Price vs. fuel savings for Chevy Volt debated

Chevy Volt Power

by Dick Pong/AR1.com

The average U.S. driver of a Chevrolet Volt is expected to save $1,500 to $2,000 a year on fuel, compared with today's compact cars and about $1,000 a year compared with a Toyota Prius hybrid.

But the debate continues over how much consumers will pay to get the fuel savings.

If the batteries being tested measure up, General Motors Corp. expects to launch the Volt in November 2010, with a propulsion system that can drive 40 miles on an electric charge alone before using an onboard gas-burning generator to power its electric motor for several hundred more miles.

GM heralds the Volt as the vehicle that will change the auto industry. While the vehicle has the potential to save the average U.S. driver a significant sum annually, some say sales will be constricted by the vehicle's price or by new competition.

GM, which unveiled the production design of the electric Volt on Tuesday, has yet to say how much the range-extended electric vehicle will cost when it goes on sale, but early estimates have put the cost in the mid-$30,000s to low-$40,000s.

"My research tells me people won't pay that kind of premium," said Kevin Tynan, an analyst at Argus Research. His research shows that consumers won't pay more than $2,000 extra for a fuel-efficient vehicle.

Kelley Blue Book lists the sticker price of a 2009 Toyota Prius as starting at $22,720 and a 2009 Honda Civic Hybrid as starting at $24,225.

David Thacker of Fairfield, Calif., said consumers are willing to pay a premium to reduce their carbon footprints.

"I would pay $30,000 to $40,000 today for an electric vehicle," Thacker said. The bigger problem for GM, he contends, is that it could have serious competition by late 2010. Detroit Free Press