If you look at the proportions of the original showcar Volt, it looks closer to a Kappa-based car than any FWD car. Look at the long, nearly horizontal hood, bubble type short cockpit, ending in a rounded rear.
That shape nearly guarantees a Solstice-like coefficient of drag. I wonder if GM actually ever mentioned what the drag coefficient of the showcar was, but I bet it wasn't far off from the 0.45 of a Solstice.
That's fine for a sports car, but absolutely unacceptable for a vehicle whose main focus is on efficiency. The only way to improve the CdA of a car is to change the Cd (what they did with the Volt) or reduce the A (or use a platform with a small frontal area - the Tesla uses approximately a Lotus Elise, about 1.5m^2 and CdA of about 0.60m^2 - which works back to a Cd of maybe 0.40).
The CdA is the important feature. The Elise is a 2-seat car (Tesla). The Volt was intended to be as functional as a Prius/Civic. 4+ passengers.
The other part of efficiency is mass or weight. The Tesla is tiny - ergo it can only weigh so much. Bigger the car, the more it weighs. The volt was/is pretty darn big.
Problem is they sold both the concept (e-flex and electric primary drive, plug-in, etc.) AND the styling. That's what happens when you let designers have full reign.
Look no further than some of the features on our own Solstices and SKYs for compromises made
strictly to appease design. Does it accomodate a roll cage? Can you see the fuel gage? Can you easily operate all controls like window switches? Can you operate the top from the driver's seat?
All of these can be tracked back to a decision that was made by a designer - a stylist - defended to the end. That's where you get the worlds most complicated convertible roof and an incredibly heavy decklid and hood.
I agree the Volt needs to be made - it is the future of propulsion technology. Someday in the future (hopefully near future) traction motors will be the primary mode of driving the wheels, and electricity will be the medium of energy flow in a vehicle. I just wish they hadn't made the promises (said or unsaid) of what it would look like.
They should have had a car skeleton showcasing all of the things that will make it work - and then worked like dogs to make such a car look
a) DIFFERENT from a prius and
b) irresistably attractive.
If I can get ahold of one, I will likely buy a Volt - regardless of what it looks like. It will be the first major-league mass produced modern car with active handling that uses an electric motor for propulsion - and not just any run-of-the-mill motor, we're talking 3 phase high torque AC motor. It's not a 'lease', it's an OWN. Once the warranty is done, out goes the engine/generator, in goes whatever is the latest technology electrical energy storage system available.
... hmmm... now I wonder if that motor can be made to fit in a Solstice...
