With the release of Chevrolet Bolt EV, which would be responsible for earning the lion's share of GM's ZEV credits, the Volt program in the United States became very hard to justify. Essentially, as ZEV requirements become stricter, the financial benefits GM sees from building PHEVs decreases. However, even if Corporate Average Fleet Economy (CAFE) standards and ZEV credit system remain in place (which is no longer even certain), a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) such as the Volt provides GM with increasingly fewer ZEV credits over time. The only thing that was saving the Volt from what would have normally been an easy decision to cancel the program were the zero emission vehicle (ZEV) credits that offset GM's cost for building the Volt. These complicated supply chains made it difficult to build Volts profitably, and as a low-volume, low-margin vehicle, it was destined for the chopping block. The Chevrolet Volt is extremely complex and expensive to build, and its supply chain looked like someone threw a pile of spaghetti noodles onto a map of Michigan that spilled off onto the rest of the Midwest. Through that lens, maintaining the Volt and Voltec programs made absolutely no sense. Regardless of their affinity for a brand, concept, or vehicle, they have to demonstrate to their investors either immediate profits or – at the very least – a pathway to profitability. While GM is often painted as an evil corporation bent on the destruction of humanity, the reality is that they are a profit-driven company that owes primary allegiance to its investors.
However, I will also explain what GM did wrong by cancelling the Volt program in the way they did and what they could have (and should have) done differently. In this story, I will explain why GM was right to end the Volt program, their reasons for not applying the Voltec powertrain to other platforms, and the reasons the electric vehicle community shouldn't be concerned about GM "killing" their electric cars. However, from an objective viewpoint, GM's decision to cancel the Volt and the Voltec program was correct. These accusations gained additional traction thanks to GM's not having an immediate, plug-in replacement for the Volt. Thanks to a fervent and vocal anti-GM enclave of the EV community, the Volt's cancellation prompted renewed claims that GM was – once again – attempting to "kill" the electric car. As a Chevy Volt owner for over seven years, I completely understand why many Volt owners are upset at the news that GM was cancelling the Volt and not pursuing any other Voltec-based vehicle platforms.
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