http://www.time.com/time/specials/20...670578,00.html
Quote:
No one would mistake Chris Paine for a General Motors shill. In his 2006 documentary Who Killed the Electric Car?, the filmmaker laid out a ****ing case against GM for unplugging the EV1, the electric vehicle it manufactured in the 1990s and then discontinued in 2003, preferring instead to produce high-margin but gas-guzzling trucks and SUVs. "They were a technological leader, and they fumbled that leadership away," Paine says. Ask him about the U.S. carmaker now, though, and Paine sounds almost admiring. "Their new hybrids are making a difference, and their plug-in technology is a real advance," he says. "GM is making some really good moves now."
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A nice read and other than a little premature, it should have come out as the new two-mode hybrids started hitting the showroom floors, and reflects an opinion that has merit. Understand that I have some reservations about 'first model year' and 'complexity.'
It is very, very difficult to bring out a new product with a large number of new parts. Although key technologies were tested in the hybrid busses, the ultimate integration and test happens in the hands of customers.
GOOD LUCK!
Bob Wilson