A few years ago, General Motors filed to protect the name “Chevy Crossvolt,” designated for a crossover sport utility vehicle based on the Chevy Volt extended-range electric vehicle (EREV).
In 2010, General Motors unveiled a crossover EREV concept, the Chevy Volt MPV5. Later, in 2011, the company filed to protect the name “Crossvolt,” which seemed to indicate that the MPV5 would go into production, but it never happened. Instead of a crossover EREV, however, General Motors focused their efforts on a luxury EREV, the Cadillac ELR, using the same technology as the Chevy Volt. Seeing no development on the Chevy Crossvolt concept, many assumed that the project was dead, but a recent report suggests that the project may have been revived. The original trademark application, from 2011, has been renewed, according to Fox News, to protect the “Crossvolt” name, and this time we could be closer to seeing a Chevy Volt-based crossover on the road.
Currently, General Motors is testing what has been termed Chevy Volt 2.0, which is expected to deliver even more pure electric miles, perhaps 60 miles or more, and cost perhaps $10,000 less than the current Chevy Volt. Alongside a fleet of Chevy Volt 2.0 cars is an as-yet-unidentified crossover, which appears to be fitted with similar EREV powertrain technology. Chevy Volt 2.0 is expected to make its world debut at the 2015 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) but, for its part, General Motors says nothing about introducing a crossover alongside the sedan. On the other hand, this is perhaps the perfect time to do so, since crossovers are one of the best-selling segments in the market.
As we’ve covered before, improving fuel economy, even by a little bit in a big segment, can go a long way toward reducing emissions. The Ford F-Series, for example, has been the best-selling vehicle in the United States for over thirty years. Even a one-mpg improvement could result in some $80 million in fuel savings and nearly a quarter-million tons of carbon dioxide. Considering that the Honda CR-V compact crossover was the fourth-best-selling vehicle in the United States, after three pickup-trucks, one can see where a high-efficiency crossover, the Chevy Volt-based Chevy Crossvolt, might make a huge difference in automobile emissions.
