The Cool but Unaffordable Chevy Volt

I was watching the "Today" show yesterday and they had a segment on electric cars. The first car up was the Chevy Volt. It will be available in 2010. From the website:

Chevy Volt is designed to move more than 75 percent of America's daily commuters without a single drop of gas. That means for someone who drives less than 40 miles a day, Chevy Volt will use zero gasoline and produce zero emissions.

And they claim it will cost 2 cents a day to charge. Plus, it has a gasoline / ethanol engine that can extend the range beyond 40 miles. Hey, sounds great. Sign me up. Can we get these in the stores for Christmas?

Then they hit us with the price tag. $40,000 according to the "Today" show segment.

What?

The whole point of hybrids and electric cars is that they be available to the masses because they are the ones that are driving the old cars that pollute the most on the road. How is pricing the car at $40,000 going to accomplish that? Oh sure, it might get some jackhole actor to drive it so they can feel good about themselves, but how does that help the planet?

These kinds of cars should be sold like cell phones. Remember when cell phones first came out? I sort of do and they were expensive. It was the kind of toy that only the rich had. Now and days, if you don't have a cell phone, you're the exception rather than the rule.

These hybrid and electric cars need to be sold like cellphones. Whichever car manufacturer figures that out first will clean out the competition.