I had planned to sit down and do the math today on the Chevrolet Volt's economics now that Government Motors has announced the sticker price of $41,000. And let me add, that I think that's going to be low after destination charges, dealer markups, and if you want any options like, oh, leather seats (and leather seat warmers for those cold days that will cut the range substantially so they probably aren't even available). But I digress.
I was going to do the math but (Hat Tip Instapundit) someone else already did it for me.
The bottom line (emphasis original):
Under these assumptions, best case (all electric Volt miles), you save $915/year driving the Volt. To gain back your $10,000 price premium, you will have to drive the Volt for 9.3 years, 1.3 year longer than the battery warranty.
After driving GM’s new, plug-in electric Chevy Volt, Late Night funnyman Jay Leno quipped that “if you didn’t know, you might think it’s a Cobalt” — a reference to GM’s pedestrian, $15-grand, entry-level small car.
Ouch. Who would buy a $41,000 Cobalt? Or even a $33,500 Cobalt (federal tax credit included).
Does this mean no leather seat option?


