General Motors Co. announced on Wednesday April 24 that its Chevrolet Spark all-electric vehicle will be able to use an electric charge to go twice the distance of the plug-in hybrid Volt before the Volt's gas engine kicks in. The announcement places the Spark EV as one of the leading electric vehicles sold in the U.S.

When fully charged, the 2014 Spark EV gets an estimated city/highway range of 82 miles, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In contrast, the Volt goes around 40 miles before the gasoline engine kicks in. According to GM, fuel economy for the Spark EV is equivalent to 119 miles per gallon for city and highway combined.

"Being able to provide our customers with the best overall efficiency of any retail EV has always been a key target for the Spark EV engineering team," GM executive chief engineer for electrified vehicles Pam Fletcher said. "We're poised to deliver to the market an EV that's not just efficient, but also thrilling to drive thanks to the 400 lb-ft torque output of its electric motor."

The 120-volt charge cord set for the Spark EV can fully charge the vehicle in around 18 hours. GM has said that this is more of a back-up, travel-type charger. Also included is an option for a DC fast charger which allows for recharging up to 80 percent within around 20 minutes. A dedicated 240-volt charging station can complete charging in under seven hours.

The 2014 Spark EV is set to be released this summer in Oregon and California. No price has been set, though GM has indicated that the vehicle will cost under $25,000, after a $7,500 federal tax credit.