2011 Chevrolet Volt could receive 25% electric range increase

GM has been making a racket about how the Volt has an electric range of “upto 40 miles” before the 1.4 litre turbo-charged petrol engine kicks in, giving an extra 300 mile range but that may all change....

With GM filing essential paperwork with the federal government, information is leaking out at how GM may buoy up its claimed range of 40 miles to 50 miles on electric power. GM hasn’t previously hinted at extending the range beyond 40 miles since the concept was first launched in early 2007.

In the paperwork, GM wrote: "When powered only from electricity stored in its 16-kWh lithium-ion battery; the Chevrolet Volt has a typical range of 25-50 miles depending on terrain, driving technique, temperature and battery age."

When GM-Volt came across this statement they reached out to GM spokesman Rob Peterson. Peterson said, "We've always said up to 40. But now we tweaked the EV range to from 25 to 50."

Peterson clarified that the change comes after a million plus miles have been recorded with the Volt, and the engineers were confident that the change was real-world possible with a fuel conscious driver. "A conservative driver under ideal conditions will get more than 40 miles,” Peterson said. “We don’t often highlight this potential to go beyond 40.″