30KM FROM WORK? YOU'LL USE NO PETROL AT ALL!

+ Click to Enlarge BIRTHDAY PRESENT: Then GM chairman Rick Wagoner (left), former vice-chairman Bob Lutz and president Fritz Henderson present the production version of the Chevrolet Volt at GM's centennial celebration in 2008.

August 12, 2009

General Motors says its new electric sedan, the much anticipated Chevrolet Volt, will go on sale in 2011 as the first mass-produced vehicle capable of achieving three-digit fuel consumption.

It said the Volt was expected to achieve city fuel consumption of nearly 100km/litre, based on development testing using US fuel consumption methodology for labeling plug-in electric vehicles.

GM chief executive Fritz Henderson said: "From the data we've seen, many Chevy Volt drivers may be able to use pure electric mode every day - that means no petrol."

The Volt, scheduled for production in late 2010 as a 2011 model, is expected to travel as far as 64km on a single battery charge.

However, it can extend its overall range to nearly 500km with its flex-fuel engine/generator.

"So, a vehicle such as the Volt that achieves a composite triple-digit fuel economy is a game-changer," Henderson said.

According to US Department of Transportation data, nearly 80 percent of Americans commute fewer than 65km a day.

"The key to high-mileage performance is for a Volt driver to plug in to the electric grid at least once a day," Henderson said.

The Volt is part of a trend in the beleaguered US automobile industry to move towards smaller, more environmentally friendly, cars as customers abandon large SUV's.

GM is now majority-owned by the US government since it emerged from bankruptcy on July 10, 2009. - AFP