Elon Musk’s Tesla Motors (TSLA) has long been the darling of the “new economy” auto world. But now, it’s facing a challenge from an “old economy” carmaker.

General Motors (GM) today unveiling a new all-electric hatchback called the Chevy Bolt, which will get 200 miles on a single charge. But probably more importantly, the Bolt will be priced at $30,000-- a real savings over the models offered by Tesla.

However, Yahoo Finance Editor in Chief Aaron Task isn’t so sure GM CEO Mary Barra should get ready to take the EV crown from Musk. Case in point, the already lackluster response to GM’s current electric offering, the Chevy Volt, which saw sales sink 18.6% last year.

“The Volt wasn’t exactly a runaway success,” he points out. “I don’t know if the Bolt is all of a sudden going to get people running to GM dealerships, especially with oil prices coming down so much recently.”

Task notes those lower fuel prices will take some of the excitement out the Bolt’s unveiling.

“Automakers have to plan many years in advance and I’m sure the Bolt was planned several years ago when gas was over $3 a gallon,” he says. “The paradox of the auto industry is that as gas prices fall, Americans go for the lower fuel-economy vehicles and we actually saw that the last couple of months.”

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Task points out that since she took over GM last year, Barra has been dealing less with developing new cars and more with the fallout over bad ignition switches and other defects in older cars that have led to millions of vehicles being recalled. With the new Bolt, Task feels GM believes it has a product that can move the company forward.

“They’re unveiling it at the Detroit Auto Show, which means they must be confident about it,” he adds.   “It will be very interesting to see how the auto industry press responds to it and more importantly, how consumers respond to when it actually reaches dealerships.”

Task believes the Bolt gives GM a chance to make some inroads in the EV market.

“The $30,000 price tag is going to open some people’s eyes to say I can do the ‘right thing’ and have an electric vehicle,” he argues. “And unlike Tesla, it’s ‘affordable.’”

In the company’s statement, Barra even gets in a dig at Tesla’s high prices, saying the Bolt is “designed for attainability, not exclusivity.”

Still, Task doesn’t think Musk will be too worried.

“I don’t know if the Bolt is going to change the dynamic for him or for Tesla,” he adds.