Understanding Scope.  The importance is like understanding audience; there are major consequences if you misidentify.  In that regard, this particular comment sure stirred trouble: "They were actually listening to owners of the previous generation and customer research."  Problems arise online when you engage in a discussion with someone who never participated elsewhere.  If their perspective comes from only participating in that particular forum, be prepared for trouble.  I've had intense arguments with some people in that regard.  They either dismiss other groups entirely for some reason or aren't even aware of them.  This was the problem with that daily blog for Volt.  There were outspoken Prius supporters who had no clue as to the influence that group had on GM.  I recognized the patterns... and documented them in great detail here.  It become quite obvious GM was heavily focusing on them for input.  Their feedback become the guide to gen-2 development.  It doomed that design to be stuck as a niche... since those individuals clearly did not represent mainstream consumers.  Ugh.  That's how we end up with antagonists on the big Prius forum.  They don't believe that ever happened.  That means a struggle for me to convey the history and how it influenced both GM and Toyota decisions.  Limited scope means limited understanding:  Closely following advice from early adopters & enthusiasts is a fundamental mistake GM made twice.  Sure glad Toyota didn't do that.  Prime stayed true to the keep-it-affordable approach which has been an overwhelming attractive attribute of the Prius design.  PIP broke that rule, but it was only a mid-cycle rollout to a very limited market... which allowed Toyota to collect a priceless assortment of real-world data to design their first wide-audience offering.  They delivered that with Prime.  $27,100 is a very compelling start price for the masses, who are only now taking their first look at plug-in hybrids.  Of course, with so many people complaining about the cramped seating in back, the fact that GM actually reduced headroom a little bit for gen-2 contradicts the claim of GM listening to Volt criticism.

Estimate vs. Actual.  The difference can be really big.  Some owners don't pay close enough attention to notice.  That becomes an issue when you're driving an EV, not so much with a plug-in hybrid though.  But when people are quoting values, you should know what's truly happening.  We're hearing unusually large numbers from Bolt now.  How do you know they are accurate?  It's very difficult to imagine them driving for days on end without plugging back in.  And of course, how close do they actually push it?  At least with Prime, it's very easy to get the exact value.  You just drive and note when the engine starts.  You can repeat the process easily too: "After 5 full charge cycles, the estimated miles remaining finally display slightly more than 30.  I've been getting around 35 since the beginning (no high speed driving).  Looking good."  I was happy to join into that discussion:  Mine said 33.4 the other day... then I went on a 55 mph drive with the A/C cranked and 2 bikes on back.  When we got to the park, there was only 0.6 miles of EV left.  I plugged in to recharge while out on the trail.  Upon our return, we repeated the same high-demand drive home.  The next day, the EV estimate for a full charge plummeted to 26.9 miles.  Eek!

Not Paying Attention?  Sometimes, the discussion get way out of hand.  This snippet came out of the selling points remark: "...so I can easily grab something in the back while sitting in one of those 2 seats."  Talking about bizarre.  That is such a strange twist from what I said, you have to wonder if the person was not paying attention or had ill intent.  What would possess someone to think that is what I was saying?  Others found it odd too.  Thankfully, we all kept focus on comments that were actually somewhat constructive: "You want a low loading height such that you can reduce the height needed to lift an item off the ground."  I followed up with:  When would the item be on the ground?  It would be at arm height already... which is the very thing we've experienced.  Again, this is real-world observation from actual ownership.  Toyota is willing to try different approaches and figured out that practical is more important than perception.  Try carrying groceries out from the store or taking off your backpack when approaching the car.  Then reverse the process when leaving.  The benefit quickly becomes obvious.

Selling Points.  Back to just ordinary discussion about Prius: "The two biggest criticisms against the Prime that i read over and over again are lack of 5th seat and poor cargo space."  I had to ask:  From who?  We have found (2 Prime in our family) that the 5th seat is of no real value anyway.  Large adults just plain don't fit.  No one wants to be squished together like that.  Oddly, the center-console helps to keep items tossed in the back seat from sliding around, an unexpected benefit.  The extra storage is nice too.  As for the raised floor in the cargo area, that has actually become a SELLING POINT.  It hadn't occurred to us that not having to lean over to lift cargo set down onto a low floor would be so nice.  You just slide it out.  Stuff is at arm level.  That's so handy of a benefit, I'm at a loss at how to promote it.  The design should be obvious, but clearly it is not... until you've taken advantage of it firsthand several times.  In other words, don't put too much weight in criticism of those who make quick observations.  Owners like us can really do a lot to shake up assumptions.

You don't think that will happen?  Watch market reaction to the gen-2 Leaf.  The expectation is for Nissan to undercut GM by offering a much lower price than Bolt.  That's even more pressure on EV sales... which will force GM to take a big step in the plug-in hybrid market.

You want to save Volt, you have to tell us precisely what that means.  Define success.  Spell out what needs to be achieved & delivered.

Missed Opportunity.  It's quite remarkable how antagonists eventually end up backing themselves into a corner.  For example: "Note that GM is at 146,400 total plugin sales in the US now. If they continue with 3500/mo in sales, that leaves 15 months of the full tax credit left."  Reading this was redeeming.  Only now, after all the years of fighting, is there the first glimmer of the situation playing out.  Despite literally hundreds of warning this was coming, he always resisted.  Being told was unacceptable.  Finally noticing the trap he had guided people into was far too late... hence the lack of any fight back this time.  Nothing came from what I posted.  Coming to the realization of me being correct all along isn't a good idea to draw attention to.  Just like all the other antagonists, when cornered, they become silent.  I was thrilled by this.  Progress comes from recognition of the problem.  It's not too late, but there certainly is a cost from having missed so much opportunity along the way.  What a waste.  Oh well, it's not like I didn't provide an enormous amount of concern about this very outcome, hoping to prevent or at least minimize it:  What part of "too little, too slowly" isn't understood at this point?  Volt growth is not happening as needed and the outlook you just provided recognizes flat sales.  The business must significantly increases to be competitive; otherwise, it's missed opportunity.

July Sales.  They were so bad for the struggling Bolt & Volt, it was no surprise to see such weak damage control: "Almost 3500 plugins combined. Not too shabby."  When the count of both fall so far short of necessity for business, what else can you say?  Expectation for this close of year-2 for gen-2 Volt was to achieve mainstream sales volume.  With the tax-credit phaseout approaching, being well established before that is a very big deal.  Not achieving that means trouble... if the status quo doesn't change.  Knowing that Prius Prime is seeing strong demand and that Ioniq PHEV is about to stir growth puts Volt in an even more difficult position.  Bolt is equally challenged.  Model 3 is seeing strong demand and Leaf is about to stir growth.  Of course, you cannot point that out and not expect to be attacked.  Sentiment of anything to that affect is looked upon as being anti-GM.  Constructive discussion is totally unrealistic... especially now that there has been mention of gen-3 facing major economic barriers.  Needless to say, the numbers revealed today clearly indicated a turning point.

Ignoring Facts.  The response to my previous post was: "The Volt isn't small, especially the Gen 2.  It's actual selling price after tax credit is about the same as the PP."  He simply dismissed what was said.  Gen-2 Volt actually got a little smaller.  Why in the world GM would reduce headroom in back is bewildering.  But to pretend it wasn't small in any regard is outright denial.  My head sticks out of the hatch when attempting to sit in the middle seat.  That cramped no matter how you spin it for a man only average height (5'8").  The real problem though is the total disregard was for price.  The sticker is a major deterrent for buyers, even with the federal subsidy.  The fact that it will be expiring next year makes that bad situation even worse.  But rather than acknowledge that, all he cared about was competing with Prius Prime today.  Who cares about long-term well being of the business when you can win a bragging argument today?  Ugh.

Alternative Facts.  That's the new term for internet spin.  It had emanated from distortion of actual events, in the past.  Now, people sometimes just make up stuff entirely... hence this new rhetoric tool.  How does one combat this: "Years ago, Toyota was upset about a group making Prius into PHEVs."  That just plain isn't true.  It does sound convincing though.  It tried with this relatively short, purpose reminding rebuttal:  No.  There was never any upset response.  They simply pointed out how unrealistic it was.  Lithium batteries back then were extremely expensive and energy density was very low.  Volt is small, crippled by its MSRP, and heavily dependent upon tax-credits... which is what makes endorsing it an issue.  Toyota steered clear of those barriers, instead, delivering a configuration very realistic for high-volume profitable sales.

Notice how all of those efforts advance the entire fleet?  Legacy automakers have a lot to deal with.  Move on means recognizing what sells and what doesn't.  They must continually try new things to see what will attract their own wide variety of customers over to a plug.