General Motors Co sees limited sales of electric cars over the next five years and will ramp up output of its much-anticipated Volt plug-in cautiously, the automaker's vice-chairman said on Wednesday.
"This is uncharted territory for all of us," Bob Lutz told reporters at the Los Angeles auto show.
GM unveiled the production version of the Chevy Volt at the show, a battery-powered car set to launch at the end of 2010 that has become a symbol for the automaker's effort to reinvent itself over the past four years.
Lutz said GM would build 8,000 to 10,000 Volt models during the first full year of production with an eventual ramp up to production of 50,000 to 60,000 units.
"I'm absolutely sure that demand will not be a limiting factor," Lutz said.
But Lutz said electric-powered vehicles such as the Volt still faced hurdles in making it to mass-market sales volumes, including their higher prices.
"The cost of the technology has to come down," Lutz said.
Most American consumers will be unwilling to spend the premium of thousands of dollars for a battery-powered vehiclesunless gas prices are pushed higher with taxes, Lutz said.
"We're not advocating that but if it doesn't happen it's going to be very difficult for these technologies," he said.
GM has said it expects to price the Volt near $40,000 before a $7,500 tax credit for U.S. consumers but does not expect to make money on early sales.
The automaker said on Wednesday it would offer the first Chevy Volt models for sale in California, a step that would signal its return to a market it was criticized for abandoning earlier this decade.
Full story
