One of the most anticipated of the green vehicles in the last several years was the Chevrolet Volt that first popped up in 2007 as a concept. The Volt is an extended range EV that has a gasoline generator to help drive the wheels and charge the batteries when the car runs out of battery power. The Volt is on sale now and is doing well according to GM.

The Detroit News reports that consumer sales of the Volt dropped in April in part because GM increased the number of demo cars on the ground at Chevy dealers. The strategic move to place more demo units on the ground at dealers rather than selling them to customers clamoring for the Volt was calculated.

Chevrolet marketing director Christi Landy said, "It's tough to limit the number of Volts for sale to potential customers when demand is so strong, but the Volt has value to the Chevrolet portfolio well beyond incremental sales." Landy continued, "Our Chevy dealers will keep their Volt demo units for six months, and then they sell these units at the conclusion of the demo period."

GM has already noted that it expected to sell 400 to 500 Volts in April, down from 608 units it sold in March. The difference is that GM delivered about 300 Volts to dealers last month for demo cars. Those 300 cars would have presumably sold, making April a growth month for sales.

GM believes that even if buyers drive the Volt and then buy another vehicle, the Volt will boost brand perception.

GM still expects to build about 15,000 Volts this year – so far this year, it has built and sold 1,210 Volts.

The Volt has proven popular thanks to its ability to travel on battery power alone and the fact that owners have no range anxiety as they might feel with a traditional EV. Chevy boasted last month that the average Volt owner goes 1,000 miles between fill ups.