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GM’s Brand New E-Flex Design Center

December 11th, 2007 | Posted in: Design, E-Flex, Video

[flash http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-JVPLZ22Tg]

Back in early October when I interviewed Bob Boniface (post), the Volt’s Chief designer, he told us about GM’s new E-Flex design center, which he happened to be moving into that day. He described it as a grand and extensive facility.

Now GM has opened its doors to a few members of the press, as the video above illustrates.

The facility is under the direction of Mr. Boniface and he will lead a team of approximately 45 creative designers, sculptors, design engineers, scientists and administrative staff. It will be their charge to produce the future portfolio of E-Flex extended-range electric vehicles.

Bob says:

We handpicked a team of both young and experienced designers who are enthusiastic, eager and believe in the cause as I do

They want to find a better way, a solution to our dependency on petroleum, and that’s what this car is about.

As we’ve seen and heard in our last post, its all about the aerodynamics, and the way these new designs both in parts and as a whole perform in the wind tunnel.

GM tells us the studio will eventually produce a variety of E-Flex vehicles starting with the Chevrolet Volt. Once that car is up and running, expect to see more models. Next up..mid-size…But more on that later.

Read the press release after the jump.

New GM studio to design next generation of electric vehicles
E-Flex vehicles take shape in sustainable studio

Warren, MI – General Motors (GM) announces the opening of a new studio dedicated to the company’s next generation of electrically-driven vehicles. The newly renovated studio is located within GM’s Advanced Design Center, which was responsible for the Chevrolet Volt concept revealed at the 2007 North American International Auto Show last January.

GM’s new E-Flex Systems Design Studio will develop a variety of vehicles using the E-flex propulsion system, starting with the production version of the Chevrolet Volt. It is the only studio on the planet specifically designated to designing a wide variety of electric plug-in vehicles with a range extender.

“As soon as the project kicked off, I knew we needed a dedicated team focused on the development of E-Flex based vehicles and that team needed its own creative space,” said Ed Welburn, Vice President, Global Design. “To accelerate the program, we needed the right mix of designers and engineers from the original show car team and people with experience from the production side.”

Bob Boniface, design director for the E-flex Systems Design Studio and the Chevrolet Volt, will lead the team of approximately 45 creative designers, sculptors, design engineers, scientists and administrative staff. He was the lead for the exterior design of the Chevrolet Volt concept. According to Boniface, this historical program offers a new set of challenges and opportunities.

“We handpicked a team of both young and experienced designers who are enthusiastic, eager and believe in the cause as I do,” said Boniface. “They want to find a better way, a solution to our dependency on petroleum, and that’s what this car is about.

The Chevrolet Volt, GM’s electric plug-in vehicle, will be the first vehicle designed in the new studio. The Chevrolet Volt is a plug-in electric vehicle that will run up to 40 miles without ever using a drop of gasoline — which according to government data, would be enough to handle approximately two-thirds of daily commutes for American drivers. The first vehicle in GM’s “E-Flex” family, the Volt will be powered by an electric motor, which draws its energy from on-board batteries. The batteries, in turn, will be re-charged by a small internal combustion engine that will run on gas, diesel or ethanol. When not in use, the batteries will be re-charged by simply plugging the Volt into an electric outlet.

The studio renovation began last June within the existing GM Advanced Design Center. What’s now the new E-flex studio was once an auditorium built for product reviews and other special events hosting famous entertainers and even several former U.S. presidents. The new studio is an adaptive reuse of the existing facility with steps taken toward environmental sustainability with such installations as sustainable carpet, energy efficient, compact florescent lighting; repurposed surfaces, energy efficient window shades to control heating and cooling, rugs made of 100% wool, natural materials, Cradle to Cradle certified furniture that’s recyclable or can be safe composted.

“There’s a lot of history in this building,” said Boniface, “and I feel we’re making our own history by designing a whole new generation of vehicles that don’t require gasoline.”

###

Posted by: Lyle

41 Responses to “GM’s Brand New E-Flex Design Center”

pstoller78 Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 10:20 am

This is exciting stuff, and I think it further shows how dedicated GM is to this project.

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GXT Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 11:32 am

From that little glimpse it looks like a potential next-gen Acura TL

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Scott Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 12:26 pm

I like it. It looks angry. Definitely more appealing than Prius.

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SteveF Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 1:00 pm

This is exciting. The big new point is that by next summer they will have working Volt on the road. It will not be mules based on old Malibu but functioning car with the look of the production Volt. Cannot wait until next summer.

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AES Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 1:04 pm

Well, we know the front looks good. Hopefully we’ll see the rest of it at some point soon.

I hope they keep the dark-colored A and C pillars – they helped give the concept a unique and coupe-feel despite being four-doored.

