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WASHINGTON - With Detroit auto executives in town seeking a loan from the government, General Motors thought it would be a good time to display new technology next to the Capitol Building. Rep. Tom Petri took the opportunity to inspect experimental hydrogen-powered vehicles and to learn about the Chevrolet Volt, a plug-in electric-gasoline hybrid which GM has scheduled for commercial production in Nov. 2010.
Greg Cesiel, GM's Program Director for the Volt and Hydrogen Fuel Cell Program, told Petri that the Volt drives 40 miles before depleting its battery, at which point a gasoline motor kicks in.
"And almost 80 percent of the people in this country drive less than 40 miles a day on a daily commute, which means they would drive every day using no petroleum, no emissions, and be able to just charge at home to be able to fuel the vehicle," he said.
Cesiel said that electricity from the grid can power a car for 2 cents per mile while gasoline in a conventional vehicle can cost 12 cents per mile.
"One of the keys to energy independence and to controlling the cost of energy is to use off-peak power," Petri noted. "If we can plug in our cars at night and then run them during the day, we won't even need new generating capacity. We can use what we already have."
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