Drive the Volt with a feathery foot, turn off all the electrical accessories like the centre-stack LCD screen, the climate control and the radio, use the ‘L’ position on the shift lever while coasting downgrades, and you’ll exceed 50 miles (80 km). You’ll also make everyone following you curse, honk and gesticulate.
Once you’ve drained down the battery pack, the internal-combustion engine fires up and sends energy to both the main electric motor and the battery pack, but through the small, generator motor. A regenerative braking system can also recuperate lost energy while you’re slowing the car down.
With the 40-mile electric-only range and a full tank of premium unleaded, the Volt has a total range of 350 miles, or 560 km; remember, these numbers can vary according to conditions such as your driving behaviour and the outside temperature.
In the dead of winter, the cold climate can reduce the efficiency of the batteries, just like we’ve seen in hybrid vehicles. Then again, even a conventional vehicle with a combustion engine will offer worse fuel economy when it’s really cold outside, so it’s the same problem for everyone.
The electronics
As GM points out, all that hardware wouldn’t be as effective without the help of electronics. Just the battery pack itself is monitored frantically; over 500 diagnostics run every tenth of a second.
In addition, the system will count how many days the 1.4-litre engine has gone without starting up, and after 42 days of inactivity, it will automatically start it up to run diagnostics and ensure that it’s functioning properly. The driver will be warned that the engine will start, and he or she can delay it by 24 hours, but not more than that.
The fuel tank is also monitored, and if the system figures that the gas inside has been there for 365 days, it will also warn the driver that it has to be burned before it goes bad.
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| High-speed electric driving (Photo: Chevrolet) |
Once you’ve drained down the battery pack, the internal-combustion engine fires up and sends energy to both the main electric motor and the battery pack, but through the small, generator motor. A regenerative braking system can also recuperate lost energy while you’re slowing the car down.
With the 40-mile electric-only range and a full tank of premium unleaded, the Volt has a total range of 350 miles, or 560 km; remember, these numbers can vary according to conditions such as your driving behaviour and the outside temperature.
In the dead of winter, the cold climate can reduce the efficiency of the batteries, just like we’ve seen in hybrid vehicles. Then again, even a conventional vehicle with a combustion engine will offer worse fuel economy when it’s really cold outside, so it’s the same problem for everyone.
The electronics
As GM points out, all that hardware wouldn’t be as effective without the help of electronics. Just the battery pack itself is monitored frantically; over 500 diagnostics run every tenth of a second.
In addition, the system will count how many days the 1.4-litre engine has gone without starting up, and after 42 days of inactivity, it will automatically start it up to run diagnostics and ensure that it’s functioning properly. The driver will be warned that the engine will start, and he or she can delay it by 24 hours, but not more than that.
The fuel tank is also monitored, and if the system figures that the gas inside has been there for 365 days, it will also warn the driver that it has to be burned before it goes bad.
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| Low-speed extended-range driving (Photo: Chevrolet) |