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Originally Posted by Ragnarok Warrior
Thats what I meant by "today's technology". I didn't realize that the Volt had switched to parallel drive. The one I drove last April was brought up by the GM reps and was only driven by the electric motor and charged by the gasser.
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Every production Volt has the power split capability. GM came out with some statement about how they had not lied when they earlier had stated that the was no mechanical connection whatsoever between engine and wheels. But in fact the connection is like the Prius, where the power is split. You can say for the Prius that there is no direct connection, no single transmission shaft between engine and wheels, but you'd be stretching the truth... a lot.
It would be like lifting one wheel of a car with an open differential of the ground and applying power. "See... no movement. Therefore, there is no direct mechanical connection." Seems to me this is beyond a stretch of the truth.
But all the Volts, when at high speed and as required, power the wheels partially with the engine, via gearing.
Exclusive: Chevrolet Volt Chief Engineer Explains Volt Drivetrain, Says "Volt is an Electric Vehicle" | PluginCars.com
Motor Trend Explains the Volt’s Powertrain
From motor trend:
"Markus liked driving the car and he noted he was surprised about the direct mechanical connection."
GM flavors it this way so people have a harder time saying they lied: "GM says the engine never drives the wheels all by itself, but will participate in this particular situation in the name of efficiency,"
As you experienced, most people selling them had no idea there was this connection.
Another oddity I learned (?)** from a driver/promoter: the Volt does not charge up the battery when the engine is on. It simply keeps the battery at a low charge level***. This person was surprise when I told him that my Zing had gained charge on the way into Atlanta one day*. I guess that is what the "mountain" mode is about with the Volt. This if turned on before reaching mountains will increase the battery charge level, so you can climb the mountain without the performance falling off too much.
*This seems to me to be the way it should be, and actually, I'd have to make things more complicated if I wanted to avoid charging up the battery. Why on earth would I want to do that??
** I am not absolutely certain it is really this way -- but he's an electrical engineer and pretty convincing.
*** As I think about it, maybe this is one reason for the poor fuel efficiency. This would lead to a lot of short cycles, or a lot of time spent at less than full load -- neither on optimal.