Chevy Volt

With most cars, idling at the arrival curb of a major metropolitan airport results in an instantaneous visit from the parking police: Whistles blown, arms akimbo, ticket pads drawn. But the new 2011 Chevy Volt isn't most cars. Picking up the vehicle at Oakland International Airport, dozens of strangers slowed their wheeled luggage to get a better look at a car that's received as much attention as an A-list celebrity. And those DayGlo-vested police who normally strike fear in idling drivers' hearts?

ForecastTheFacts.org has put up an advertisement spoofing the new TV ads created for the Chevy Volt - but this one congratulates GM for ceasing to fund the Heartland Institute, a free-market think tank that questions the science behind global warming. The spoof ad is running only on the group's website. However, it was originally designed as part of an advertising campaign to lean on GM to stop its annual funding for Heartland. Another Happy Volt Owner Thanks GM from ForecastTheFacts on Vimeo . “This was going to be our next tactic in the campaign to put pressure on GM,” says Daniel Souweine, director of the climate and energy organizing project at Citizen Engagement Lab, which recently launched ForecastTheFacts.org.

Federal safety regulators have given the Chevrolet Volt an all-clear. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday that it did not identify a safety defect, concluding that the car does not pose any unusual risk of fire. In closing the book on its investigation into Volts catching on fire, NHTSA also issued new guidelines for how emergency personnel and tow truck operators should deal with electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids that have been damaged in severe accidents.

Citing its corporate stance that climate change is real, General Motors announced Wednesday that its General Motors Foundation would no longer be funding the Heartland Institute, a free-market think tank that has attacked human-caused global warming as “junk science.” The announcement was not made in a company statement, but rather in communications with Greg Dalton of Climate One, an ongoing dialog about the environment at the Commonwealth Club...

Federal safety regulators released more details about the Chevrolet Volt fire that has caused officials to look into post-crash protocols for electric vehicles. The fire occurred more than three weeks after the plug-in hybrid sedan was crashed as part of the agency's New Car Assessment Program in May. Officials from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the crash damaged the Volt's lithium ion battery and that damage eventually caused the fire. "That incident - which occurred at the test facility and caused property damage but no injuries - remains the only case of a battery-related fire in a crash or crash test of vehicles powered by lithium-ion batteries, despite a number of other rigorous crash tests of the Chevy Volt separately conducted by both NHTSA and General Motors," regulators said in a statement.

Citing its corporate stance that climate change is real, General Motors announced Wednesday that its General Motors Foundation would no longer be funding the Heartland Institute, a free-market think tank that has attacked human-caused global warming as “junk science.” The announcement was not made in a company statement, but rather in communications with Greg Dalton of Climate One, an ongoing dialog about the environment at the Commonwealth Club...

Counting on an eager — and large — fan base for the Chevrolet Volt, General Motors Co. announced Friday that it planned to boost U.S. production of the electric car by 50%. As President Obama toured the company's plant in Hamtramck, Mich., GM said it planned to increase Volt production from 30,000 units annually to 45,000 in 2012. The long-awaited vehicle will be released in seven states — up from three — in December and will cost $41,000 before a $7,500 federal tax credit, the company said this week.

To understand the furor that erupted recently when General Motors rolled out its new electric car, the Chevy Volt, for its public debut, it pays to keep the following fact in mind: For electric car enthusiasts, GM is a company with blood on its hands. The crime was the murder of the EV1, the pioneering all-electric car GM produced from 1996 to 1999 and supported indifferently until it shut down the program for good in 2005. The killing of the electric car, to paraphrase the title of a fine 2006 documentary about the EV1, is widely seen as a major blunder by the company, and one that led to the U.S. auto industry getting its lunch eaten in the high-mpg market by competitors like Toyota.

