Chevy Volt: Hardly an American Revolution
Toyota’s Prius continues to be a target of vandalism and violence in California, stemming from what many believe to be political and passionate disdain for what the Prius represents. On the other side of that coin, numerous anti-SUV sites have dotted the internet landscape for some time, most notably: the site FUH2.com, where visitors are encouraged to submit photos of Hummer H2s with a middle finger extended in the photo. People behaving badly. It just happens, regardless of science, fact, studies, or intent.
Hybrid vehicles can be discussed from a lot of different angles– is the technology better? is there savings for the owner? is there a reduction in emissions? is the design of these vehicles enough to capture the public’s affection? That last question is the one that fascinates me the most, because of how much perception matters towards a cultural shift.
Some people do care about the environment and emissions, and others are purely interested in savings at the pump (or the use of it at all). Everything can be a by-product of everything else. Design and style are factors in this as well.
Chevy’s new Camaro is a sight to behold. A tough-looking performance car, with design styling and attitude that hearkens back to the muscle car era– improved for the 21st century. Ford is doing this with their new Mustangs and Dodge is entering the game as well with the Charger and Challenger– except none of these are hybrids. It’s quite possible they never will be, and perhaps hybrid-izing these would be the curse of the PG-rated action flick. Macho-looking, but weak. Poserish.
With the Chevy Volt, the opportunity to stand out was thought to be upon us! Often I’ve thought of replacing my Chevy Truck with something sportier, but I remember that– any day now– something sexy and future-laced will come along. I could see myself handing over the keys to my truck and taking control of something new; something with no heritage; something with actual design and style that blows the other players on the field back to the design lab.
Nope. Chevy couldn’t do either.
Photos were leaked of the 2011 Chevy Volt, which was called ‘an accident’ by officials at GM. Remember that gorgeous, muscular, eco-weapon-from-the-future we’ve been seeing for years from the Detroit Auto Show? To paraphrase Obi-wan, this isn’t the Chevy you’re looking for:
The 2011 Volt. Looks. Like. A. Prius. (Even Honda’s Insight is looking painfully like the Prius). There’s no ‘American Revolution’ there, not in spirit, not up against the Camaro or the other muscle cars.
In cruising the message boards, loyalists to Chevy and other brands in the bow-tie family compare it to the Malibu or other cars– yet I maintain that it looks enough like the Insight/Prius/Econobox to be generically thrown into the category of ‘things that will be keyed for what they represent’.
And worse– the part that makes me resent the whole design process– is that it’s SO far removed from the concept shown in Detroit–something which might have started the fracturing of the delicate cycle of ‘expensive to build/no one buys/they look totally silly’. The concept Volt had BALLS. It looked mean, evil, futuristic. It would be #2 on the road behind the 100 kajillion dollar Tesla (a lesson in extremes in the opposite direction). It might make the eco-friendly car somewhat COOL. And maybe that coolness (something certainly going well for the iPod–a device not as feature rich as other products on the market) would trickle down to the other cars. After all, why is it so hard to sell the concept of electric vehicles without the sissy factor? Why can’t we have great design AND great engineering in next-generation cars? It might help sell the damn things– in concept, perception, and lifestyle.
A bolt of lightning? That’s exciting, that’s dangerous! The CARTOON CHARACTER, Lightning McQueen– (KACHOW) from Disney’s Cars has more style. The electric concept has so much flexibility, and yet, the automakers are continuing to pump out the dainty and practical, with little regard for bold, daring style (the design changes from year to year in almost any brand of car are embarrassing across the board. Ooh, a new turn signal design. Yay. Which will be lost on people who don’t USE turn signals).
Is it superficial or shallow to consider the design of a car? Maybe, although, wanting a hybrid to save some cash at the pumps (face it, we finance higher priced things and don’t feel it day-to-day) is selfish too, with some good side effects. We have a long history of LOVING our cars. The automobile for many is a far greater thing than just simple utility. It’s the second most expensive purchase behind your home– and a lot of pieces must fall into place– aesthetics are a huge part of that.
The simple act of coming up with AMAZING design could kickstart next generation thinking and perceptions in automakers and the buying public alike (especially those of us that adore cars beyond simple utility).
The only thing I gained from the leaked photos of the Volt, was the benefit in getting a head start in seeing an utterly de-evolutionized execution of a great and mighty could-have-been. And personally, it could have very well been my next car… now, it’s completely off the list.