- The first retail 2011 Chevy Volt was delivered yesterday in New Jersey.
- The second Volt off the line was auctioned off for charity, with the winning $225K bid placed by Rick Hendrick, owner of NASCAR's Hendrick Motorsports.
DETROIT — The Chevrolet Volt took two steps toward ubiquity on American roads with the delivery of the first retail car at a New Jersey dealership on Wednesday — and the closing of a charity auction on the second Volt off the line, which brought in a winning bid of $225,000. The online auction closed on Tuesday. The very first Volt has already been earmarked for the General Motors Heritage Center's collection.
Chevrolet announced the winning final bidder on Thursday morning. It was Rick Hendrick, chairman of the Hendrick Automotive Group and owner of the NASCAR team Hendrick Motorsports. Proceeds are earmarked for the Detroit Public Schools Foundation for math and science initiatives. The Detroit Public Schools quoted Hendrick as saying he wanted to "own a piece of history while giving back to the community." He also called the Volt "one of the most exciting and important new cars since we opened our first dealership in 1976."
The first Volt sold to a retail customer in the U.S. went to Jeffrey Kaffee in Parsippany, New Jersey, on Wednesday. General Motors took pains to note that Kaffee traded in a Toyota Prius for the Volt, which had just come in from Detroit-Hamtramck to the Gearhart Chevrolet dealership in Denville, New Jersey.
Inside Line says: Now the wait for the real-world reviews to come in. — Laura Sky Brown, Correspondent
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