GM Amps Up Volt Production

[SlyPokerDog]

The Chevrolet Volt is selling faster than expected, so General Motors plans to pump up production — a move that will require shutting down the production line for one month to make some improvements.

The General says it will revamp the line at the Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant so it can increase Volt production to 16,000 units this year and 60,000 next year. That’s a significant bump over the original plan, which called for 15,000 cars this year and 45,000 next.

The plan could add as many as 2,500 jobs at the plant, which also will produce the revamped 2013 Chevrolet Malibu. The factory currently produces the Volt, Buick Lucerne and Cadillac DTS.

GM brass say the move, which will make finding a Chevrolet Volt tough through the summer, is needed to meet unexpected demand for the plug-in hybrid. It also accelerates the General’s plan to make the car available nationwide.

“The Volt will be available to customers nationwide by the end of 2011,” said Cristi Landy, director of Chevrolet Volt marketing, said in a statement. “By taking the time to reconfigure the plant, we will be better able to meet the tremendous consumer demand.”

The car’s already available in California, New York, Connecticut, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Texas, Virginia and Washington, D.C. You’ll see it in Europe, China and Canada by the end of this year. It made its debut in Japan on Wednesday.

http://www.wired.com/autopia/2011/05/gm-amps-up-volt-production/

 

[mook]

As a tax payer/partial GM owner, this pleases me.

Right now this guy says we are exposed to about $11b of losses if the government sold GM today. Not great, but nothing like the initial $50b we might've lost if things went as bad as some predicted.

It'll be interesting to see if we do sell GM this year to try to take it off the table during the presidential election and just take the loss, or if we choose instead to hold onto it for another year or two.

Personally, I think once it looks stable enough to survive (if it isn't there already) we should dump the stock. Bailing out GM made sense to me when jobs and the economy were at risk. But I don't want to see it in government hands any longer than absolutely necessary.

 

[maxiep]

Meanwhile the Alpha platform is crashing and burning.

It was a mistake to bail out GM in the first place and even worse what our government did to the bondholders.

 

[Natebishop3]

I think if there was an affordable electric or hybrid, a lot of people would buy it. They need to come out with a modern-day Model T equivalent. Something that everyone can afford. I would buy a hybrid if I could afford it. Gas is so damned expensive, I actually just went ahead and buy a commuter bike to ride to school and around my neighborhood.

 

[PapaG]

2500 jobs? Are they trying to have more employees than cars they sell?

May 3rd 2011 at 1:58PM

Last month we tallied the cumulative North American sales of both the Chevrolet Volt and the Nissan Leaf, and it's time to check those numbers again. While neither vehicle is selling like hotcakes, April's numbers show that one of the two electric autos is inching up the sales chart, while the other has slipped a bit.

The Leaf sold 573 units in April versus the Volt's 493. Compared to March's results, which had Leaf sales at 298 and Volt sales at 608, Nissan's electric hatch has gained some ground, while Chevy's plug-in lost some traction.

The latest cumulative U.S. sales totals for the plug-in duo, since launching in late 2010, has the Volt leading the pack with 2,029 units sold, while the Leaf comes in at 1,044. Year-to-date, Volt sales stand at 1,703, while Nissan says Leaf production had, as of April 15th, hit nearly 8,000.

http://www.autoblog.com/2011/05/03/sales-update-nissan-leaf-hits-573-chevy-volt-at-493-in-april/

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

yeah, I heard about that on the radio about the sales being that low...and they're shutting down to increase production?

 

[mook]

yeah, I heard about that on the radio about the sales being that low...and they're shutting down to increase production?

Seems to indicate to me that they didn't make many, they sold out of them, and so are scrambling to make more. This article sheds more light:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-20064361-54.html

Cristi Landy, director of Volt marketing, said the car will be sold throughout the United States by the end of this year, and that the increased production is a result of high demand.
The Volt has been sold so far in California, New York, Connecticut, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Texas, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.
The Volt costs $41,000 including delivery costs before a $7,500 federal tax credit.
The Detroit-Hamtramck plant currently also makes two sedans, the Buick Lucerne and the Cadillac DTS, that the automaker is phasing out. They will no longer be made when the Detroit-Hamtramck plant reopens in July, Peterson said.
The plant shuts for the first two weeks of July annually and this year's shutdown is extended by two weeks to allow for the changes to the plant, GM said.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

Nissan made 8,000 LEAFs and sold 1000 of them?

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

dunno how many VOLTs were made available. seems like they're selling about 400 of them per month.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

http://green.autoblog.com/2011/03/07/gm-chevy-volt-sales-numbers-rise-may/

Through February, we produced over 1,800 vehicles - 925 of which have been sold at retail.

 

[mook]

http://green.autoblog.com/2011/03/07/gm-chevy-volt-sales-numbers-rise-may/

You kind of cut off the article a little, so I'll finish it for you:

However, over the next few months we will be shipping Volt dealer demo vehicles and vehicles to our coastal launch markets which takes longer than delivering them to nearby states. This situation should be resolved by May, after which the number of Volt's sold will rise.
There is no demand issue; ask any dealer in a launch market. This is a temporary situation. The Volt launch is on time and on target.

It's a little dishonest to just pull one line from an article that otherwise doesn't seem to support the narrative at all that sales suck.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

I'm comparing actual sales versus what they are speculating from their PR department.

They have sold 50% of their inventory, and this is "better than expected" so they will ramp up production.

