Sales of the GM Volt.

[rwh11385]

Woah, I had no idea GM came out with a Cruize diesel!

If only I could find a good, modern diesel drivetrain to swap into an e30 wagon I could finally dump my forester.

Yeah, I know a lot of people who had been wanting one to come to market. It's good news and helps the broaden people's choices.


Like this? Or more modern?

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?880655-Diesel-swap&p=19899962#post19899962

Or this one?

http://www.garaget.org/?car=62359

M57 D30 Common Rail diesel BMW 530d '99.

[Wiglaf]

damn now that is a cool motor swap

[BraveUlysses]

Hnnnngggg that M57 swap is sweet. Gonna have to bookmark that for further research.

[Fusion]

Sleeve: The government can in theory tax electric cars but in both cases they won't do it because it would be against the worldwide eco shananigans.

Wellp, even I doubted the inevitable would happen, but it seems it will.

http://news.fleetcarma.com/2013/06/19/electric-vehicle-gas-tax/#.UcTtN73TDE0

Among the different states considering it, the tax is proposed in two ways; either a tax per mile of electric vehicle usage, or a flat yearly tax.
What does this tax mean for fleets considering a plug-in? Depending on where you live this will be one more consideration in the Total Cost of Ownership calculations done before selecting new vehicles. Although many plug-in proponents are worried this tax will negatively impact the financial benefits to electric vehicle adoption, in most cases, the cost associated with taxing these vehicles is far outweighed by the benefit of reduced fueling and maintenance expenses.

[rwh11385]

Wellp, even I doubted the inevitable would happen, but it seems it will.
http://news.fleetcarma.com/2013/06/1.../#.UcTtN73TDE0

Why is that just now news? There were multiple states looking at fixed fee or how to do by mileage usage tax already. It's my dad's biggest concern about that them EVs, driving around without paying a gas tax, although with 40 mpg commuters and rising CAFE standards there probably will be a change in revenues even without electrics. I'd rather just do it with my registration/plates once a year based on odo.

Ford's additions have been helping to cement and increase the size of the PHEV market segment.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/record-sales-in-may-for-hybrid-and-plug-in-cars-in-us-210320601.html

Record Sales in May for Hybrid and Plug-In Cars in U.S.

7,754 vehicles that can be plugged into the grid were sold in May 2013. Now with more plug-in hybrid and battery electric models available to American consumers, at prices to match a wider array of budgets, this is the highest sales month since their mass market introduction in late 2010. Cumulative 2013 year-to-date sales of plug-in vehicles hit 32,305, while overall plug-in sales reached 103,220 in just over two years.

[rwh11385]

June 2013:
2,698 Volts
2,225 Leafs
"year to date, the Chevy has now sold 16 more units than Nissan's EV, 9,855 to 9,839"

And this year saw a massive price cut on Leafs as their Tennesse plant started turning them out:

http://www.treehugger.com/cars/2013-nissan-leaf-gets-massive-price-cut-6400.html

2013 MSRP for lowest trim: $28,800
2012 MSRP: $35,200

The Spark EV is also on sale in Oregon and California, although just as of last week.

http://cleantechnica.com/2013/06/25/first-chevy-spark-evs-show-up-at-west-coast-dealerships/

The Spark EV is available for purchase for around $27,495 MSRP depending on options (this does not including rebates). When the tax credit is factored in, you can purchase the car for as low as $19,995, a very reasonable price. GM is also offering a lease option on the 2014 Chevrolet Spark EV. You can lease the car for $199 for a three-year lease with $999 down at signing.

Even though the Leaf's price got slashed, the Spark EV is still priced slightly under it.


They had some big incentives on Volts in June as they are looking forward to 2014 starting production on July 15th and also the release of the ELR on August 18th.

http://insideevs.com/2014-chevrolet-volt-production-begins-july-15th-production-cadillac-elr-to-debut-august-18th/

It should be noted that although the price of the Cadillac ELR has also not yet been announced, it is probably not going to arrive at the lower end of original expectations as GM has said the re-tooling to build the ELR will cost about $35 million dollars and that the plug-Caddy will now also be a “limited” production run. We think a mid-60,000s MSRP is likely.

Pricing, and the ability to order the 2014 Chevrolet Volt is expected imminently.

Eventually, reports say they might swap the range extender to a 3-cylinder. Also, Akerson is looking to drop costs by $10,000 for the next gen as well as make it lighter. Even as the competition is heating up in the segment, they had the first mover advantage (in PHEVs) and also almost certainly be the first player to put out a second generation product. Although the tech and capability was and is still top-notch compared to peers, there's room for improvement and a good amount of experience under their belts. If they can take a similar leap from proof-of-concept to a better optimized product like Tesla did from the Roadster to the Model S, good things for them and the segment.


Joshh did a lot of Cruze hating in this thread, in addition to the Volt. Well,

http://wot.motortrend.com/june-compact-sales-chevrolet-cruze-jumps-to-first-383105.html#axzz2XvcCSJ00

June Compact Sales: Chevrolet Cruze Jumps to First

[rwh11385]

http://green.autoblog.com/2013/09/04/chevy-volt-nissan-leaf-both-set-new-montly-sales-records/

Chevy Volt, Nissan Leaf both set new monthly sales records, 3,351 vs 2,420


And this kinda goes against the assumption that hybrid means slow and boring:

http://www.autoblog.com/2013/09/10/porsche-918-spyder-frankfurt-2013/

Porsche 918 Spyder debuts with new Nürburgring lap record [w/video]

best time at 6:57 at an average of 111 miles per hour.

That's over four seconds faster than the Dodge Viper ACR that has held the record for street-legal production cars for the last two years.

[z31maniac]

Do leases count as sales?

You can easily find a lease for a Leaf at $250/month or less for 3 years.......on a $30k car.

[rwh11385]

Do leases count as sales?

You can easily find a lease for a Leaf at $250/month or less for 3 years.......on a $30k car.

Yes, of course.

That's not really wild...
VW CC, $249 per month for 36 months with MSRP $30-41K
You can get a Camry Hybrid for $199 per month for 24 months on a $27K MSRP car.
Better yet, $149 per month for 24 months on a Prius Plug-In with MSRP at $32-39K.

But where it really comes into play is luxury cars: http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/201...ctually-lease/



Leasing affordability factors in residual significantly. Off-lease CPO premium cars sell well, as do Toyotas do well in keeping their value.