Pure EV's "not viable"

[Brian Ellis]

Consumers have yet to embrace electric cars, partly due to the limitations in battery technologies.

Some automakers, like Toyota, are betting they will prefer buying hybrids, rather than compromising vehicle size and driving range with electric cars.

Toyota are hedging their bets with all-electric cars, as well, but don't plan to commercialise them for a few years because the battery technology is not ripe.

Though ailing General Motors Corp (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), seeking alternatives to traditional internal combustion-powered vehicles, is committed to designing the Chevy Volt, a rechargeable car with a range of 64 km (40 miles).

Assuming thy don't go bankrupt first, those 64 km will be more like 32 km in practice, as they assume no other electrical gear (running lights - mandatory on new cars in the EU -, headllights, wipers, aircon, radio etc.) will be switched on. It also assumes constant speed on a flat, level track. 1 km up even a slight gradient will be equivalent to 3 or 4 km on the flat - and the recharge of going down the same 1 km gradient will give you an extra 200 or 300 m.

From the next village to my house is a tad over 3 km with a change in altitude of nearly 200 m. Going uphill, with the 30 HP electric boost, I can watch the charge gauge of the battery whizzing down. In the opposite direction, it goes about half way back up, with the petrol engine disabled by the system most of the way (consumption 1.2-2.5 l/100 km with no aircon or other electrics).

[TransformX]

Well, Tel Aviv is mostly flat, so for inner city travel, this kind of car would still be ideal. I guess it could be the same for other major cities across the globe.

<EDIT>
Also:

The electric car batteries used in Israel will have a range of 160-200 km (100-125 miles) and on average need between 3-4 hours to charge, Kaplinsky said. Swap stations -- where empty batteries are replaced with fully charged ones -- will be unveiled in coming months.

While I don't expect these cars to take you to Jerusalem or Haifa, they would be more than suitable enough to take you all around central Israel.
Now considering that people don't usually work more than 80km from home (in extreme cased), you could drive to work, leave the car charging, later on head home and do the same. With up to 60km/day in each direction, regardless of driving terrain, this project might just make it despite everything mentioned above.

[Dr Mordrid]

Assuming thy don't go bankrupt first,

Not likely, and if they do it'll be chapter 11 (reorganization) which willl let them do things they can't do otherwise - force wage reductions on the UAW, close dealerships that otherwise would be impossible or very difficult dut to the various state franchise laws. Those two items alone make for much of GM's problem - UAW wages put GM at a $2,000+ price disadvantage and their 3,000+ dealer network (Toyota only has about 1,100 with similar sales) includes many marginal or small ones that they can't just close due to franchise agreements & those state laws.

Chapter 11 may not be all bad....but it looks like they'll get the govt. loans under TARP anyhow - the President and Treasury are bypassing Congress using the TARP appropriations, and after the new administration & Congress take charge they're likely to pass a separate bridge loan anyhow; both are big time beholding to the UAW, and the UAW wants to avoid Chapter 11 bankrupcy for obvious reasons.

Announcement of the TARP money may come today or tomorrow for GM & Chrysler, but Ford has said they're OK for 2 years.

those 64 km will be more like 32 km in practice, as they assume no other electrical gear (running lights - mandatory on new cars in the EU -, headllights, wipers, aircon, radio etc.) will be switched on. It also assumes constant speed on a flat, level track. 1 km up even a slight gradient will be equivalent to 3 or 4 km on the flat - and the recharge of going down the same 1 km gradient will give you an extra 200 or 300 m.

The range is at least 40 miles (likely more due to battery tech improvements by the time it comes out) with the battery discharging down to 30%, a programmed limit imposed to improve battery life. After that the range extender (generator) turns on. It also has a 'limp home' mode where that last 30% can be used in an emergency.

Volt has already been tested on very steep grades and the effect was about what you described, but realistically how many people have to deal with that in US population centers (where it's usually flat as a board)?

[Brian Ellis]

E.g. San Francisco and Seattle