Volt wins Car of the Year honors

Will someone explain to me how Government Motors pulled this off?

The 2011 Chevrolet Volt got another marketing jolt Monday, when it was named the North American Car of the Year at the North American International Auto Show at Cobo Hall.

And it’s not just this show/award:

It's the latest in a string of accolades for the Volt, which went on sale in limited markets in December and costs $40,280. It was named the Green Car of the Year at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November and Motor Trend and Automobile Magazine named the Volt the 2011 car of the year the same month.

What was the criteria for these awards?  The article says that “…Forty-nine auto journalists from the U.S. and Canada made the picks. The vehicles are judged on innovation, design, safety, handling, driver satisfaction and value.”  Really?  So let’s think about this.  If the six categories are given equal weight, what is so unusual about the Chevy Volt?

• Innovation?  Hardly!  I suspect you could have built a car capable of 40 miles on battery power and a gas engine backup about 40 years ago.  Certainly 20 years ago.
  
• Design?  I don’t know…lots of other four-door compacts out there.  It looks like a Toyota, Nissan, BMW, Volkswagen, all-alike.  I see nothing noteworthy.
  
• Safety?  Sure, it’s safer than a car you would have built 40 years ago, but what makes it any better than any other compact being manufactured today?
  
• Handling?  It has a steering wheel, four tires and a rear-view mirror.  How different/better than average is it?  (Ah, and most American cars fail, Fail, FAIL in handling compared to imports, so maybe the Volt is “as good” as an import…)
  
• Driver Satisfaction?  They’ve delivered about 300 of them in the last six weeks, so how much satisfaction can the drivers have?  Call me back when the average Volt has 50,000 miles on it and let me know.
  
• Value?!  VALUE?!  Hell no!  What “value” is there in an average car with 40-year old technology and sells for $40,280??  A brand new loaded Prius sells for $25,000 – and it really uses new technology!

So, PLEASE someone – anyone – tell me why this car wins any awards other than “Taxpayer Boondoggle of 2010”?

Update:  Some want to know why I’m not recognizing that Government Motors has paid back (some) of the taxpayer money it received, and has re-issued stock to the public.  OK, fair question:  They haven’t paid back the taxpayers for the opportunity costs of the BILLION$ they were given.  And they probably never will.  Giving taxpayer money to any private company has a totally incalculable impact on the financial markets and economy of the country.  But no one talks about those opportunity costs and the choices made by competitors, suppliers, dealers, customers, etc., etc., and the implications of those choices.  So, no, the fact that they have repaid a tiny amount of what they were given (without anywhere near enough transparency, review, hearings or approvals) does not dissuade me from referring to them as Government Motors.