Chevrolet supersizes Volt with MPV5 concept
Chevrolet has taken the yet-unreleased Volt extended-range electric vehicle in an odd direction for the Chinese market, making it bigger and less efficient with the newly revealed Volt MPV5 concept.
- North American Car, Truck and SUV of the Year (NACTOY) Awards Juror
Chevrolet has taken the yet-unreleased Volt extended-range electric vehicle in an odd direction for the Chinese market, making it bigger and less efficient with the newly revealed Volt MPV5 concept. The concept takes the styling cues of the Volt sedan that we're already familiar with and super-sizes it into a five-seat crossover.
The Volt MPV5 is only 0.6 inches longer in wheel base, but overall it is 7 inches longer than the sedan version. Height has been increased by about 7 inches and width has spread by 2.9 inches. The result is a vehicle that gives its five passengers a bit more elbow room.
Under the hood is the same Voltec powertrain consisting of a 111 kW (150 horsepower) electric motor that twists the Volt MPV5's front wheels to the tune of 273 pound-feet of torque. Electric power is supplied by the same T-shaped 16 kWh lithium ion battery that juices the sedan, but the heavier MPV5's EV range has been reduced to 32 miles (down from the 40-mile zero emission range of the Volt sedan).
Once the battery is exhausted, a 1.4-liter gasoline range extender takes over supplying electricity and keeping the electric powertrain spinning until the battery can be plugged in and recharged.
"The Volt MPV5 concept demonstrates the flexibility of the Voltec propulsion system, which can produce enough electric power to propel a range of vehicles. from a compact sedan like the Volt to a crossover like the Volt MPV5 concept," said Doug Parks, global vehicle line executive and global vehicle chief engineer for electric vehicles at GM.
The Volt MPV5 is still in the conceptual phase of development, with no solid details being given on when the vehicle will be available in the Chinese market or if such a vehicle will be sold in the North American market. Considering that the original Volt sedan hasn't hit the streets of Detroit yet, we can assume it'll be some time before the MPV5 hits the streets of Beijing.