Where to Debut? One Re-Volting Possiblity

Firstly, let me say this: I kid. I kid. I have a very high regard for the French. If by some strange happenstance it is true tha the Chevy Volt appears in production trim for the first time at the Paris Mondial de l’Automobile, it would not be re-volting. Disappointing, maybe, but not revolting.

However, I think the chances of Paris getting the first glimpse of the Volt are slim. Incredibly slim. The Volt is far too much Stars & Stripes 'n Apple Pie to not appear on an American stage first. So when could we see the Volt before Paris in October? Read on...

Back in January, GM trotted a few of us bloggers to the Advanced Design Studio where there is a special ops team working on the Volt. The design space is actually an old auditorium where GM used to entertain its dealers. Many a famous entertainer has appeared on its stage. Back when GM was king of the automotive universe there must have been some crazy parties in that room. Now in that same space are a bunch of computers and engineers hunched over them, trying to bring to life a car Bob Lutz calls a game changer: the Volt.

In the same area where the dealers would have sat, now sits a clay model of the production Volt. We only get a glimpse of the front a rear clips of the nearly final design, which you've seen in various news stories. We also see a mockup of an interior which was much less production ready. However, one cool feature that may make it to the showroom was a shifter that folded back into the center console when it was not being used.

Being a curious lot, we constantly looked around for clues. Looking for something that might have been accidental left out. Drew from Left Lane News spotted some other designs stuffed behind some poster boards. However, our tour guide Bob Boniface, the Volt's chief designer, didn't want to discuss those models. In later discussions amongst ourselves, we thought those hidden models were other E-Flex proposals like the Flextreme. All in all things were pretty buttoned up and as we were leaving I had a sinking feeling that no great revelations would be had. Then someone in our group asked about colors since all we've seen the Volt in is silver. Bob led the group over to a corner of the studio to look at a board showing the Volt in other colors. As I knelt down to take a closer look, I realized that the side view of the Volt in that picture was not not same as the concept. The clear trim panel that runs beneath the side windows was now a black band and the windows were more traditional. Furthermore, the rear of the car wasn't as much of a notchback as the concept, instead it was more of a Kammback (for lack of a better description). Imagine that the roofline stays higher as it works its way to the tail or conversely visualize a higher tail. The picture below is one I found on Flickr and is the best I can do to explain the Volt's revised rear.



I didn't make of point of asking GM personnel if this car was close to production version. However, given the more practical windows and more aerodynamic tail, it certainly looked like a Volt that was pretty close to reality.

All of this brings us back to the question, when will will see the real deal? The 2008 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in August will be celebrating GM's centennial and there is certainly is a chance that VIPs could see the production Volt there. However, there just happens to be a great big celebration of GM's centennial on September 16 (well in advance of the Paris show in October). GM will be throwing a huge party and when you throw a gala like that, it would be nice to have something to show off. Sounds like a great time to debut a car that could be the biggest story of GM's next 100 years.