You know, not all of us live in the big city. I use a dump trailer, a Volt going to tow that? I fail to see how this saves on green house gases, as the electricity still has to be produced somehow. GM will try to lease most of the Volts, so they can destroy them in 39 months. Also, many of the first ones are sold to GE because they build and operate most of the public charging stations. You can control the negative press when they fail too.
For sure the Volt is not for everyone. You are 100% correct--it is not designed for towing.
Also, you are correct about General Electric. Here is a quote from their press release:
"Fairfield, CT – November 11, 2010 –GE (NYSE: GE) announced today it will purchase 25,000 electric vehicles by 2015 for its own fleet and through its Capital Fleet Services business - the largest-ever single electric vehicle commitment.
GE will convert at least half of its 30,000 global fleet and will partner with fleet customers to deploy a total of 25,000 electric vehicles by 2015. GE will initially purchase 12,000 GM vehicles, beginning with the Chevrolet Volt in 2011, and will add other vehicles as manufacturers expand their electric vehicle portfolios. GE and its partners will use a mix of electric vehicle technologies to meet their respective needs. Chevrolet Volts will roll off production lines this month and other automakers are bringing electric vehicles to market. As this occurs, GE is in a strong position to help deploy the supporting infrastructure to help its 65,000 global fleet customers convert and manage their fleets."
Going by VIN# alone, General Motors built about 4,000 model-year 2011 Volts. About half went to consumers and half went to other uses, mostly dealer demos. No one at GM-Volt.com has reported Volts purchased yet by GE, but likely we just are not aware.
Regarding leasing vs. buying, one poll suggested that about 50% would be leased and 50% would be purchased. I purchased my Volt in January. ItÂ’s the best car IÂ’ve ever owned. This month (June), GM's Hamtramck plant is shut down as it retools for model-year 2012 Volts. Annual production targets remain at 10,000 Volts for 2011 and 60,000 Volts for 2012.
In terms of greenhouse gases, there are two main benefits of an electric vehicle: drivetrain efficiency and charging flexibility. Wikipedia has details in their Chevrolet Volt article. In a nutshell, an electric motor is roughly 90% efficient. A gasoline engine is only about 30% efficient (the rest is waste heat). In a “well-to-wheels” analysis, electric cars are about 50% more fuel efficient than conventional cars. It costs about $1.50 to go 40 miles on electricity, versus about $3-4 to go the same distance on gasoline. Electricity from the power company is cheaper (and cleaner) than gasoline. Otherwise, many of us would be running diesel generators at home in order to save money and be more environmentally friendly. Obviously that is not the case!
Gasoline is pervasive, with filling stations all over the country. Yet electricity is even more abundant and even more flexible. From an environmental view, there are a few truly “clean” sources: hydro, wind, and solar. Some argue that nuclear electricity is a good option, although that comes with controversy. Natural gas is a great option in the US. Even coal-fired power plants have improved dramatically in terms of being more environmentally friendly.
An important notion regarding flexibility is that the US has ample excess electric capacity at night, when most electric cars would be charging. So, there is a lot to like about “burning” electricity instead of gasoline.
Finally, we all know that consuming petroleum at the rate we are today is not such a great idea, if we can find economic alternatives, which we are doing.
Sometimes I worry that our great-great-great grandchildren might ask, “What DID our ancestors DO with all of that oil?” (Seriously.)
Answer: They burned it.
Haven't been called that much here! 
