General Motors car tzar, Bob Lutz spoke at the Reuters Auto Summit recently, and was quoted as saying that the Chevrolet Volt series hybrid will be in production by the end of 2010. Executives at GM sound pretty intent on meeting their deadline, because Lutz admitted to reporters that employees working on the Volt “are becoming increasingly nervous” about getting this thing out by the end of the decade.

The biggest challenge in meeting the production deadline is the battery technology that will be used in the Volt. GM’s two battery suppliers, A123 Systems and Compact Power, are working around the clock to improve the life span and performance of the lithium-ion batteries. GM has its own internal R+D team working on a solution as well, applying for patents every step of the way to ensure their investment is secure.

GM aims for the Volt to get a 40 mile range on its batteries alone, and if they can get it on the market by 2010, competing auto makers will have some serious trouble on their hands.

[Source: Autoblog]