[jyl]

The Volt gets appx 4 miles per kWH for the first 40 miles, then appx 40 mpg until the battery is recharged. At 11 cents/kWH the first 40 miles will cost appx 3 cents a mile. At $4 per gallon the subsequent miles will cost appx 10 cents a mile. Meanwhile a conventional Audi that gets 25 miles per gallon will cost appx 16 cents per gallon.

So, in one scenario, suppose you drive 40 miles per day, all on battery. In the Volt it will cost $1.20. In the Audi it will cost $6.40. Over 365 days/year for 8 years, that is about $15,200 difference.

In another, suppose you drive 100 miles per day. In the Volt it costs $7.20, in the Audi it costs $16.00. Over 8 years, appx $27,000 difference.

Ignoring maintenance costs. The Volt is a Chevy, the Audi is an Audi, neither is a reassuring nameplate in that regard. Also ignoring the longevity of the battery because I don't know what it is - note though that after 8 years an Audi is likely to have some significant needed work too.

So, plug in your own driving habits and the MPG of your Audi/whatever to see what the economics are.

Obviously if you are comparing the Volt to a Yaris (cheap car with good MPG) the economics will never favor the Volt. If you are comparing it to a mid size Audi (expensive car with so-so MPG) then the economics may well favor the Volt. I don't know for sure which I'd compare it to, as I've never seen a Volt.

My gut feeling, from the *vague* impression I have of the Volt's performance, amenities, styling, etc, is that at $40,000, the Volt would be overpriced. $30,000 to $35,000 would make more sense. Basically I don't see why a Volt should be priced higher than a plug-in Prius which is likely to be in the $30,000 range.