REEV concerns

[doug]

Exclusive: The Engineering Challenges of Volt Generator Mode | GM-VOLT : Chevy Volt Electric Car Site

[vfx]

Wow, Tough calls to make.

For some they will make some big mistakes in what decisions are ultimately made, just like Tesla.

For them it's even more dammed if you do, dammed if you don't.

[Tdave]

They're putting way too much emphasis on "what the driver expects". This is a new paradigm. Time to reinvent what the driver expects. Just do what's best for efficiency and/or performance.

[doug]

Will the Volt Have Power Limitations on the Highway? | GM-VOLT : Chevy Volt Electric Car Site

[vfx]

Will the Volt Have Power Limitations on the Highway? | GM-VOLT : Chevy Volt Electric Car Site

Finally they come clean. I mean it's fine that the car can't do everything. No car can. Sometimes these guys should just say what the design intent is and then target those buyers.

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Doug's at 3000 Posts!

[TEG]

If you started on a drive from SF to Tahoe and flipped the "try to keep my battery at least 80% full" switch as you left, then the ICE would come on sooner, and you would start uphill past Sacramento with plenty of charge to 'make the grade' uphill without problem. The possible problem (as I see it) is the weak ICE coupled to a strategy of "drain the pack first" with no option to override.

Another option would be to have it GPS/Nav coupled and it calculates what you need based on the destination you programmed in at the start of your trip.

Yep:
GM Volt will offer 'Mountain Mode' for hill climb charge preservation...

...under a "limited set of circumstances," on a handful of known grades in the country, vehicle performance "may be degraded" under sustained heavy loads when the engine providing electric power to drive the car. The Mountain Mode option helps compensate for this in some circumstances. While drivers may not be used to planning ahead, future navigation systems might suggest that the special mode be triggered if it knew that a preset route included a long uphill stretch.