General Motors has emerged from bankruptcy. To help the newly constituted General Motors start off on the right foot, I pass along the wisdom of Tom Swift from 1910.
In this excerpt from Tom Swift and His Electric Runabout, Tom and his father are talking in the machine shop:
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"Have you thought anything of the type of car you are going to build?" asked the aged inventor of his son.
"Yes, somewhat. It will be almost of the regulation style, but with two removable seats at the rear, with curtains for protection, and a place in front for two persons. This can also be protected with curtains when desired."
"But what about the motors and the battery?"
"They will be located under the middle of the car. There will be one set of batteries there, together with the motor, and another set of batteries will be placed under the removable seats in what I call the toneau, though, of course, it isn't really that. A smaller set well also be placed forward, and there will be ample room for carrying tools and such things."
"About how far do you expect your car will go with one charging of the battery?"
"Well, if I can make it do three hundred miles I'll be satisfied, but I'm going to try for four hundred."
"What will you do when your battery runs out?"
"Recharge it."
"Suppose you're not near a charging station?"
"Well, dad, of course those are some of the details I've got to work out. I'm planning a register gauge now, that will give warning about fifty miles before the battery is run down. That will leave me a margin to work on. And I'm going to have it fixed so I can take current from any trolley line, as well as from a regular charging station. My battery will be capable of being recharged very quickly, or, in case of need, I can take out the old cells and put in new ones."
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So, how does Tom's electric runabout compare to the Chevy Volt, which is scheduled to show up on the GM showrooms in 2011? (I am taking my Volt facts from the Green Car Journal's website.)
Powertrain
Tom Swift's runabout: Electric motor
Chevy Volt: The Volt is a plug-in electric vehicle propelled only by an electric motor. The small gasoline engine works strictly as a range-extending generator to recharge batteries and provide current to the electric motor.
Battery configuration:
Tom Swift's runabout: Batteries are located under the middle of the car.
Chevy Volt: The Volt's lithium-ion battery pack is a "T" shaped structure designed to evenly distribute weight down the center tunnel of the car and over the rear wheels.
Total Range:
Tom Swift's runabout: Design range of 400 miles
Chevy Volt: A full charge from household current will provide a maximum EV range of 40 miles. After battery power is depleted, the Volt should offer another 360 miles of range with the gasoline engine/generator providing the juice, for a total of 400 miles.
The two vehicles are very comparable. However, I would give Tom Swift's electric runabout the edge because of its ability to charge from a trolley line. GM needs to add this feature.
