GM Claims 100 Miles-a-Gallon Volt `Bragging Rights'
By Jeff Green

Sept. 26 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp. reached a preliminary agreement with U.S. regulators to certify the Chevrolet Volt, an electric vehicle that can be recharged at home or with a 1.4-liter gasoline engine, as the first 100 mile- per-gallon car, the company said.

The country's biggest automaker, whose sales of pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles collapsed this year as gasoline topped $4 a gallon, is cutting the mileage deal while urging Congress to approve $25 billion in government loans to help the industry meet new federal fuel-economy standards.

Earning a 100 mpg certification would give Detroit-based GM the holy grail auto companies began seeking following the oil shocks of the 1970s. The Environmental Protection Agency agreed to a testing method that will produce a rating at least that high, said Tony Posawatz, 48, vehicle-line director for the Volt in Warren, Michigan. The four-passenger car, which goes on sale in November 2010, will be able to travel 40 miles (64 kilometers) before the internal-combustion engine needs to recharge the battery.

``It's a huge milestone to beat 100 mpg. It's bragging rights,'' said Rebecca Lindland, an analyst at Global Insight Inc. in Lexington, Massachusetts. ``To many people, GM is just about gas-guzzling SUVs. They never get credit for fuel economy. If Toyota were doing the Volt, they would be having parades and waving flags.''

While the Volt is classified as an electric car, GM will still be able to claim it's the most fuel-efficient vehicle on the road because the gasoline-powered generator will start after the sedan exceeds the battery's 40-mile range.

`Final Policy'

The EPA won't confirm how it gauges fuel economy of plug-in models until testing methodology is complete, spokeswoman Catherine C. Milbourn said in a statement. The agency ``hopes to have a final policy soon,'' she said.

Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...bsIcU&refer=us