The General Motors Canada Chevy Volt

I had the pleasure of taking the Chevy Volt (electric car) and the Equinox (fuel cell) for a quick test drive (within the enclosed range of the parking lot of the Vancouver Planetarium) thanks to an invite by Wilcox PR and General Motors Canada. I’m not a specialist in energy nor in transportation, but I *am* an environmental policy wonk.

So, I gladly took the invite. I love driving (yes, all of you grasroots treehuggers can start throwing stones at me) and I rarely do it enough (despite our Translink’s sometimes horrendous transit service, I remain a loyal customer). From the notes I took, I learned that for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games, General Motors as the official vehicle provider committed 8 fuel cell vehicles to the flotilla.

The Volt will be available in Canada in 2011 (and in the US at the end of 2010). Obviously, I asked the question – “why did the electric car never take off”. So Tony Pozawatz, Tom Odell and the rest of the crew took some time to explain to me a few pieces and bits about the size of the battery, the chemistry behind the electric car’s generation process and the upcoming movie “The Revenge of the Electric Car”.

Thanks to GM Canada for giving me the chance to test both vehicles. I do need to learn more about the possibility of a hydrogen highway, the chemistry and physics of both the electric car and the fuel cell car. All I can say is, I loved both cars, and I love the possibility of reducing our carbon footprint and switching to alternative, more sustainable energy sources.

Disclosure: I was given an opportunity to drive both the Equinox and the Volt as part of a media/blogger relations program initiated by Wilcox PR on behalf of General Motors Canada. Everything you read on this post is my own, unbiased opinion. I have not been paid to post this, nor received compensation of any sort. In any review I write or publish on my site, I retain editorial control at all times. Should you have any questions/concern feel free to contact me via e-mail through my contact form.

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