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Volt jolt: Great range, small supply

C O R R E C T I O N

� On Page 36 of the Oct. 11 issue,the wrong photo accompanied adescription of the Audi quattro con-cept coupe seen at the Paris autoshow. You’ll find a photo of the con-cept at autonews.com/quattro.

David Barkholzdbarkholz@crain.com

Chevrolet is taking the Volt plug-inhybrid to the masses with a big mar-keting campaign that includes WorldSeries commercials this month.

Trouble is, the supply of the carswill be anything but big in the firstyear of production. General MotorsCo. is making only 10,000 through2011.

That worries some Chevrolet deal-ers who will face customers excitedabout the Volt but will be unable toget one until 2012.

“We expect a lot of people will be

inquiring and that they’re going to bedisappointed,” said Mark Janowiecki,general manager of Vic CaneverChevrolet in Fenton, Mich.

The dealership, which has a waitinglist for the Volt, has been informed byChevrolet that it will get only one Voltin 2011, in the second quarter, and ademonstration car that it can buyand keep on hand, Janowiecki said.

That will be the case for many of the650 Chevrolet dealerships that willsell the Volt in seven markets duringthe first year of production, said TonyDiSalle, Volt product marketing di-rector. How fast the Volt comes out of

the gate — given its pricey $33,500sticker after a tax credit — will deter-mine how many of the vehicles GMwill produce in the second year.

Many ads, few carsWhen the Volt is launched in No-

vember, it will be sold initially only inCalifornia, New York City, Washing-ton and Austin, Texas, DiSalle said. InMarch, the selling market will expandto include Michigan, the rest of Texasand the tri-state market of New York,New Jersey and Connecticut, he said.

Chevrolet is rolling out a mass-marketing campaign now, even withshort availability, to promote the Voltand tell consumers about electric ve-

hicles, DiSalle said.GM calls the Volt an extended-

range electric, although it’s a plug-inhybrid, according to SAE’s definition.(See related story, Page 23.)

Chevrolet starts TV commercialsthis month during World Seriesbroadcasts. At the same time, a socialmedia blitz will begin on Facebookand elsewhere, DiSalle said.

Chevrolet says the Volt is a game-changer because it is free of the 25- to100-mile range between charges thatlimits most electric cars.

The Volt, DiSalle said, can go 25 to50 miles powered solely by batteriesbefore switching to a 1.4-liter gaso-line engine to power the electric drive

OCTOBER 18, 2010 • 3

85th year — No. 6434

briefsbriefsNew Ranger will patrol180 nations, but not U.S.

Ford Motor Co. heralded its newRanger last week as a pickup that willbe sold in 180 countries. The UnitedStates won’t be among them. Thestrategy leaves Ford on a course to bewithout a compact pickup in its homemarket beginning next year for thefirst time in almost three decades.

The current Ranger, the fourthgeneration of a line launched in1982, isn’t scheduled to bereplaced when it goes out ofproduction in St. Paul, Minn., towardthe end of the 2011 model year.Sales begin next summer for thepickup.

— Rick Kranz

Sources: GM is on track for mid-November IPO

NEW YORK — General Motors Co.is on track to move ahead with itsinitial public offering during the weekof Nov. 15 after a recent round ofmeetings with sovereign wealthfunds in Asia and the Middle East,said sources with knowledge ofpreparation for the deal.

The U.S. Treasury Department isexpected to be the major seller ofcommon stock in the GM IPO and isprepared to take a loss on the initialsale of stock, sources have said.The GM IPO is expected to be pricedon Nov. 17 with the debut on Nov.18, three of the sources said. Atmeetings with investors, bankershave emphasized GM’s strongposition in China, the slowing pace oflosses at its Opel unit in Europe andits lowered breakeven point in theU.S. market, two sources said.

— Reuters

Toyota’s ad campaignwill tout safety

Toyota Motor Corp., continuing torecover from its recall crisis, plans anational advertising campaign for theToyota brand that will highlight safety.Don Esmond, senior vice president ofautomotive operations for Toyota’sU.S. sales arm, said last week thatthe new advertising will highlightquality, reliability, dependability andsafety while targeting consumers whodon’t own a Toyota. The spots willdebut by year end.

