Up-Again, Down-Again Chevrolet Volt Is Down Again As GM Cuts Output

Posted by Dale Buss on August 29, 2012 02:54 PM

The Chevrolet Volt may well be one of the best packages of technology yet produced by the American automotive industry and an exemplar of the right kind of transportation for America's future. It drives well, and it doesn't cause owners "range anxiety" that all-electric vehicles do because of its onboard gasoline engine.

It's just that Americans don't seem ready to buy enough of them just yet.

General Motors said that it plans to suspend production of Volt at its Detroit-Hamtramck, Mich., factory for 26 days as part of a move to pare excess inventory. Automotive News first reported the move. It's the second time this year GM has idled output of Volt due to soft demand.

Volt sales already have topped 10,000 this year, more than triple the level of a year earlier, but overall dealer inventories of the vehicle have reached 84 days, according to Autodata, while a 60-day inventory is considered desirable in the industry.

While the move will idle about 1,400 hourly workers, it also will allow GM to finish prepping the assembly line for also building the 2014 Chevrolet Impala starting early next year. That full-size sedan, while until now largely a bellcow for GM's fleet business, will become a more important retail nameplate for Chevy in its new manifestation.

Volt's history has been up-and-down since its introduction to great fanfare two years ago as the industry's first "plug-in," or extended-range, hybrid. Even after an extensive marketing and consumer-education campaign by GM, sales of Volt were slow to take off last year. Then there was an under-hood fire scare late last year that turned out to be essentially a false alarm. Earlier this year, Volt sales began upticking smartly.

The biggest driver behind higher Volt sales so far in 2012 has been a modified low-emissions version of the vehicle that qualifies for California's coveted car-pool lanes. Previous versions of the car didn't qualify.

But presumably elsewhere in the United States, demand for Volt hasn't risen as smartly.

More about: Chevrolet Malibu, Chevrolet Volt, GM, Plug-In Hybrids, Chevrolet Impala

Dignon says:

I've had my Volt for well over a year now. In the last 30 years, this is my first GM car, my first American car, and the best car I have owned, bar none. What fun car to drive. I was spending $2400/year on gas before the Volt. Now I'm spending $330/year on American electricity.

August 29, 2012 03:56 PM #

Mark says:

The volt is an awesome car, american new tech at its finest! Beats a BMW any day of the week, and only half the cost to insure and run too!

August 29, 2012 04:22 PM #

Matt A Clayman says:

The problem isn't the Volt's technology, the way it drives or America's lack of understanding with regards to the term 'plug-in-hybrid'. The real issue is the interior and the inconsistent ad campaign. The car is host to an array of interior issues that would dismay any tech savvy buyer from making this their daily driver. Virtually no back seat makes it a no go for families with children over 6. Also, the center consul hosts a ton of faux buttons that are illegible even to someone with 20/20 vision. Bottom line is the interior is not intuitive and if you want to welcome American drivers into a new on road experience then you need to make the transition as seamless as possible. I think we can all remember the first time we got into a Prius and had to spend the first 5 minutes figuring out where everything is. Well the first time you're in a Volt you can figure out how to start it but then you're going to spend another month figuring out what every button does.

Furthermore, Chevy has ran a very inconsistent ad campaign with no clear message which equates to a series of corporate communication efforts that have left the American populous with no clear idea why they should by a Volt vs a Prius. For now Toyota is going to keep moving forward and the introduction of the new plug-in Prius only foreshadows the inevitable death of the Chevy Volt.

August 30, 2012 03:46 PM #

IvanH says:

What the hell is the matter with GM? In Italy gasoline has reached $9.50 a gallon. Chevy could sell their entire production there if they backed it up with a smart advertising campaign. How about a visit the US fly and drive factory pickup campaign, like Mercedes, Audi and BMW do for their cars. They need to start thinking outside the box and opening up new export markets. I can't believe how stupid and conservative thinking this company can be. You have the product, there is a market outside of the US that would love a car you only had to fill up once a month - sell your product there.

September 2, 2012 01:00 AM #