1953 Chevrolet Pickup-short Bed-california Truck-1949-1950-1951-1952-1954- on 2040-cars

Auto blog

How real is the Chevy Bolt EV and will it really cost $30,000?

"This is us bragging that we can do this kind of car." That's how Michael Simcoe, GM's executive director for NA exteriors, described the Chevy Bolt EV concept, which made a surprise appearance at the Detroit Auto Show today. While there was talk of a 2017 production debut, this is for sure a concept vehicle. But that means the ideas behind the vehicle are perhaps more important than the details. For example, no one is talking about what size battery might appear in a production Bolt, but Simcoe would talk about how rapid progress in battery improvements made it possible for GM to make the bold Bolt declaration that promises 200 miles and a price tag of around $30,000 (after incentives). But if the Bolt makes it to market, it won't be until 2017 (as rumored) or later, is it really fair to promote the car as being available with a federal tax credit? For one thing, credits for plug-in vehicles may change in the next few years, but if the laws stay the same, each manufacturer is limited to 200,000 vehicles before the credits start to decline. GM is justifiably proud that it's sold over 70,000 Volts thus far, but with a new model coming out later this year and a few years to go until the Bolt potentially arrives, GM could be pushing right up against that 200,000 limit when the Bolt goes on sale. But Volt executive chief engineer Pam Fletcher told AutoblogGreen that, "We're just trying to take some of the confusion out." "Think about talking to the average consumer," she said. "First, going through the explanation of how the federal tax credit was set up, how it's being used and so on. [In the industry, we] have the luxury of understanding the nuances of that regulation, but right now people who aren't in the marketplace, they don't have the luxury of all that. It's already hard to communicate the details so we gave them data in a way that is what they're used to seeing." There was one question that drove the two-year Bolt gestation and design period, Simcoe said: What does a better battery offer a vehicle designer? "We've got a number of spaces we play in for powertrain technology and obviously electrification is one of them," he said. "With Volt 1 and then the Spark EV, with that development and batteries getting better for us, we started doing some practical packaging to deliver a vehicle which was not the traditional aero form which you see around electric vehicles.

2021 Cadillac Escalade, GMC Yukon, Chevy Suburban/Tahoe recalled for stall risk

General Motors is recalling just shy of 15,000 2021 Cadillac Escalade & Escalade ESVs, Chevrolet Suburbans and Tahoes, GMC Yukons and Yukon XLs that were shipped with fuel pumps that were built with a batch of what may be faulty electronic control modules. A pump with a bad module can result in intermittent function, resulting in drivability issues and potential stalls. No serious incidents or injuries have been associated with the issue.  GM says it discovered the issue after analyzing early recall data for the 2021 model SUVs and discovering an unusually high failure rate for fuel pumps manufactured by a single supplier – Vitesco. The company was able to identify the batch and initiate a recall campaign targeting just those vehicles.  "After reviewing the field data, GM determined there were 617 potentially relevant complaints, which were received between April 15, 2020 and August 24, 2021," the company's recall report said. "229 of these complaints reported a stall while standing or moving. No accidents or injuries associated with this condition were found." Any SUVs built with pumps from that batch but not yet sold are being held at dealers for replacement parts. It may take some time for GM to source replacements due to the ongoing electronic parts shortages.  "We are working with the supplier to obtain the required parts as quickly as possible," GM said in its notice to dealers. "When sufficient quantity of parts are available, the recall bulletin will be released and dealers can begin repairing vehicles."

Stolen '57 Chevy Returned To Owner After 30 Years

Three decades after it was stolen, a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air has been returned to a Northern California man - in better shape than when he originally owned it. The Santa Rosa Press Democrat reports Ian "Skip" Wilson was shocked to get a call from the California Highway Patrol informing him that his long-lost Chevy was taken off an Australia-bound cargo ship. The 65-year-old says the car has had a lot of work done on it since it disappeared from his Lake County home in 1984. It was returned with a monogrammed interior, 17-inch racing wheels, rack-and-pinion steering and a 350-horsepower V-8 engine. The retired mechanic says the two-door was in sorry shape when he bought it for $375 in 1975 with plans for fixing it up. Related Gallery 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Test Drive View 9 Photos Weird Car News Chevrolet Safety