Las year GM assembled a 15-person board of drivers who would get to test the Chevy Volt in real world conditions over a three month period. One of those members, Lyle Dennis, drove a total of 5,100 miles between November 11 and February 9. In that period he only burned a total of 46 gallons of gas.

While this sounds pretty good as is, the fuel economy of the Volt is made particularly clear by the fact that Dennis’ daily commute was 30 miles each way which is well beyond the electric only range of the Volt which is listed as 25 – 50 miles per charge. That proved that the Volt’s gas-powered engine component was also quite economical and gave it a combined mileage of 111 MPG.

Additionally, it should be taken into consideration that this real world test of the Volt was under particularly harsh weather conditions as it took place in New York which saw brutally harsh cold over a lot of the test period.

The nominees have been announced for the World Car of the Awards and the Chevy Volt, to some people’s surprise, was not listed among the 10 finalists.

Why is it a surprise? Well, whether you like the Chevy Volt or not, it’s scooped more car awards than you can shake a gas pump at and was looking like a definite contender for World Car of the Year. Not so though, although it’s all electric competitor, the Nissan Leaf, was. The other nine finalists listed are: the Volvo S60/V60, Porsche Cayenne, Jeep Gran Cherokee, Merceds Benz SLS AMG, Jaguar XJ, BMW 5 Series and X3 and the Audi A1 and A8.

Perhaps this shouldn’t be too big a surprise based on historical data as an American car has never won this award since it started being handed out back in 2005 when the Audi A6 won.

The 10 finalists will be reduced to just three contenders which will be revealed at the Geneva Motor Show in March while the winner will be revealed at the New York Auto Show in April.

In the meantime, let us know in the comments section below whether you think the Chevy Volt (pictured above) deserved to be short-listed for the World Car of the Year Award.

NOTE: As indicated by the comment that was left below by a member of the Chevy Communications Department, this shouldn’t be too surprising since the Volt was ineligible for this reward in the first place. Thanks for the comment Rob.

This blogger wasn’t shocked at the success of the Chevy Volt but it looks like General Motors was. A number of sources are now reporting that they are going to more than double the number of Chevy Volts they produce next year from 45,000 up to 120,000!

Additionally, it looks like GM may also try and boost Volt production for this year from 10,000 to 25,000. Wow, you can almost hear the exectives talking to themselves saying, “Holy crap, people really do like the Volt!”

GM North America President Mark Reuss stated late last year that Chevy Volt production levels would be bottle-necked by the limited number of battery packs that LG Chem could produce. There has been no announcement on how or if this hurdle has been addressed but presumably it has. Only time will tell how many Volts will hit the car lots over the next couple years.

With the 2011 Chevy Volt now on the market all the speculations of it and GM’s chances for success will come to an end and we will see if the big risk they’ve taken will have been worth it. One of the biggest challenges that the Volt faces is its $41,000 price tag which puts it along side luxury vehicles like the BMW 3-Series, Cadillac CTS, Volvo S80, Lexus’ ES 350, HS 250h and Acura TL.

Among the things perspective buyers will be looking at will include the multiple awards the Volt has already won which include this year’s North American Car of the Year title, the Motor Trend Car of the Year, Automobile of the Year, Green Car of the Year and the Detroit Free Press’ Car of the Year title.

It’s hard to deny that the Volt is generally regarded as a ground breaking feat of automotive engineering. The only question that remains is, will buyers sacrifice luxury car qualities in favor of a sedan that saves big on gas?

Another important thing that buyers will need to take into account is of course the $7,500 credit that qualified buyers are eligible for, as well as the additional incentives that certain people will be able to take advantage of.

Since I get all of my most crucial information from former Baywatch stars, my ears really perked up when I read that Alexandra Paul is now supporting GM.

Paul was a vocal critic of GM in the 2006 documentary “Who Killed the Electric Car?” The focus of her wrath of course being GM pulling the plug on EV1 production and then going that extra mile and physically destroying all of EV1s that they could get their hands on.

Paul’s change of heart towards GM is fueled, not surprisingly, by the Chevy Volt. She recently described the Volt as “an amazing piece of machinery,” and going on to state that it’s, “more advanced than what any other car company in the world is doing.”

Paul has been stating her case for the 2011 Chevy Volt through a series of videos called Ask Alexandra. All 12 of Paul’s video clips are up on Chevy’s Youtube channel.

