GM Patents Data Mining Method For Refining the Chevy Volt 113
An anonymous reader writes "A patent application published yesterday may show an important tool that GM is using to refine future models of the Volt and especially the future size of the Volt's battery. The application is directed to uploading driving habit data from a plurality of vehicles to a remote server via a telematics system (e.g., such as GM's OnStar) and then providing alternate fuel-related analysis based on different vehicle profiles (e.g., an EV with a 40-mile range). The application contemplates that this analysis may be valuable to vehicle designers or to operators for comparison purposes."
Why not just customize? (Score:4, Interesting)
When I was a kid I watched my Dad buy a few cars. You could customize a lot of things. Some of them were technical. You could even customize your rear differential ratio. The salesman would explain that to you if you didn't know.
I wasn't asked anything like that when I bought my first new car. Then again, it wasn't an American make so perhaps the big 3 dealers still do this?
Anyway, why not just offer different batteries as an option? If I've worked the same job for the past 5 years and it's a 10 mile commute, and I think I'll be working it for the next 5 years then why should I pay for a 30 mile battery that fits the "average driver"?