NEXTdEsigN
shock
ThERapy
gM is gambling on the plug-in
electric chevy Volt to boost
sales—and recharge its fortunes.
By Tim McKeough
Is any gadget immune to the iPod
effect? The Volt substitutes two
LCD screens for the pins and dials
of ordinary dashboards; one
replaces the gauge cluster, while
the other, a touch screen, delivers
info and entertainment. Compared
with analog displays, the screens
add some techie sophistication
that you don’t always expect from
Detroit. The climate controls use
a touch-sensitive panel instead
of individual buttons.
gM NEEds ThE Vol T. Amid record
losses, plunging sales, a stock that
has sunk as low as its 1950 price,
and awkward merger talks, the
100-year-old carmaker is hoping
that its new Chevy, due in 2010,
can reenergize its image and its
bottom line. Volt design director
Bob Boniface says his team wanted
to make sure the car looked better
than other electric-car concepts
(judge for yourself). Most electrics
“are like automotive brussels
sprouts,” he says. “They’re good
for you, but you don’t want to eat
them.” The question is whether
GM can wait two years for a
hit—and whether the Volt will
offer enough beyond green hype
to win over consumers.
Back-ENd BoNus
The Volt’s rear terminates with a sharp
slice. “It’s a popular myth that aerodynamics result in a jelly-bean shape,”
says aerodynamics-group manager Greg
Fadler. “The ideal shape is actually a
wing or a raindrop”—both have a rounded
front and a clean edge at the back. The
engineers also discovered during wind-tunnel testing that adding a lip 5 mm high
on the rear edge of the spoiler reduces
drag. However, this may result in only an
extra quarter-mile or so of driving range.
Electric
Rides
The Volt rides on special energy-effcient
tires on 17-inch forged-aluminum wheels.
GM engineers were skeptical of the
wheel’s chunkiness because the open
space between the blades could cause
more wind drag. But after extensive
computer modeling, the big wheel won.
I:HA6
The California carmaker has
already delivered some 50
$109,000 two-seat Roadsters
(above), but has put off plans
for a $60,000 family car.
72 Fast company December 2008 / January 2009
Photographs: Courtesy of Chevrolet (Volt), Toyota (Prius), Chrysler
(Dodge EV), and BYD (F6DM); Car Culture/Corbis (Camaro); Remy De La
Mauviniere/AP Images (Tesla); Gil Cohen Magen/Landov (Nissan Renault)
