Why Volt?

The 2011 Chevrolet Volt is in the vanguard of a new wave of electrified vehicles with the potential to deliver significantly reduced emissions and efficiency. Here's why the new vehicle is significant to General Motors and the industry.

Mention the words “fuel injector” to anyone who's reasonably savvy about vehicles, and they'll likely know something about the device that controls the metering of liquid fuel into an engine's cylinders and helps cause the vehicle to drive faster or slower.

But mention the term “IGBT,” even among knowledgeable automotive people, and the response may elicit a lot of blank stares. IGBTs (insulated gate bipolar transistors) are the fuel injectors of electrically driven vehicles. They control the supply of battery electrical energy into the electric motors that drive the wheels. IGBTs are valves for electrons, much like a fuel injector is a valve for liquid fuels.