 Most of the Volt initial design parameters defined for the development of the concept car , then referred as the " iCar " in homage to the iPod , were kept throughout the process up to the final production version . A key design parameter was a target of 40 miles ( 64 km ) for the all @-@ electric range , selected to keep the battery size small and lower costs , and mainly because research showed that in the U.S. 78 percent of daily commuters travel 40 miles or less . This target range would allow most travel to be accomplished electrically driven and the assumption was made that charging will take place at home overnight . This requirement translated using a lithium @-@ ion battery pack with an energy storage capacity of 16 kWh considering that the battery would be used until the state of charge ( SOC ) of the battery reached 30 % . This limit to the SOC was necessary in order to maintain operational performance under a wide range of environments , and to minimize the battery degradation to allow at least a ten @-@ year life span . The initial target range for the gasoline engine / generator was set between 250 to 300 miles ( 400 to 480 km ) and the vehicle had to be family size for four or five passengers . 