With the Chevy Volt beginning production today, GM is already looking ahead for the technology that will power the next generation of their electric cars.

Their commitment to this comes in the form of investing in tech savvy personnel, 1,000 of them to be exact. These 1,000 new GM electric vehicle engineering and development positions will be in Michigan and will help GM bring in new powertrain options for its customers.

Dan Akerson, GM’s CEO, stated earlier today of the mass hiring that, “We want to give our customers energy choices other than petroleum and to make the automobile part of the solution when it comes to the environment.”

Yet another major car award was just handed to the Chevy Volt, this time the prestigious Green Car of the Year title at the LA Auto Show. This latest title comes on the heels of also being awarded Automobile Magazine’s Car of the Year as well as the title of 2011 Motortrend Car of the Year.

Receiving the Green Car of the Year award is particularly interesting as it the Chevy Volt was competing against other cars which boasted zero emissions like the fully electric Nissan Leaf and previous winners that run on super clean diesel engines, the Volkswagen Jetta TDI (2008) and the Audi A3 TDI (2009).

Automobile Magazine awarded the Chevy Volt its Car of the Year Award and it wants you to know that it didn’t hand that title over easily.

Automobile states that, “the Chevrolet Volt endured more scrutiny and skepticism than any of the nine other semifinalists.” While this prize isn’t a huge surprise, Automobile is feeling a little defensive because it’s worried that the Volt is starting to be regarded as a bit of a media darling which may not be deserving of the prizes it’s been receiving.

The Chevy Volt was also recently named the 2011 Motor Trend Car of the Year and unless everyone is somehow being hoodwinked, it’s looking like it’ll be a very popular car.

Automobile lauded the Volt and described it as a “game changer” which is good news as that’s what it pretty much has to be for this massive GM gamble to pay off. They went on to praise its groundbreaking powertrain and suggested that a massive percentage of Voly owners will probably never be forced pull into a gas station ever again.

Only time will tell if car buyers will feel the same way about the Volt.

The 2011 Green Car of the Year finalists have just been announced by Green Car Journal. The first two nods go to the obvious and popular selections with the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt. The other three cars have had a lot less eco-auto limelight but are by no means out of the race.

The Lincoln MKZ Hybrid made the list and gets its praise due to its super efficient Ford Fusion Hybrid drivetrain.

The Hyundai Sonata Hybrid also made the list with its great highway mileage and its cutting edge lithium-polymer battery.

The 2011 Ford Fiesta made the list as the only non-hybrid or electric vehicle. This gas-powered vehicle gets an impressive 40 miles per gallon on the highway.

The 2010 Green Car of the Year winner will be announced on November 18 at the LA Auto Show.

Envision Solar announced this week that they have been selected by General Motors to install its CleanCharge solar powered electric-vehicle charging stations at a number of prominent locations. This will be a part of the push by GM to prepare for the launch of the Chevy Volt.

“We are pleased to have been selected by General Motors for these strategic installations that will enable Chevy Volts to leverage clean solar power to recharge their batteries without relying on carbon fuel generated electricity,” said Bob Noble, CEO of Envision Solar. “We applaud GM’s commitment to clean energy as well as green job creation through this initiative.”

“GM is committed to reducing carbon emissions and reliance on petroleum,” said Tom Stephens, GM vice chairman, global product operations. “We chose Envision Solar because its clean charging infrastructure allows us to maximize the environmental benefits of our electric vehicles through the use of clean renewable energy and further demonstrates our commitment to the proliferation of sustainable EV charging infrastructure.”

Envision Solar’s Solar Tree is an engineered parking lot solar array that is supposedly 20% more productive than conventional fixed solar arrays, due to the incorporation of dual axis tracking which enables the canopy to follow the sun throughout the day. “We have designed this technology with an architectural focus that enhances the overall aesthetic of corporate and commercial campuses,” Noble added. “The addition of our CleanCharge system makes this a truly comprehensive design and technology package, offering a value-added investment for businesses anticipating the dramatic growth in the electric vehicle market over the next decade.”

Research has shown that the market for plug-in hybrid and battery electric passenger cars and light duty trucks will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 106 percent between 2010 and 2015, resulting in sales of more than 3.24 million vehicles during that time.