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mykallb Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 1:22 pm

I wonder if anyone still thinks that the Volt/E-flex is a publicity stint? Seems that GM is serious as a coronary about this project. Good news, and congrats to the technology LEADER!

M.

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Dave B Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 1:38 pm

Any guesses what the surprise is this January in Detroit?

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james Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 2:01 pm

love these updates!

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AES Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 2:07 pm

According to a couple sources, one surprise will be a Saturn version of the Flextreme – which makes sense given that Saturns these days are just rebadged Vauxhalls/Opels.

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josie Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 2:22 pm

What’s the deal GM?
You already had a perfectly lovely, well performing electric in the EV1 that was on the road and that the numerous leasing persons loved and had offered to purchase when the lease expired. Watch the movie “What Happened to the Electric Car”

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Eisemann-Theater.com Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 3:05 pm

Intresting, I hope GM really pushes the Aero design on this car. It should be the most Aerodynamic car in the world.

I wonder if GM has experimented with re-ducting air. Instead of moving the air around the car to re-duct it out another port in the back. I-e Flat gril but duct the air out the sides. Generate power at the same time to recharge battries.

Or put a wind generator in this duct to charge he batts..

I know werid idea right?

G

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Rashiid Amul Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 3:06 pm

Josie #10,
We have beaten this EV1 thing to death.
The EV1 needs to RIP and everyone needs to either move on or live in the past. The Volt is coming in less than 3 years. (2 years 11 months). That is my focus now. The EV1 is dead and will stay dead. There is no changing that.

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noel park Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 3:16 pm

Eiseman-Theater.com, #11:

“It should be the most Aerodynamic car in the world.”

AMEN.

Rashiid, #12:

I agree.

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Jake Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 3:17 pm

Eisemann, post #11 –

I have a feeling that wind generators on (or “in”) the car would generate too much drag to overcome the power they would generate. I have no specific data on this, but it just seems like one of those things that would not quite work. Rooftop solar, on the other hand, would have no negative impact on performance (except maybe adding a bit of weight), so it would be mostly beneficial.

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Jimmy Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 4:41 pm

Doug Korthof:

Does this new information change your mind at all about whether the Volt will wind up being produced?

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Anti-Oil Jihadi Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 4:52 pm

” They want to find a better way, a solution to our dependency on petroleum, and that’s what this car is about. ”

DEATH TO OIL!
http://www.oiljihad.org

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Randy Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 6:23 pm

[quote comment="18976"]Flat gril but duct the air out the sides. Generate power at the same time to recharge battries.

Or put a wind generator in this duct to charge he batts..
[/quote]

I think you’re confusing the Volt with a perpetual motion machine…

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lkruijsw Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 7:34 pm

They don’t say it so explicitely, but if you take several remarks together, then GM expects that this technology will be on all their cars (except maybe for SUV and bigger, where parallel hybrid makes more sense).

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Jake Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 8:47 pm

lkruijsw – That would be awesome!

Silly question perhaps…with the Volt have 4 or 5 seats total? I’ve heard mention of 4, which is a weird number of seats for most cars.

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Guy Incognito Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 8:57 pm

[quote comment="18963"]You already had a perfectly lovely, well performing electric in the EV1 that was on the road and that the numerous leasing persons loved and had offered to purchase when the lease expired.[/quote]
Agreed.

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Brian M Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 9:12 pm

Let me ask something to all you EV1 people:

What exactly is the point in complaining about it? And blaming GM for it? GM has admitted mistakes were made, and given perfectly understandable explanation for why the EV1 was not sold to the lessees (liability, maintenance, etc.).

How does your incessant complaining help our situation at all? Are you trying to discourage GM from making the Volt? That’s definitely what it seems like.

I think your time would be much better spent by trying to spread positive messages about alternative vehicles instead of by beating a dead horse, but that’s just me. If you want to be negative about EVs, it’s a free country.

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R. Santos Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 9:53 pm

I agreed with #14 on his respond to #11. I think solar panel as a rooftop is a better alternative than a “wind turbine.” Someone here, sorry I can’t remember his/her name put a link about a company working with solar electricity…Here is their development “They have successfully created a solar coating that is the most cost-efficient solar energy source ever. Their PowerSheet cells contrast the current solar technology systems by reducing the cost of production from $3 a watt to a mere 30 cents per watt. This makes, for the first time in history, solar power cheaper than burning coal. These coatings are as thin as a layer of paint and can transfer sunlight to power at amazing efficiency.” Read the rest at
http://www.celsias.com/2007/11/23/nanosolars-breakthrough-technology-solar-now-cheaper-than-coal/
I think this technology is awesome.

