For several months now rumors have been rampant about an electric vehicle that General Motors would unveil at the Detroit Auto Show. That vehicle is now real, in the form of the Chevrolet Volt. The Volt is the first vehicle application of the GM's new E-Flex platform. Volt is a C-Class sized four door sedan roughly the size of a Cobalt.

In spite of the presence of an internal combustion engine, GM does not call this vehicle a hybrid. In fact, they consider it an EV with range extending capability. The engine is a turbocharged, 1.0L three cylinder engine with 71 hp that has no mechanical connection to the wheels. The ICE runs at about 1800 rpm and drives a 53 kW generator that charges the lithium ion battery pack. The engine starts and stops automatically as needed to charge the battery.

All the detailed information you've been waiting for on the Volt is after the jump. Click on the photo above of the small images below to enter the high-resolution gallery with 27 pics.

It's no secret there are secrets in the automotive industry. Those of us who write about cars and deal with automakers are sometimes given embargoes - we get the information about a product or a new car, but we're not allowed to divulge that information until a certain time in the future. This sort of stuff happens all the time with new car models and the time before large car shows are especially embargo-heavy.

So, we're sitting on a few posts that we can't show you just yet (soon, soon), but I can tell you this: GM's new plug-in hybrid is called the Chevrolet Volt. Why can I say this already? Because the New York Times spilled the beans. They're keeping most of the information under wraps - as requested by GM - but the name is loose. The automakers realize that once one news source breaks the embargo, then others cannot be punished for following suit - this is an industry where getting the information out quickly is important after all - so we're in the clear for discussing the Chevy Volt now.

Here's what the Times says (the article is dated tomorrow, so "today" means Sunday):
Today, more than a century later, General Motors will unveil an electric concept car, the Chevrolet Volt, which has created the most buzz in advance of the show. G.M. says the Volt, a plug-in hybrid, could deliver the equivalent of 150 miles a gallon. The Volt thus promises - at least in theory, given that it could not be produced without a leap in battery technology - three times the mileage of a Toyota Prius."

Check back later tonight as all the embargoes lift and we can freely post about the Chevy Volt and other new models. Exciting times, no?

[Source: New York Times]