2010 LA: Chevrolet Volt wins 2011 Green Car of the Year

November 18, 2010 Omar Rana 2010 LA Auto Show, 2011 Chevrolet Volt, Compact Cars, electric-cars, electric-vehicles, Green Car Challenge, plug-in hybrids

The 2011 Chevrolet Volt is raking up awards. After being announced the 2011 Motor Trend Car of the Year, the Volt was most recently award 2011 Automobile of the Year by Automobile magazine. Today at the 2010 LA Auto Show, the 2011 Chevrolet Volt was named Green Car Journal”s Green Car of the Year.

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“This has been a long time coming,” said Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of Green Car Journal and editor of GreenCar.com. “The electric vehicles that were test marketed in the 1990s tantalized us, but were without a solid business case. What a difference a decade makes.”

“The Green Car of the Year award validates the Chevrolet team’s promise to deliver a practical electric vehicle,” said Joel Ewanick, General Motors vice president, U.S. Marketing, who drove a Volt 2,394 miles from Detroit to the Los Angeles International Auto Show, where he accepted the award Thursday. “The Volt’s a transformational technology that will lead our industry into a new age of vehicle electrification.”

The Volt beat out other finalists including the Ford Fiesta, Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, Lincoln MKZ Hybrid, and Nissan LEAF.

Refresher: The 2011 Chevrolet Volt is powered by 16-kWh, “T”-shaped lithium-ion battery that powers the electric drive unit, which allows it to drive 40 miles on battery power alone. The system puts out 149-hp and a maximum torque of 273 lb-ft, allowing the Volt to go from 0-60 mph in about 9 seconds, hitting a top speed of 100 mph. The battery can be re-charged by plugging into a household outlet and takes 4 hours to recharge on 240 volts, and about 10-12 hours on a standard 120-volt outlet. The Chevrolet Volt also carries an 84-hp 1.4 4-clyinder engine that allows the five-door, FWD sedan to travel additional miles while averaging a fuel-economy of 50 mpg. A fully charged battery and full tank of gas will allow the Volt to travel 310 miles. Prices for the 2011 Chevrolet Volt start at $41,000 but with a full federal income tax credit (which range from $0 to $7,500), the Volt can cost a total of $33,500.