GM releases more details about the 2013 Chevrolet Spark EV
General Motors has released details of its pending pure electric vehicle, the Chevrolet Spark EV.
The electric car will be based on the small gas-engine Spark already offered. Its propulsion will delivered by an oil-cooled, permanent magnet motor that produces at least 100 kilowatts (130 horsepower) and instantaneous torque of about 400 pound-feet with the coaxial drive unit.
GM says the resulting acceleration for the 0-60 mph sprint will take less than eight seconds.
The Spark EV will come with an industry-first, a SAE combo charger. This will allow DC fast charging of up to 80 percent of battery capacity in approximately 20 minutes.
That capability will be available shortly after market launch, GM says, adding it will assist with effective daily EV range…
The Spark EV’s more than 20-kwh lithium-ion battery pack will be protected by Chevrolet’s eight year/100,000 mile warranty, and is said by GM to be capable of handling multiple DC fast charges daily.
Charging will also be possible in less than seven hours using a dedicated 240-volt charger. A 120-volt charge cord set will be standard.
Owners will be able to manage and monitor charging remotely using the Spark EV’s smart phone application, provided by OnStar…
Price is the kicker. Typical range for any small [or smallish] EV is 60-70 miles. That’s almost 3 days worth of commuting for my wife. Our weekend grocery shopping/errands fits, too. If the critter comes in at or below $20K – we’re first in line for Santa Fe County.
Holler at your Congress-critter to support Bernie Sanders' bill to 
I thought the power companies were already stressed to provide power, now they want us to charge our cars too? With the forced shutdown of coal powered plants, the denied permits for nuclear, what may I ask is out there to step up to the task of providing this extra needed power? Solar? Wind? Don’t make me laugh. Like it or not keep your oil burner. 70 miles in Florida doesn’t even get me my trip to work and back!
campfireshadows
November 20, 2012 at 1:25 pm
Look around through the last couple years of this blog – or most others concerned with technology. You’ll find your presuppositions mostly incorrect or out-of-date:
First, ain’t any shortage of electric power in the US. Power plants aren’t shutting down over changes from coal. They’re being converted for reasons of environmental and human health. In fact, once the changeover to natgas is accomplished, the cost of operation is reduced.
What’s wrong with laughter? I live in a state already exporting electricity. We’re coal-powered right now; but, the tech to continue that role from wind alone has existed for 20 years – and our state engineer’s office made that decision in the 1990′s. The changeover continues. We could also do the same with solar.
You have a 70 mile commute roundtrip? You have my sympathy. Fortunately, you have a home/work situation unlike the overwhelming majority of Americans. Distance for daily commutes continues to decrease for a range of reasons. At the highest number in the last few decades, that roundtrip was under 40 miles. Nowadays, it’s under 30 miles for most Americans.
god
November 20, 2012 at 3:13 pm
Reported averages from folks using almost exclusively electric power – Leaf, CODA, Tesla, Volt, etc. – with no change in commute, lifestyle, is roughly 1/6th of what they spent before making the switch.
Seems to me one of the basic considerations in this discussion is cost of operation. At least for the average working class American.
moss
November 20, 2012 at 3:31 pm
I am stunned. What country are you living in? No power shortage? That’s why we all have those stupid demand meters here now in Fl? Here, quit reading the Mother Earth News and read some real tech news.
5/23/12 AUSTIN, Texas (AP) – The operator of the electric distribution grid for most of Texas foresees potential electric power shortages over the next decade as record demand continues to grow. Texas has been denied the permits for building new plants for the last three years and has now lost a crucial power purchasing contract to California.
8/21/2012 (WSJ) As Forbes recently noted, since 1990, U.S. demand for power has risen 25%, whereas the infrastructure investment needed to support it grew by a mere 7%, With this kind of lagging infrastructure investment, you can bet on more power shortages to come.
The U.S. Department of Energy predicts that overall energy demand will grow by 45% between now and 2030. Since coal-fired utilities provide over 50 percent of the electricity generated in America, the need for additional plants would seem obvious but rather than build more, the EPA is doing its best to eliminate them. While Natural Gas fired plants are today’s darlings, the truth is they are twice as expensive as coal to operate and will take decades to build enough to compensate for the lost coal fired plants.
The running brownouts in California are testimony to what happens when there are an insufficient number of plants to generate electricity. Our nations electrical grid is severely over burdened and so out of date that many transformers can no longer withstand the higher draw that is required of them and must be run at reduced amperage output.
Don’t get me wrong, I actually would love to see electric auto’s. The problem is the Government is pushing a technology that is nowhere near ready or safe. Did you know that NO towing company is permitted here to tow an electric vehicle if it is involved in an accident? No insurance company here will cover the liability due to the possibility of a damaged battery. A battery should get the same mileage as a tank of gas. Not 1/5th. It can be done but we’re not there yet. Maybe in 20 or so years but surly not now. BTW, I drive rural America all the time. Do you comprehend just how big our land is and how far it is to drive? The country is not NY!
I lived in WV coal country for years. One does not ‘convert’ a coal fired plant to gas. You tear it down and start over. The idea of converting is harder than you think. If you’re such a tech person you’d know the difference between firing a boiler with coal is totally different than firing with gas. Apples and oranges. The only reusable part in a conversion is the actual generator, nothing else is convertible. I blame ALL the politicians for putting us in this predicament, not the green!
campfireshadows
November 20, 2012 at 5:18 pm
Get back when time, dude. You truly are out of date though if you think folks still rely on Mother Earth News for latest tech. Search for it here. :-]
WSJ and Forbes have agendas leftover from the 19th Century. I’d rather check Purdue or the Rocky Mountain Institute, thank you.
moss
November 20, 2012 at 5:25 pm
OK, I’m back from dental wars and, no, I’m not interested in reiterating everything I’ve researched and read over the past 55 years about the merits of various electrical power generation schemes. I worked in nuclear power, offshore oil, the “cleaning” of coal plants when we used to be able to get a lot better coal domestically – and even when [in Boston] we actually imported coal from Poland.
I wouldn’t use Forbes to clean the windshield on my pickup.
Google is your friend. Forbes is predicting $8 a unit for natgas. That will make members of my extended family who own a piece of a couple of farm-based wells in OK happy – but, they ain’t holding their breath on Forbes predictions. Take a look at a gas industry study – yes, of course, they’re biased – so are the clowns you quote: http://tinyurl.com/b8q8rsy
Someone in FL is going to tell someone in NM about rural or wide open spaces? Har! I take my pickup across the valley to ride my mountain bike on the Caja del Rio – the southern half is convenient. It’s 400 square miles with about 100 cows here and there for traffic. That’s rural. We have plenty of nuthin’ next to nuthin’.
Yes, firing a boiler with gas is different from coal. Right. You don’t have to spend weeks stockpiling coal based on futures. You can vary production according to load demand by computerized systems turning valves from the line to the nearest pipeline distribution complex. I not only know about the engineering, I worked in logistics for 15 years.
Again, Google is your friend. Try university engineering sources not the worst investment advice this side of Barrons. I’m not about to repeat years of experience and blogging. I respect your right to your opinion; but, as time goes by, I honestly think you will find yourself disappointed – and incorrect. And that’s OK if – like me and most of the regulars here – you haven’t a problem with learning from it.
eideard
November 20, 2012 at 6:35 pm