Detroit Motor Show

Plug-in Chevy gets wired up

Bright sparks at General Motors look set to revive the electric car with an all-new plug-in model

Auto Express Car Reviews

Dramatic looks are backed up by Volt’s hi-tech underpinnings

By Euan Sey

12th January 2007

Called the Chevrolet Volt, it's being displayed at this week's Detroit Motor Show. The machine is the spiritual successor to the EV1 electric car launched by GM in California back in 1996. Unlike that vehicle, however, the Volt can be charged from a standard 240V home socket in three-and-a-half hours, and is said to combine real-world performance with a range of more than 640 miles.


	The Volt travels on electric alone for 40 miles - equivalent to most people's daily commute to work - then switches to the engine for power

At the heart of the saloon is a new type of propulsion system called E-Flex. It features a 120kW electric motor capable of delivering 320Nm of torque, and is powered by a larger version of a mobile phone-style lithium-ion battery. E-Flex is designed to allow an electric propulsion system to be backed up and recharged from a range of energy sources. In the case of the show car, this is a 1.0-litre, three-cylinder, turbocharged engine that can run on petrol, E85 bioethanol, diesel and biodiesel.

The Volt travels on electric alone for 40 miles - equivalent to most people's daily commute to work - then switches to the engine for power. It's no slowcoach, either, with 0-62mph in 8.5 seconds and a top speed of 93mph.