The Current War: AC vs. DC

The last great battled of AC vs. DC, occurred between Nicolas Tesla and Thomas Edison. Known as the war of currents, Americans and the world had to choose between direct current and alternating current when it came to electricity. Thomas Edison, the inventor of the light bulb among other things, seemed to have the name recognition, and he seemed to have the inside track, but the alternative system proposed by Tesla ultimately prevailed. It was simply a better and safer system.

Fast forward a hundred and thirty years and we have another battle being waged between AC and DC. Only this time, the AC is the American Consumer and the DC is Washington. And once again, the issue seems to rest upon electricity. Only this time, it rests upon GM's new Volt. The car of the future if you are to believe all the hype coming out of the Obama administration. The Obama administration has been pushing this car since the day they took over GM, the problem is, the car is too expensive and it doesn't deliver on the promises made. Aside from those obvious shortcomings, much like Edison's DC current, the Volt is dangerous. It's prone toe catching fire.

Meanwhile, the Obama administration is doing everything in their power to hustle the $60,000 plus innovation from GM that only a few can afford, but a curious thing has happened on the way to America's latest government sponsored dream. Americans aren't buying it..

Volt sales fall in January

General Motors extended-range electric Chevrolet Volt had its worst sales month since August, as negative publicity over fire risks hurt vehicles sales in January.

GM sold just 603 Volts - above its sales in January 2011, but far below GM's best-ever sales month in December, when GM sold 1,529 Volts.
Last week, GM North America President Mark Reuss said sales of the Volt have been hurt by bad publicity.
Reuss said bad publicity from the government's investigation into fire risks of post-crash Volts is "definitely a component" of the decline in sales.
GM sold about 7,700 in 2011, below GM's target of 10,000. GM abandoned its sales target of 45,000 for 2012 last month, saying it would match "supply to demand."
GM was outsold by Nissan Motor Co.'s all-electric Leaf in 2011, as the Japanese automaker sold nearly 9,700 last year. Nissan said it sold 676 Leafs in January, down from 954 in December.
Nissan hopes to double Leaf sales this year.
Reuss said that when GM restarts production in February at its Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant, it will build Volts in a "very reasonable" volume. He said there is some pent-up export demand.
Reuss says Volt awareness has gone up over the last two months in the wake of publicity over the government's investigation.
GM is focused on rehabilitating the Volt's reputation. "It's a tough road, but we've got to do it," Reuss said.