A supercar powered by hydrogen isn’t typically found at one of the largest aftermarket accessory trade show in North America.

The Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association’s annual exhibition is usually an unusually gaudy display of tuner specials, and colorful assorted bits and pieces that they are made of.

But this year, Ronn Motors and his Scorpion from Texas busted the party of 24 inch wheels and chromed piping wide open.

Unlike other hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles that convert hydrogen into electricity to juice an electric motor, the Scorpion uses an electrolysis process Ronn calls “H2GO.”

Essentially, water is zapped with electricity in order to create a hydrogen gas that is then pumped into the engine. Ronn uses a 3.5-litre Acura V6 as a base and claims the car will achieve diesel-like fuel savings – or 20 to 40 per cent better fuel economy – with lower emissions. It takes “about four seconds” to go 0-to-100 km/h, according to this Texan mechanical genius.

The company is taking deposits now for the $176,000 (U.S.) Scorpion.

The TorontoStar says that before you write that cheque, keep in mind that we haven’t seen water electrolysis pop up on the alternative energy list of any current auto maker. And whether all of Ronn’s numbers add up has yet to be confirmed.

But the truth is, that while mainstream hasn’t seen this technology confirmed, there are literally thousands ( not an exaggeration ) of little guys working away in their garages trying to perfect this technology. I know that for a fact cause my boss and his wife and their best friends have spent the past 6 months perfecting the efficiency level related to the amount of hydrogen that can be extracted from water per minute.

Many of the current kits out there actually aid in gas mileage, but don’t put out enough efficient electrolysis to run a car totally off of water.

Ronn has apparently done what many others have failed to do.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/v/zjUk8atuBwM]

Here is a video of the scorpion in action.

This topic nearly word for word has been scrutiny of automotive journalists and other transportation stock analyst and pundits ever since it was announced that GM would once again do an electric car.

After the disastrous shelving of the original working EV1 a few years back and taking incredible heat for being one of the BIG 3 engaged in fighting California in a bruising battle of who has the largest team of Lawyers, GM has gone back to square one ( perhaps a little unrepentant ) and is once again making an electric car.

It was said that the link between GM and big Oil was never so blatant as when the EV1 was shelved, the many patents accompanying that huge R&D effort was simply sold to BIG OIL.

Some might say, that was a wise business move to recoup costs, but most of the public would in acute dismay exclaim “Why would oil companies be interested in automotive patents that would/could eventually diminish their own returns ?”

Anyway in the latest from an interview with GM’s Chief Designer we get the following profile of the Volt.

The Volt is probably GM’s last, best hope for the future and certainly its most significant upcoming vehicle. Saddled with dwindling market share, credit-strapped consumers, and a lingering reputation as a purveyor of gas-thirsty vehicles, GM executives need the Volt to become an iconic product, like Apple’s (AAPL) 1998 iMac or even Chrysler’s 1980s K-car before. The Volt has to affirm the company’s ability to innovate and, eventually, create a financial foothold from which the battered automaker can begin to turn itself around.

The car is also GM’s gambit to outpace foreign competitors like Toyota (TM) and Honda (HMC). Unlike conventional hybrids—including the best-selling Prius—the Volt is essentially a plug-in electric car with an onboard gas-burning engine that can recharge the vehicle’s batteries. This enables the Volt to travel some 40 miles before the driver turns on the gas.

Because most daily commuters in the U.S. don’t travel that far, GM says many drivers will not have to use any fuel at all, simply recharging the vehicle via a regular outlet at home overnight. GM is still wrangling with the Environmental Protection Agency over the vehicle’s efficiency, but executives say the final number should be north of 100 mpg for both types of power.

On the surface, unless you have significant shareholder shares in an oil company, we all want a Volt. The dream of being able to cross Europe or United States basically on plain cheap electricity without having to pay between 3 and 5 dollars a gallon for gas is a like a dream come true.

So back to the question can the Volt save GM?

To answer that question, perhaps we should ask – Does GM need saving?

In May 2005, Business week estimated GM’s Cash Reserves to be 45 Billion. However, for the first 6 months of 2008 the BostonHerald estimates that both Ford and GM burned through an average of a Billion dollars a month each, with accelerating burn rates towards the end of the year as sales in highly profitable vehicles like SUVs were down an improbable 18%.

According to an article in Detroit News Oct 14th 2008

GM had access to about $21 billion cash and $5 billion in available credit at the end of June and is in the midst of cutting $10 billion in costs by the end of 2009 and raising $5 billion through asset sales and borrowing.

Those cost-cutting moves intensified Monday when GM announced it was closing plants in Grand Rapids and Janesville, Wis. The moves affect about 2,500 hourly workers at plants that produce sport-utility vehicles and parts for pickups and SUVs.

So, since 2005 to 2008, GM and it’s fat cat, top heavy management burned thru 25 Billion in cash and part of that was during 2 years of strong sales. The rumour is, that GM is eyeing the cash reserves of Chrysler ( estimated 11 Billion ) to help it through to 2010 when the Chevy Volt and Cruz are expected to help effect a rescue

In an interview given to Business week in the last week of Oct 2008, GM says its expecting to sell about 10,000 Chevy Volts at between 30-40,000 USD each in 2010. So, that’s about 3-4 Billion dollars in gross sales with a net of about a 800 Million dollars annually at an estimated 20% profit per vehicle ( my own estimate not theirs )

Without being redundant, back to my original question. Can the Volt Save GM?

Looking at these numbers alone, I would wager, most emphatically no.