Detroit Leads?

I love the idea of the plug-in electric vehicle with on-the-go recharge that Chevy unveiled with its Volt. With a commute of about 16 miles round-trip a day, I'd rarely burn transpo fuel (biodiesel, gas, ethanol) on my daily trips.

Popular Mechanics has a nice overview of the technology.

This could be a big idea that captures short commuters and others. And I hear electric engines have the gusto that Americans have come to expect, and which sub 2-liter, highly fuel-efficient cars don't. At least the Tesla does and the drag race circuit is seriously toying with them too for the torque and instant-on.

This idea could be a big leadership position for Detroit, unlike the flex-fuels that nobody flexes, and the mimicked gas hybrid technology. I still see clean diesel hybrids making a big dent in the market, probably led by Audi, VW, Mercedes in the next year. This could have the same impact that Toyota and Honda had with the gas hybrid. But the Volt could be a shining star, if it moves into production soon.