 

[PapaG]

I'm comparing actual sales versus what they are speculating from their PR department.

They have sold 50% of their inventory, and this is "better than expected" so they will ramp up production.

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. For as much money put into this thing, it's underperforming the Edsel, and they have to offer huge rebates just to sell 50% of the low numbers of vehicles made.

For comparison, in the year after the Prius was launched, one of my uncles took an airplane from Minneapolis to Seattle to pick up a Prius that he waited 3 months to receive in a shipyard, and then drove it back to Minnesota after it got detailed. GM is trying to put shine on an electric turd, and the Chevy Malibu is one of the top-selling business fleet cars, so of course they are going to also produce it at the "Volt" plant.

 

[Natebishop3]

Hybrids and Electric cars are too fucking expensive.

A 2011 Prius is going for a little over $22k according to Kelly Blue Book.

A Nissan Leaf is going for $33,650 MSRP.

A Chevy Volt is going for $41k MSRP.

I mean... seriously? 41 thousand dollars? Are these people out of their fucking minds? That's twice what the Prius is going for. It's a damn car. I can buy a brand new Toyota Carolla for $16.5, or a mazda 2 for $14.5. Why would I spend 41k on an electric car? How long do I need to drive the car to make back my money? Most cars get a decent MPG these days, and I love the idea of not paying for gas, but these cars are ridiculously overpriced.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

Its a toy right now for the wealthy. You get a government subsidized tax rebate of $7500 too.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

By the time this is a practical car, its going to be outdated technology. Early adopters always get hosed.

 

[barfo]

By the time this is a practical car, its going to be outdated technology. Early adopters always get hosed.

For some people, the joy of being the first on the block outweighs the economic inefficiency.

Some people like to be early adopters. Some people like aluminum suitcases. Whatever turns your crank...

barfo

 

[PapaG]

For some people, the joy of being the first on the block outweighs the economic inefficiency.

Rich liberal people like to be early adopters. Some people like aluminum suitcases. Whatever turns your crank...

barfo

FTFY

 

[barfo]

FTFY

It certainly helps to be rich if you want to be an early adopter. However, I know some early adopters that are not liberal.

And I'm not an early adopter myself.

barfo

 

[Denny Crane]

It certainly helps to be rich if you want to be an early adopter. However, I know some early adopters that are not liberal.

And I'm not an early adopter myself.

barfo

You also don't pay your fair share in taxes. Especially if you make more than I do.

 

[barfo]

You also don't pay your fair share in taxes. Especially if you make more than I do.

True, but what's that got to do with it? I'm pretty sure the amount I pay is sufficient to fund your food stamps.

barfo

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

For some people, the joy of being the first on the block outweighs the economic inefficiency.

Some people like to be early adopters. Some people like aluminum suitcases. Whatever turns your crank...

barfo

Yes. The Volt, much like my beloved aluminum suitcases are nothing more than uncesscary luxuries.

 

[BLAZER PROPHET]

Hybrids and Electric cars are too fucking expensive.

A 2011 Prius is going for a little over $22k according to Kelly Blue Book.

A Nissan Leaf is going for $33,650 MSRP.

A Chevy Volt is going for $41k MSRP.

I mean... seriously? 41 thousand dollars? Are these people out of their fucking minds? That's twice what the Prius is going for. It's a damn car. I can buy a brand new Toyota Carolla for $16.5, or a mazda 2 for $14.5. Why would I spend 41k on an electric car? How long do I need to drive the car to make back my money? Most cars get a decent MPG these days, and I love the idea of not paying for gas, but these cars are ridiculously overpriced.

And don't forget the special tax proposals on electric cars.

 

[Denny Crane]

True, but what's that got to do with it? I'm pretty sure the amount I pay is sufficient to fund your food stamps.

barfo

How about I pay off my share of W's debt and pay off your share of Obama's?

 

[BLAZER PROPHET]

How about I pay off my share of W's debt and pay off your share of Obama's?

Game.

Set.

Match.

To Denny.

 

[barfo]

How about I pay off my share of W's debt and pay off your share of Obama's?

Your idea, you go first. You know the address to send the check.

barfo

 

[barfo]

Yes. The Volt, much like my beloved aluminum suitcases are nothing more than uncesscary luxuries.

Correct. So what? Is anyone claiming that owning a Volt is essential to survival?

barfo

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

Correct. So what? Is anyone claiming that owning a Volt is essential to survival?

barfo

Yes.

 

[barfo]

Game.

Set.

Match.

To Denny.

The line judge is blind, and not in a justice-is-blind sort of way.

barfo

 

[barfo]

Hybrids and Electric cars are too fucking expensive.

A 2011 Prius is going for a little over $22k according to Kelly Blue Book.

A Nissan Leaf is going for $33,650 MSRP.

A Chevy Volt is going for $41k MSRP.

I mean... seriously? 41 thousand dollars? Are these people out of their fucking minds? That's twice what the Prius is going for. It's a damn car. I can buy a brand new Toyota Carolla for $16.5, or a mazda 2 for $14.5. Why would I spend 41k on an electric car? How long do I need to drive the car to make back my money? Most cars get a decent MPG these days, and I love the idea of not paying for gas, but these cars are ridiculously overpriced.

So don't buy one. No one is asking you to. Well, GM might be, but they can be resisted just as most of us have resisted their dubious charms for the past 40 years.

Compared to the Bugatti Veyron, however, the Volt is quite inexpensive.

barfo