[jamesqf]

Originally Posted by cbaber

My point is that cars like the Prius and Volt have attracted a group of people that drive them to be seen in them, rather than appreciate their economical value.

But it's not about economy, in the sense of spending as little as possible on driving. If that's your aim, you buy an old Geo Metro, CRX HF, or similar. It's about reducing petroleum use and CO2 emissions.

The Volt was not meant to be some upscale luxury car.

Yes it is an upscale luxury car - the luxury in this case being not using much gas - just as the Teslas are luxury cars, or the first cell phones & PCs were luxury goods. And while I'm not privy to GM's internal strategy meetings, anyone who'd thought about it would realize that it would HAVE to be a luxury car (in the above sense). It's new technology, which costs money to develop and produce. Unless you think it would be ok for the government to supply even more subsidies for each car sold, it has to be sold at a price that reflects a good part of the cost.

The Volt was meant to be the American electric car that proved EV can be practical and within reach of normal drivers.

So what exactly do you consider normal? There are a good many people out there who willingly spend upwards of $40K on their new cars.

Any private company that was not bought out by the government, and did not receive taxpayer money to develop, build, and sell this car would have stopped production and discontinued the model by now.

By that logic, Toyota should have discontinued the Prius after a year or two, Honda should likewise have given up on its hybrids. This is nothing more than the same old short-term, next quarter's bottom line is all that matters thinking that has screwed up a lot of American business.