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In my estimation, GM has timed this 2nd attempt at EV a bit prematurely. They may have had extra motivation to redeem themselves from EV1, or are simply trying to get a first mover advantage to associate the brand when the market shifts rapidly. There's little to no profit in it at the moment though, and especially when operating at a $7,500 disadvantage from everyone else save for Tesla.
My guess is Toyota has positioned themselves just about ideally. Their RAV4 Prime has the minimum sized battery to qualify for the full federal tax credit, meaning the battery that probably cost them $2,500 is being subsidized for that cost plus $5,000 more. It goes 40 miles on EV, gets 40 MPG in hybrid mode, and has 300 horsepower. It's about the least cost to build a compelling vehicle to extract the maximum credit.
When full EV becomes profitable, Toyota will then be able to jump in. In the meantime, plug-in hybrids are the logical transition technology.
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