Car sales may be in a slump, but the hybrid-electric Chevrolet Volts are hot, and that's leading to shortages — and in some cases extreme dealer markups. Several dealerships, including at least one in California, have priced new Volts more than $20,000 above General Motors Co.'s suggested $41,000 retail tag. Others are selling the vehicles as used, claiming a $7,500 tax credit for themselves and leaving the eventual buyers ineligible. And there's not much that GM or regulators can do about it. "We want our dealers to be transparent about the whole sales process," Volt spokesman Rob Peterson said.

General Motors Co. said it would make modifications to the Chevrolet Volt after a series of fires ignited after test crashes of the plug-in hybrid vehicle. GM said the fires were caused by a coolant leak that occurred when the battery pack in the vehicle was punctured during severe side test crashes by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The fires occurred hours to weeks after the tests as the coolant leaked and eventually created a short circuit. The automaker will add structural reinforcement that better protects the battery pack from punctures or a coolant leak in a severe side crash, said Mary Barra, GM's senior vice president of global product development.

Federal safety regulators have given the Chevrolet Volt an all-clear. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday that it did not identify a safety defect, concluding that the car does not pose any unusual risk of fire. In closing the book on its investigation into Volts catching on fire, NHTSA also issued new guidelines for how emergency personnel and tow truck operators should deal with electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids that have been damaged in severe accidents.

General Motors Co. plans to bring a special version of the Chevrolet Volt to the California market that will qualify the plug-in hybrid sedan for a $1,500 state rebate and a coveted carpool lane sticker. The Volt, which the automaker has made the poster child for its environmental credentials, has sold more slowly in California than its all-electric rival, the Nissan Leaf, in part because it previously did not qualify as a vehicle that solo drivers could use in the state's network of time-saving carpool lanes.

General Motors Co. said it would make modifications to the Chevrolet Volt after a series of fires ignited after test crashes of the plug-in hybrid vehicle. GM said the fires were caused by a coolant leak that occurred when the battery pack in the vehicle was punctured during severe side test crashes by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The fires occurred hours to weeks after the tests as the coolant leaked and eventually created a short circuit. The automaker will add structural reinforcement that better protects the battery pack from punctures or a coolant leak in a severe side crash, said Mary Barra, GM's senior vice president of global product development.

General Motors Co. said it will make modifications to the Chevrolet Volt after a series of fires occurred following test crashes of the plug-in hybrid vehicle. GM said the fires were caused by a coolant leak that occurred when the battery pack in the vehicle was punctured during the tests of severe side crashes by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.  The fires occurred hours to weeks after the tests as the coolant leaked and eventually created a short circuit. The automaker will add structural reinforcement that better protects the battery pack from puncture or a coolant link in a severe side crash, said Mary Barra, GM's senior vice president of global product development.

Afraid your new Chevrolet Volt will catch on fire? General Motors will go as far as to buy it back from you. As safety investigations continue on the electric car, which caught fire following test crashes, GM Chief Executive Dan Akerson said the automaker would repurchase Volts from any concerned consumers. The assurance marked an escalation of the company's response to the post-crash reports. Earlier this week, GM offered to loan free vehicles to Volt owners until the safety concerns were resolved.

Federal safety regulators released more details about the Chevrolet Volt fire that has caused officials to look into post-crash protocols for electric vehicles. The fire occurred more than three weeks after the plug-in hybrid sedan was crashed as part of the agency's New Car Assessment Program in May. Officials from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the crash damaged the Volt's lithium ion battery and that damage eventually caused the fire. "That incident - which occurred at the test facility and caused property damage but no injuries - remains the only case of a battery-related fire in a crash or crash test of vehicles powered by lithium-ion batteries, despite a number of other rigorous crash tests of the Chevy Volt separately conducted by both NHTSA and General Motors," regulators said in a statement.

General Motors Corp., racing to emerge from bankruptcy, said it drove the first pre-production battery-powered Chevrolet Volt two weeks ahead of schedule. The first test drive occurred Tuesday and the vehicle was driven again Wednesday, the company said. The Volt is designed to drive 40 miles solely on electric power generated by plugging the battery into a household outlet overnight. After 40 miles, a gasoline engine keeps the battery charged.

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