No More Gas Volvos

Dauntless

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Now WHERE is the LockH post on this? Can't wait up any longer.

http://money.cnn.com/2017/07/05/autos/volvo-electric-cars-internal-combustion-engine/index.html

Oh, the opposing view. I know some just want to stifle it. . . .

http://money.cnn.com/2017/07/05/technology/electric-cars-vs-gas-cars/index.html
 
Although I suspect they will have several pure electric vehicles, The tiny amount of info I have been able to find indicates they will also have at least several hybrid models. I personally believe that the timing of this is related to the production schedule of Solid State Batteries (SSB's) in the near future. Regardless of what the first versions of Volvo EVs and hybrids use, it won't be long before SSB Volvo's are in the line-up.

My son has a Chevy Volt, and about once a month he purposefully leaves his battery at half-charge and selects the powertrain management mode where the engine kicks on when they drive around on their day off. This ensures the engine turns on and runs a minimum amount of time that he desires. They have two cars in his family, so he was a good candidate to drive a pure electric EV (24 miles round-trip to work, only charging at home).

But...he found a really good deal on a used Volt, and he liked the idea of having enough range to go anywhere (since it has an on-board engine). My point is...argue all you want about whether pure EV or hybrid is the way to go...once a customers' cash is on the line? Many buyers opt for a hybrid.

If you only produce pure electric EV's, you're saying to people who want a hybrid "I don't want your money, go spend it somewhere else". When I look admiringly at everything that Tesla has done (Roadster, Model S, Model 3, Powerwall, Model X...) They made the right decisions, but...I actually want to see what a Tesla hybrid drivetrain would look like. I hope they remain successful, and I hope they make a hybrid someday.
 
spinningmagnets said:
If you only produce pure electric EV's, you're saying to people who want a hybrid "I don't want your money, go spend it somewhere else".
Right. But Volvo didn't say "no more gas Volvos" - what they said was they would not make pure gas cars any more. Which means they will still make everything from mild hybrids (i.e. an alternator/starter system) to plug-in hybrids to pure EV's. Many automakers will follow a similar path, because mild hybrids will be just plain cheaper than separate starter and alternator systems.
 
billvon said:
spinningmagnets said:
If you only produce pure electric EV's, you're saying to people who want a hybrid "I don't want your money, go spend it somewhere else".
Right. But Volvo didn't say "no more gas Volvos" - what they said was they would not make pure gas cars any more. Which means they will still make everything from mild hybrids (i.e. an alternator/starter system) to plug-in hybrids to pure EV's. Many automakers will follow a similar path, because mild hybrids will be just plain cheaper than separate starter and alternator systems.

That's how I read it.

It's not surprising, as the CAFE requirements are stricter every year. Manufacturers need to seek technologies that will get them to the efficiency requirements and Volvo has determined that electric supplementation is a great means to that end. They've always been ahead of the game with respect to efficiency from a performance motor. Many manufacturers have just begun to include turbos in their main lines where Volvo has been doing it since the 90s. They have ALL the tricks working.

Look at their flagship SUV, the XC90 T8. It's a supercharged-, turbocharged-, 2.0L 4 cylinder, AWD, plug-in hybrid (2 electric motors; one between the tranny/motor and the other one powering the rear axle)

Nothing currently beats the energy density and refill speed of gas, so they still have the 4 cylinder in there, but the electric motors out number the ICE and will eventually supplant them completely.
 
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