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Next Gen Volt to Be $7,500 Cheaper

American manufacturer GM has been selling the Volt for a full month now in the US, and the numbers couldn't have been better (326 units sold in December). The car maker's executives are happy, the customers haven't complained so far, so the model is likely to turn into a hit.

But, as is the case with any good thing, Volt's days on Earth are numbered. The car maker will replace it, eventually, with a better, cheaper second generation. The catch is that the new generation in under five years away. Why is that a catch?

GM predicts that gen-2 Volt will be around $7,500 cheaper than the current model (priced at $41,000). By the time it gets here, much of the infrastructure will be in place and ready to use, while the new Volt itself will be better than this one. And all this poses a few questions.

Why buy the Volt now, when it is obviously an expensive test mule for future technologies? Why buy the Volt when the infrastructure is just being created? Why not go for a hybrid, for instance?

Keep in mind that the world of the EVs is something entirely different than the world of the automobile when it comes to price. When a new generation of any given model arrives on the market, it is only a few hundred dollars cheaper than the model it replaces (it can be, at times, more expensive).

In the case of the EVs, the differences will be significant, given the fast pace of development in battery manufacturing and related technologies. And this is why, from one perspective, buying an EV today might not such a great idea, if we take into account all the alternatives at the buyers' disposal.

So, we dare ask, what do you think: is it a good idea to buy the Volt (or the Leaf, for that matter) today, at high prices at with the risk of finding no plugs for miles? Or should we wait a few more years until the cars get cheaper and charging stations spread out?
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About the author: Daniel Patrascu
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Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies.
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