The Volt sizzles
By Michael Buhler
Sun editor
There are two things about the Chevy Volt you need to know: it is a purely electric car, and I plan to win the one being raffled off.
The Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail fundraising committee is conducting a raffle of a lovely Crystal Red Chevy Volt that can be seen at various ticket vendors around Glen Arbor. Ticket sales are limited to 1,200 of the $100 tickets, and should net $100,000. This, in turn, will be used to help pay a $400,000 fee due in September. With the fee paid, the Heritage Trail will be able to commence with the next segment of construction, a path leading south from the Dune Climb along M-109, which will connect Empire to the Dunes. The Heritage Trail will one day stretch 27 miles, from the Leelanau-Benzie County Line, north to Good Harbor.
Chevrolet has shown a strong commitment to the trail, and made a substantial contribution to the project. In conjunction with the annual Leelanau Conservancy Picnic and other local events, Chevrolet sent a Volt Team up north with several of the cars so that they could be shown off and test driven. Your dedicated reporter was among the test drivers of this technological marvel of transportation.
Nuts and bolts
“We’re here to show our support for the trail,” beamed Michelle Malcho, communications director for the Volt Team. Malcho introduced me to the car as we zipped about Glen Arbor, and let me assure you that by zip I mean this car moves like no golf cart, and is refreshingly silent. Recall that this is an all-electric vehicle. That means that 100 percent of the time power is applied to the wheels, it is done with electric motors, just like the electric cars of a century ago, a golf cart, or a Nissan Leaf. The difference is that the Volt has its own generator, an efficient gasoline engine that creates enough electricity to propel the car and power its accessories. When the batteries are low, the generator comes on and supplies the electricity.
This configuration is yet again different from a hybrid vehicle, where both the gasoline engine and the batteries share in powering the drivetrain. Through Chevy’s innovative approach, the Volt can achieve the equivalent of 98 miles per gallon (MPG) using its 40-mile battery range. Since “80 percent of Americans drive less than 40 miles each day,” according to Malcho, you would never need the gasoline, and at $1.20/charge for that 40-mile range, the economics are staggering: the Prius gets 50 miles per gallon, so the gasoline for 40 miles is upwards of $3.
Locally grown
Built exclusively in General Motors’ Hamtramck, Mich., plant, the Volt surely has local roots. And with battery cells from Brownstone, Mich., the assembled packs from Holland, Mich., the electric generating engine from Flint, Mich., and the body panels from Lansing, Mich., Malcho smiles when she says “this car really is Pure Michigan!”
Likewise, the trail is Pure Michigan, and the lucky winner of the cherry red Volt will be able to see the Dunes or visit its home in Hamtramck with the impressive 379-mile range. It is probably helpful to mention that the batteries have an eight-year warranty, that the sticker price starts at just under $40,000, and there is a $7,500 tax credit available.
So here we are, after a long drive down Northwood at varying speeds, in both normal and sport mode, and despite the two-mile round trip, have only used one mile of range. That MPG is impressive, yet when we run, hike and bike the trail, we burn calories, and that’s the best MPG of all.
Raffle tickets for the Volt may be purchased in Empire at Miser’s Hoard or Sleeping Bear Surf and Kayak; in Glen Arbor at Cherry Republic, the Cottage Book Shop, Crystal River Outfitters, or Leelanau Vacation Rentals, or online at www.sleepingbeartrail.org.
