2014 Chevrolet Traverse Ls on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Take a close look at the guts of the Chevy Volt battery, powertrain

Just how intimate would you like to get with the powertrain in a Chevy Volt? If you're anything like YouTube user d55guy, then spending a half hour filming yourself taking apart the battery pack, motor, inverter and more for a look inside sounds like your idea of fun. After all, this way you get to see the cooling system, the heavy safety kill switch and count up the individual cells in the battery modules. Fun! Turns out, we also enjoy languidly paced Volt dissection video goodness, and we think you might want to see it as well. So, we've embedded two videos below and if you don't have a better understanding of how the Volt is put together after watching them, well, at least you can't say we never tried to show you anything. Given that what's really happening here is the organized 'destruction' of an expensive and potentially dangerous object, let's talk safety. There's a serious disclaimer at the beginning of the videos and on the YouTube description page, but we feel the need to repeat the gist of it here: do not try this at home. The creator of the video says he is a trained engineer and has been doing things like this "for the better part of a decade," so he apparently knows what he's doing. With that in mind, watch it all below. When you're done seeing the insides of a Volt powertrain up close, if you need more filmed EV dissection/destruction, check out this video designed for first responders approaching a damaged Tesla Model S. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Chevy Volt has worst sales month since August 2011, Nissan Leaf also down

January is traditionally a time when new car shoppers take a break. For the last few years, if we isolate our focus to just the first two major plug-in cars in the US market, we see that the first month of the year was lower – often dramatically lower – than the 11 that followed. So, when you see the Chevy Volt dropped and Nissan Leaf sales figures for January 2015, don't be too surprised. The Volt sold only 542 units last month, that model's lowest since August 2011. That also represents a 41 percent drop from January 2014, and it reinforces the thought that if anyone out there is interested in a new Volt, they're going to be waiting for the new model to drop later this year. While we do expect sales to climb in February and into spring, we won't be surprised if the general Volt trend remains quiet until the second-generation arrives. On the Leaf side of the ledger, January's low sales numbers were still about twice as high as the Volt's – the Leaf sold 1,070 units last month, the lowest since February 2013 – but it did break a streak for the Japanese automaker. Usually, each month represents at least an increase over the same month a year ago, but that wasn't the case this time. In January 2014, Nissan sold 1,252 Leafs. Still, Brendan Jones, Nissan's director of electric vehicle sales and infrastructure, issued an upbeat statement: "We saw a significant increase in demand in December from Nissan Leaf customers looking to take advantage of federal and state incentives at the end of the tax year, which pulled some sales ahead. We're confident that EV sales will continue to rise over time due to increasing emission regulations and other reasons for purchase of EVs such as lower operating costs, reducing dependence on foreign energy sources, environmental concerns and a great driving experience." The numbers will tell us soon enough. News Source: General Motors, Nissan Green Chevrolet Nissan Electric Hybrid ev sales brendan jones

Seized drug dealer's Corvette Z06 joins Texas police fleet

A police department in Texas caused a stir after they posted pictures of their hot new ride on social media last week. This 2007 Corvette Z06 with dark-tinted windows once belonged to a drug dealer, but was seized in a DEA raid. The feds awarded the Corvette to the New Braunfels Police Department for their help in bringing down the drug distribution ring in the area. When police posted images of the car on their Facebook page, some followers were angry that tax dollars were spent on such an extravagant car. New Braunfels PD were quick to defend themselves. "To be clear, this vehicle was awarded to NBPD as part of an asset distribution from the Federal DEA criminal case of a large drug distribution ring in our area," the New Braunfels PD wrote on their Facebook page. "NBPD was instrumental in helping bring down that drug enterprise. Property seized during the course of an investigation is only awarded to the law enforcement agency after a court has determined that the suspect was involved in criminal activity and the proceeds (money) from that activity (i.e dealing drugs) paid for the items seized. Therefore, no property is given to a law enforcement agency prior to the investigation being completed and tried in a court of law." With a 505 horsepower V8 engine this murdered-out Corvette could outrun most speeders and getaway drivers. As is often the case in instances such as this, however, the 'Vette will be used in community outreach programs rather than as an active-duty cruiser. The department is currently holding a contest asking kids between 8 and 16 years old to find a name for the sports car. Currently, the most liked name is 'Optimus Crime'. A final winner will be chosen by the department on September 22. The kid who picks the name will earn bragging rights, plus a ride in the Corvette when its unveiled at the Comal County Fair Parade this weekend. Related Video: