Why is Bauer so bullish on tech advances this time around? "Concentration of assets," Bauer said. "It's one thing to have 20 or 30 researchers working on a problem. It's another thing to have 100 or 120 researchers trying to find a solution. Eventually, someone's going to do something different or wrong, and, bingo, a better battery or process is discovered."

GM says the initial Volt model, promised to showrooms by the end of 2010, will have a range of 40 miles on a full charge. The Volt will also have a range of 400 miles when using its internal combustion engine, which also can charge its batteries. Predictably, GM has been beyond secretive regarding the Volt's revised design, but they did release a small, partial view, published at AutoWeek.com.

And regarding price, Bauer said it's too soon to evaluate the Volt's relationship among price, mission and value. "We have to learn more about the Volt's performance characteristics and overall durability, including drive-train, and the type of energy market the Volt enters," he said. "A $3 per gallon gasoline market is considerably different from a $6 per gallon market."

Auto Sector Analysis: We'll leave a discussion of product timing and previous failed efforts at electric tech by U.S. automakers for another day. For now, GM's Volt displays initial clues that suggest an alternate-propulsion tech advance -- but let's see how far the car runs on a full charge, first. Stay tuned.