The Chevy Volt: Made in China

Nah. I'm just kidding. The Volt will be built in Flint (ho ho ho). I'm talking about the first mass-produced plug-in hybrid car, which went on sale Monday ... in China. 

Soon, the new cars, from a company owned by Mr. Wang, may be available at Walmart (Kidding, but Warren Buffet owns about 10 percent of the company). 

 

The car that beat GM to the punch is made by Build Your Dream Autos, and called the F3DM. It gets 60 miles per charge. The (fictional?) Volt gets 40.

Toyota also is working on a plug-in hybrid, to be on lots by 2010. That's the same year (uh huh) as the Chevy Volt. 

Gosh, it sure is easy to pick on the Volt, huh? It's easy to pick on hybrids and electrics in general. Heck, I love to save money on gas. But I sure enjoyed driving my 4x4 SUV today, when it snowed almost a foot in Michigan. Can an electric/hybrid do that? If so, let's hope it's a domestic one. 

- Green Mullet. 

Musta got lost

This morning, I finished my Christmas shopping. Then I went to the store to pick up some refreshments for a Christmas party at the house tonight. On the way home, "Musta Got Lost" came up on the iPod. 

How prophetic it was. Because I just checked my 500+ unread RSS feeds and found this newflash: GM is halting construction of its Volt plant in Flint, Michigan. The Volt, the plug-in electric car. The supposed saving grace for the dying automaker. The next great hope from Detroit. Halted. 

Musta got lost. The automakers didn't get any of the loans they wanted from Congress. But, behold, President Bush may turn out to be the hero on this one. Ho ho ho.

In the meantime, the automakers are showing how much they really care about moving into the future. Apparently, they don't. The Volt, allegedly, will get 40 mpg on electricity alone (if it's ever built). 

The Detroit Free Press says the Volt and Cruze (an efficient gas model) are (still?) expected to launch in 2010. 

Musta got lost. You'd think that if GM really was making plans for the future, hoping to reinvent itself, that the Volt and Cruze project would be Priority No. 1. Autobloggreen says GM execs are still vowing to build the Volt, with or without government money. Is that a threat?

Someone once said that Chinese Democracy would be released before the Volt. Guess what?

- Green Mullet.