-aerodynamic and I have to admit it is a lot more attractive than the whale-like Prius. I don't mind the rear and the black (glass?) roof is a nice touch but the best thing about it is that this thing is real. Real full electric propulsion, real E-Flex system, real plug-in charging. W000T! I'd buy one.

By the way, if you're wondering who the guys in the suits are they're GM senior execs.

More photos and original story available here.

Edit: More (and higher res) photos available at Autoblog.

550 Km Prius Gives Hope For All Electric Vehicles

A Toyota Prius-based taxi in Cairns, Australia had clocked up 550 kilometers in travel before it required a battery pack replacement, that's around 340,000 miles for those living in the olden days.

This is obviously good news for Toyota as it may alay some of the fears behind people taking up their whale-shaped hybrid but it's also good news for all electric vehicles and hybrids.

The NiMH battery tech in use by the Prius is pretty old in comparison to packs in some of the newer vehicles coming or already on the road. To hear that a battery pack will sustain thousands of charges and discharges for up to 550 Kms (easily twice more than I'd ever drive in a single vehicle) means the rather hefty replacement cost may never need to be forked over and maybe when it does happen battery tech will have improved enough to make them cheaper and more efficient.

The taxi company mentioned that their Prius cost half as much to run and half as much to maintain as a regular vehicle in their fleet. Imagine the savings if they used a car that didn't rely on fossil fuels for propulsion.