Chevrolet Volt Named 2011 Green Car of the Year at LA Auto Show - COMPLETE VIDEO

SEE ALSO: Electric Vehicles: A Solution or Diversion?

LOS ANGELES - November 18, 2010: The 2011 Chevrolet Volt electric car with extended-range capability today was named Green Car Journal’s Green Car of the YearŽ. The Volt is the first electric vehicle to win the award.

“This has been a long time coming,” said Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of Green Car Journal and editor of GreenCar.com. “The electric vehicles that were test marketed in the 1990s tantalized us, but were without a solid business case. What a difference a decade makes.”

The Volt runs purely on electricity for 25 to 50 miles on a single charge before a 1.4-liter gasoline engine/generator seamlessly engages to create electricity to drive the wheels for an additional 300 miles on a full tank of gas. The Volt’s extended-range capability addresses the range anxiety concerns associated with battery-only electric vehicles.

"The Green Car of the YearŽ award validates the Chevrolet team's promise to deliver a practical electric vehicle," said Joel Ewanick, General Motors vice president, U.S. Marketing, who drove a Volt 2,394 miles from Detroit to the Los Angeles International Auto Show, where he accepted the award Thursday. "The Volt's a transformational technology that will lead our industry into a new age of vehicle electrification."

Click PLAY to watch the complete award video

Other finalists for Green Car honors were: the Ford Fiesta, Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, Lincoln MKZ Hybrid, and Nissan LEAF. The Green Car of the YearŽ jury was comprised of six environmental and automotive experts along with Green Car Journal editors.