Chevy Volt Sales Slump, Prompting GM to (a) Ask for More Taxpayer Handouts; and (b) Introduce New, Unsellable _Convertible_ Volt

"It’s electric unless you’re driving in it."
Need a $41,000 gas-electric-nuclear-and-coal-powered hybrid? Well, neither did everyone else in America.

Recent reports find that General Motors (GM) is lobbying for the passage of legislation by Michigan [Democrat] Senator Debbie Stabenow that would turn a $7,500 electric vehicle tax credit into a rebate that will be available to all consumers at the point of sale. It's been dubbed "Cash for Clunkers II".


...Apparently, Chevy is not pleased with its sales -- 321 units sold in January and 281 in February -- out of 30,000 cars made for 2011, and a planned 45,000 to be made in 2012... At that rate, just 3,600 of the cars will be sold this year, [only] 12 percent of the supply.

...Since GM's initial public offering in November, the government sponsored automaker has been desperate to boost overall sales on a monthly basis. As such, GM boosted buyer incentives for the past four months. GM's incentive spending averaged about $3,663 per vehicle in January, and $3,732 in February, more than $1,100 over the industry average.

...According to the CarConnection.com, "That's increased GM's market share - albeit at the expense of image, resale value, and even company profits - oddly, at a time when most other automakers have admitted that such a strategy doesn't make long-term business sense."

Since they can't sell units to actual customers, GM has convinced Barack Obama to buy costly, inefficient, ghastly vehicles on your dime.

Which also prompted the geniuses at GM to introduce a... yes, you asked for it... a Volt convertible.

Chevrolet has pulled off a surprise announcement with news that a 2-door convertible version of the brand’s Volt electric hybrid will come to market as early as this summer. Set to make its debut next month during the New York Auto Show, the Volt convertible will be powered by the same hybrid gas/electric powertrain found in the sedan. Power comes from a lithium-ion battery pack or, when extra range is needed, a generator connected to a 1.4-liter 4-cylinder engine. Range is approximately 40 miles in electric-only mode, with about 200 additional miles provided by the small-displacement engine...

...Unlike most modern power-top convertibles, the Volt’s is lowered and raised manually to conserve the vehicle’s pure electric range. The entire process is faster than a power system and a rigid tonneau easily pops into place over the folded top for a nice, clean and fuss-free design. The one hand operation also means the top can be lowered while the vehicle is in motion.

So its got that going for it.


Hat tip: Instapundit.