MovieChat Forums > Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006) Discussion > GM more than doubling Volt workforce

GM more than doubling Volt workforce

posted 13 years ago by apeweek
7 replies | jump to latest

Good news for Detroit, from this Reuters article:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/20/idUS328174188020110520

Quote:
"By next year, GM believes it can sell as many as 60,000 Volts and Amperas, which is up from the initial estimate of 45,000. Eventually, GM thinks as many as 100,000 Voltec vehicles will roll off their assembly lines every year. GM plans to add 2,500 people to the assembly line building Volts, up from the 1,100 currently working on the extended-range hybrid. This news follows the breaking ground ceremony on GM's electric motor factory, which will be the first of its kind by a major automaker in the U.S."

[–] Bavarian 12 years ago

One year later...

GM has stopped production of the Volt / Ampera (German name) for five weeks.

http://www.handelsblatt.com/unternehmen/industrie/geringe-nachfrage-gm -setzt-produktion-von-volt-und-ampera-aus/6282782.html

GM setzt Produktion von Volt und Ampera aus

Vollbremsung bei General Motors: Der Opel-Mutterkonzern bleibt auf den teuren Elektroautos Volt und Ampera sitzen - und stoppt für fünf Wochen die Produktion. Der überproduzierte Bestand reicht noch Monate.

Wegen schleppender Verkäufe hält General Motors die Produktion seines Elektroautos Chevrolet Volt für fünf Wochen an. Die Bänder im Werk Hamtramck im Bundesstaat Michigan stünden zwischen dem 19. März und dem 23. April still, bestätigte ein GM-Sprecher am Freitag (Ortszeit). 1300 Mitarbeiter sind betroffen. ...

[–] apeweek 12 years ago

...GM has stopped production of the Volt / Ampera (German name) for five weeks.

And then restarting production again a week early because of record March sales:

http://idealab.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/04/gm-will-restart-chevy-vol t-production-one-week-early-uaw-reveals.php

[–] Bavarian 12 years ago

Good news. I like the Ampera.

[–] hitking 12 years ago

I seriously do NOT trust any news stories regarding the Volt anymore.

I've heard too many business types analyze the numbers and it always seems to be hyped up numbers which always over-indicate how well the Volt sales are going (to the general public). I know I never see any on the road.

Not that the GM numbers aren't 'put out there' in the same way.

I've just heard of too many gimmicks they can use to make it look like the PUBLIC is actually buying the cars, when they aren't.

[–] apeweek 12 years ago

...I seriously do NOT trust any news stories regarding the Volt anymore.

Well, I don't trust the media either, but probably not for the same reasons as you.

The public is indeed buying most of the Volts. According to Forbes magazine, only 160 of March's 2289 Volt purchases were fleet sales.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/dalebuss/2012/04/03/re-volting-development -volt-sales-mount-spring-surge/

The media, so far - in my opinion - is not putting sales of the Volt into the proper perspective.

Here on this page below is a breakdown of fuel efficient car sales for March (all hybrid, diesel, and electric models.)

http://www.hybridcars.com/news/march-2012-dashboard-44059.html

If you take Volt's number and put it into a list of all these cars, it's in fourth place - out of close to 100 cars. Only Toyota's two best hybrids and VW's best diesel are in front of it.

That doesn't make Volt a best seller - but it clearly has a secure spot in the efficient car marketplace. Plus a very positive sales trend - it will easily do two to three times its 2011 sales number this year.

[–] hitking 12 years ago

I doubt there were 2,129 arms length sales in March.

Channel Stuffing is always suspect, as has been done in the past.

[–] apeweek 12 years ago

April sales of Volt - just in: 1462 plus Ampera (European version) 557 sales, total 2019 sales. That's just a 12% drop from March.

Channel stuffing only works for a little while. You can't sustain sales numbers that way.