tex2670

Plex asked:
And you answered:
To which I didn't understand how this was punishing the auto industry.

tex2670

I have to agree with this. From what we have witnessed, he just does not have it in him not to express his opinion.But this isn't "laying low". This is solving a problem through diplomatic negotiation. Frankly, what Trump said he was trying to do by imposing tariffs.

ArmyofOne

You can get a 2019 Honda Accord EX-L with 17" alloy wheels for ride comfort. Very compliant, comfortable cars, and like $30k.




What ever happened to that EV GM made in like 1996? Wasn't it like decades ahead of its time? Then something killed it off, big oil bought the patent or something?

mmarshall

Thanks for the suggestion. I probably won't be buying anything for at least a couple of years, but I have learned, over the years, never to assume that anything is cast in stone. I could (?) come home with a new car next week.




You're probably talking about the EV-1 Impact. GM leased out a limited number to a select group of customers, then abruptly cancelled the project,. They never really came up with a decent explanation why, but it was noted that that was also a time of rapidly increasing truck/SUV popularity, with little interest in full-electric vehicles. Even the first of the regular gas/electric hybrids (Insight and Prius) in the American market were still a few years ahead.

......a weird-looking car, IMO. It was shaped like a turtle.

ArmyofOne

^yeah that. So, why, if they could make an EV back then, that worked well enough to be a DD, can't they freaking do it now?

How hard is it to drop the volt/bolt powertrain into a car that isn't so hideously ugly, like a Camaro-type body, or into an Impala-sized sedan? The tech is already there. Just scale it up/down for different applications.

mmarshall

Actually, as you are probably aware of, GM does make a usable, though not (for its exterior size) particularly affordable full-electric EV in the Chevrolet Bolt.(don't confuse that, like some people do, with the Chevy Volt, which is an extended-range, gas/electric hybrid, and will probably go out of production the the Detroit/Hamtramck plant closes). The Bolt is perfectly usable as a DD, as long as you have adequate charging-outlet, but, IMO, carries a rather steep price for a small vehicle that size.....it starts at over 37K, and I've seen them, on the lot, run as high as 43K. It is also a little too egg-shaped for my tastes. Tax credits, though (if and where applicable) may take at least some of the sting out of the purchase price.

https://www.chevrolet.com/previous-y...v-electric-car



If you want a hybrid Impala, the Hybrid Buick Lacrosse is the closest thing to it. The hybrid Lacrosse is also the base model, and carries the lowest price (around 30K to start). It has a standard in-line four and electric-drive system, though not necessarily a long-range one like the Volt. Get your order in, though, before they schedule the plant shutdown and shut off customer-orders. GM sometimes shuts off orders way early.....I got caught up in that when I originally ordered a 2017 Lacrosse, and the dealership called me the next day and said it was too late. That's one reason (among several) that I wound up with an 2018, though the 2018 did have some improvements.



The Ford Focus Electric (a full-electric EV) and Fusion Energi (an extended-range hybrid) might both meet that definition....they have conventional looks. But, again, get your order in ASAP....both of them may also be going down the tubes if Ford follows through on their own sedan-cancelling plans.

The Fusion, BTW, is an excellent mid-sized sedan...though it has had some reliability issues on the gas version (which are less likely with a simpler, full-electric drive train), in general, I have a very high opinion of it.

Toys4RJill

mmarshall

Toys4RJill

mmarshall

Thanks. My initial shock and anger at GM management is wearing off somewhat....and, in our state, the Governor and Legislature are (apparently) working on new regulations and standards for electric-charging outlets to be installed in condo-developments like mine, many of which have never had them before. We don't currently (no pun intended) have outside outlets available for our small townhouses. Whether they would be installed at State expense, Federal expense, our own condo-board expense, or a combination of the above remains to be seen. That would eventually give me an option I've never had before.....a full-electric or an extended-range hybrid. Hey......might even be able to remain a GM customer with a brand-new Chevy Bolt EV ....though, as Josh points out, a number of today's full-electrics look like something out of Halloween night LOL.

If we do get new outlets, though, to charge electric vehicles, one thing that concerns me would be the kids next door at the high school (and some of the more unruly kids in our own development) coming along and unplugging the cords as pranks. Some kids don't have anything better to do with their spare time than to go around looking for ways to mess things up.

ArmyofOne

its relevant here, because the reason GM is cancelling these cars is to put money in R&D for hybrids/EV's, and crossover/SUV segments. Thats how we got off on EV's. Not that far of a leap imo.

having said that, i wasn't talking about necessarily a hybrid, nor do i want one (at all, good old internal combustion for me, thanks). But why couldn't they make the lacrosse platform an EV or integrate the volt setup into that line?

Sulu

GM does produce other plug-in hybrid vehicles with the technology from the (2nd-generation) Volt (GM calls this hybrid technology "Voltec").

The Malibu Hybrid uses a similar 2-motor hybrid transmission but a smaller-capacity battery so it is purely a "self-charging" hybrid, not an extended-range electric vehicle (which is how GM describes the Volt).

The CT6 Plug-in uses a similar 2-motor hybrid transmission as the Volt but adapted for RWD use, and a large-capacity battery, giving it an EV range of 50km (30miles). The powertrain is produced in the USA but then shipped to China for final assembly of the whole vehicle.

The Buick LaCrosse Hybrid, for some strange reason, is only a simple, mild hybrid (replacing the starter and alternator with one single electric motor-generator) and does not use the hybrid technology from the Volt.

I do not recall any other GM vehicles that used the 1st-generation Volt's hybrid technology, and GM seems to be reluctant to use the hybrid technology from the 2nd-generation Volt in more vehicles. (In contrast, Ford and, of course, Toyota use their hybrid technology much more widely.) This Voltec hybrid technology won't be lost but the vehicles using it are soon to be gone.

I suppose that GM sees no need for the stop-gap hybrid technology and rather go straight to full electric vehicles.

mmarshall

As far as I know, the Cadillac ELR used that technology

.


Very simple....Cost. That's why the much larger Lacrosse Hybrid starts at only 29K (30K with freight) and the much smaller Volt starts at 33-34K.

SW17LS

What you should do is what I did when I saw the end of the Lexus LS as it has always been coming. I found the last one made built the way I wanted, in the colors and spec I wanted...and I bought it. I'm going to take great care of it and just keep it, and lease something else to use for some other utility, not sure whether that will be a sports car or an SUV, we'll see when the lease is up on the LS.

So you should figure out the perfect spec Lacrosse, get the best deal on one you can, and buy it and keep it.

I also agree with others, there are lots of great riding cars out there nowadays, its just that for you the Lacrosse is an overall package that is perfect. I respect that, you should get the best one you can and just keep it. Get a high spec one and swap your wheels and tires.

mmarshall

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm aware of most of them. Swapping wheels and tires, though, can run into a lot of complications, and sometimes void the warranty.