Toyota has taken several steps torebound from the recall of millionsof Toyota and Lexus models overunintended acceleration. It hasmade five computer-controlledbraking and vehicle stabilitytechnologies standard across allmodels and will make a brakeoverride system standard.

— David Phillips

How the Chevrolet Volt’s powertrain worksThe Volt’s powertrain operates in four modes

1. Battery charged, low speedsFrom a standstill to city speeds, theVolt’s main electric drive tractionmotor uses only electricity fromthe lithium ion batteries. Thegasoline engine does not operatein this mode.

2. Battery charged, high speedsUsing the Volt’s second, smallerelectric motor for additional power,GM engineers can keep the maindrive motor in its “sweet spot” as thetwo motors work in tandem to propel thevehicle up to 100 mph. No need for thegasoline engine in this mode.

3. Battery depleted, low and moderate speeds

When the available power from the Volt’sbatteries has been consumed, thegasoline engine turns on. It powers the motor-generator to produce electricity that runs the main drive motor.

4. Battery depleted, high speedsIn certain high-speed highway cruising situations, the Volt blends in torque from the gasoline engine and the smaller electric motor tosupplement the larger traction electricmotor. In this mode, the gasoline engine mechanically assists the main drive motor, but the engine is notcapable of powering the Volt on its own.

Major powertrain components � Main traction electric motor

� Motor-generator, with 2 functions: converts engine power to electricity; helps drive wheels as an electric motor

� 1.4-liter gasoline I4 engine used mainly to power the generator

� Planetary gears and 3 independent clutches that function like a transmission, managing and distributing power from 2 electricmotors and gasoline engine to the drive wheels

� Propulsion battery that is charged from outside current or by gasoline engine

— Rex Roy

Shortage won’t stop Chevy from plugging hybrid to the masses

see VOLT, Page 23

Q&A: Is Volt a hybrid or an EV? ➤ 23

DETROIT — Five years ago thismonth, Ford executive Mark Fieldsreturned to the United States fromEurope amid great expectations.

Fields, who will be a keynotespeaker at the Automotive NewsWorld Congress in Detroit on Jan. 12,was named Ford Motor Co.’s presi-dent of the Americas and was askedto overhaul Ford’s failed turnaroundplan

Alan Mulally joined Ford as CEOless than a year later, and the two ex-ecutives formulated and executed aturnaround strategy that worked.Market share has been climbing, andFord this year posted its biggest first-half profit in 12 years.

Fields, 49, has led an effort to matchproduction to demand, thus keepingincentives in check. He also has over-seen a series of important productlaunches, including the Fiesta sub-compact this summer.

Fields took over his current posi-tion in October 2005 after three yearsin top jobs in Europe. From 2000 to

2002, he was president of Mazda Mo-tor Corp.

The 2011 Automotive News WorldCongress will be Jan. 11-13 during me-dia week at the North American Inter-national Auto Show in Detroit. c

Fields: FordAmerica’s chiefleads theautomaker’seffort to matchwhat it makes towhat it sells.

Key facts

When: Jan. 11-13, 2011

Where: Detroit Marriott at theRenaissance Center

Cost: $995 early registration feeby Nov. 19 (save $300)

Information: 313-446-0420 orautonews.com/worldcongress

Exclusive lead sponsors:PricewaterhouseCoopers and IBM

Ford exec Fields will becongress keynote speaker

Auto dealers may know the benefitsof a having a social media strategy.But how do they create one? Andwhat are the tricks to developing onethat will stick?

Automotive News will provide an-swers on Thursday, Oct. 21, during aDealer Intelligence Webinar called“10 Ways Social Media Can HelpDealers Boost Their Reputations.”

Rob Hagen, CEO of Next Genera-tion Dealer Services, will lead the dis-cussion along with NextGen’s socialmedia strategist, David Johnson.

This 60-minute live Webinar willbegin at 2 p.m. EDT and will includean interactive Q&A session. The costto attend is $99. To sign up, go to autonews.com/webinars.c

Webinar offerssocial media tips

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