Part of the challenge here is that the technology is changing so fast. It's marketing's job to tout the latest and greatest thing as just that -- and superior to competitive products. However, that happens at the risk of not knowing what the future will bring. I saw an ad the other day from olden days Coca-Cola suggesting that it's never too early to give children Coke -- "Put it in baby's bottle!" New developments happen all the time -- and seemingly with technology now, faster than ever.
The Volt isn't perfect, but it's a remarkable achievement that benefits future consumers because of progress it makes in the industry last year and today. Tomorrow it will be obsolete as battery range improves and production costs come down, or other ways of looking at 'efficient vehicles' emerge, but it in no way makes the Volt any less significant here and now. If you've driven an electric car, "range anxiety" is a valid and real sensation if you need to get home or to a meeting and you're miles beyond what the battery's capabilities are. And simply suggesting an EV or supposed city car is intended for the city and should stay there is silly. While that may be the primary use for a car like that, it shouldn't negate the owner from being able to go to the beach a 100 kms away on the odd sunny weekend.
GM should be applauded for pursuing a new way of offering the hybrid theme and then, even after falling into catastrophic financial times but still seeing the project through (albeit with the help of American taxpayers).
