Without a doubt, the Chevrolet was the star of the 2007 Detroit Motor Show as GM promised to bring the plug-in hybrid to production in 2010 at the earliest. The American car maker has released a teaser of the front fascia and changes have been made to ensure that the Volt will have a better aerodynamic drag.
Indeed, early wind tunnel tests of the concept car revealed a bad drag coefficient. It is even rumoured that Bob Lutz, so disappointed by the results, suggested to “put it in the wind tunnel backwards“ to get less wind resistance. Engineers worked hard to decrease the coefficient and the production Volt has 30 percent less drag than the concept car. About 60% of the power required to cruise at motorway speeds is taken up overcoming air drag so the Volt has all interest to have a low coefficient to remain efficient.
From the teaser, it is difficult to guess the overall shape, but GM appears to have kept the styling of the concept car but dropped the sharp lines in order to decrease the drag coefficient. GM engineers will focus on improving the aerodynamics.
The final car will likely appear at the end of 2010 and will feature a small engine which will recharge the batteries and won’t power the car unlike hybrid cars. Tesla is also considering this architecture for its future saloon. The Chevrolet is expected to cost around £15,000.
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