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Jim G Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 10:33 pm

[quote comment="19028"]Silly question perhaps…with the Volt have 4 or 5 seats total? I’ve heard mention of 4, which is a weird number of seats for most cars.[/quote]
The Volt is expected to have 4 seats (as well as be a 4 door). This is due to size limitations, most notably the 18″ tall battery pack that will go down the center of the car.

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LyleL Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 10:50 pm

A live EV1 has been found, and it’s functional. If must have escaped the roundup for the slaughter.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeUBHIHZjVM

There are several videos on youtube.com if there is a desire to hear what the car sounded like and how it responded.

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Jake Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 10:53 pm

Hmmm, bummer on the 4 seats then. I’m afraid that might limit the Volt’s appeal simply because that’s 1 less seat than pretty much every non-sports car on the market. Would I use the middle rear seat often? Maybe not. But would I like the option to use it if necessary? Absolutely. The lack of a 5th seat is a surprising deterrent for me. We shall see if myself and others can get around this inconvenience (not that I have concrete plans to buy a Volt at this point).

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wirenutjd Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 10:55 pm

EV1…I’m over it! Can’t wait to get my hands on a GM Volt!! Charge it at work and drive around Los Angeles smok’n Prius’s!

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james Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 11:06 pm

guy aka doug k. give it a rest. have they audited your books yet regarding the alleged “donations”?

josie 10. you’re kidding right, “who killed the electric car”? lmao. if i remember correctly, some of the major players from that movie are totally behind the G.M. Volt…

gxt.

r 22. yep, nano solar…

anti-oil. you seen grizzly lately…
death to oil! god bless the e-rev electric chevy volt, god bless nanosolar, god bless a123 and l.g., god bless g.e., bell labs innovations, and a little company called google and God Bless the United States of America!

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LyleL Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 11:46 pm

GM’s Lutz Says He May Retire In 2010

http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/djf500/200712111756DOWJONESDJONLINE000831_FORTUNE5.htm

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Jim I Says:
December 11th, 2007 at 11:50 pm

Jake #25:

If you REALLY need room for five or even six, then wait a few more years, and those models will be built.

Personally, I would be just as excited if it were a two seat vehicle.

But to walk away from technology like this, when you can reduce your fuel needs by major amounts (in my case by over 90%), just because it does not meet every single one of your POSSIBLE needs, seems a bit extreme, don’t you think?

I might have the need for an electric submarine sometime as well, so GM better make this available to me or I do not think anyone will be interested in purchasing this vehicle……….. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

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Scott H Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 1:16 am

To whom it may concern,

GM’s specs on the Volt has always listed the car as a 4-5 passenger sedan. So in my opinion that means, 4 comfortably and 5 squeezed in snug. This is usually the case with a 4 door sedan, the back seat being a “bench” style.

EV1, R.I.P.

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mmcc Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 4:27 am

From the PR “The batteries, in turn, will be re-charged by a small internal combustion engine that will run on gas, diesel or ethanol.”
Wouldn’t this statement have been more accurate like this – “The batteries, in turn, will be sustained at a 30% state of charge by the internal combustion engine/generator.”

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Eco Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 9:01 am

What will the range be on those days you do not plug it in? Suppose you don’t want to or cannot plug it in every day, for whatever reason. How much fuel will it take to operate it per mile?

What will the range be with a full tank of fuel, but 30 percent charge on the battery (because you didn’t plug it in)?

What will the mileage rating be if you elect not to use the plug in feature?

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Jim I Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 9:14 am

Eco #32:

You are obviously new to this site, welcome!

I can not imagine why you would not want to plug in this vehicle, as that is the main design feature. If that is your situation, you would really be better suited to a hybrid vehicle instead of an E-REV.

But to answer your question, the specs that have been released say the Volt will have a 12 gallon fuel tank, and that the ICE run generator should operate to give a range of 600 miles, so that works out to 50 mpg.

Of course this is all speculation, but those are the design specs for the vehicle.

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Leon Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 10:01 am

I can think of a lot of reasons you wouldn’t want to plug it in. You’re on a road trip staying in hotels. You’re visiting family and don’t want to hog up their electricity. You just plain forget to plug it in. You haven’t used the gas engine for several months and don’t want the fuel to get too old. I could probably think of more if I tried.

Personally, I need the 5th seat once in a while.

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Jim I Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 10:45 am

Leon #34:

Those are all valid reasons, but they are the exceptions to the rule, don’t you think?

In re-reading Eco’s post, I guess I mis-read it to mean that they wanted to use the ICE as the main source of power for the vehicle.

My apologies.

As far as that 5th seat, looking at the height of that battery pack, the poor person in the middle would be pretty uncomfortable………

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SteveF Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 10:46 am

The first release of Volt is targetted as a commuter vehicle. Will not or never was position to serve all family needs. If you need a 5 seats, then you need a second larger vehicle. Wait couple of years and there will be many other E-Flex vehicles sizes to pick from.

GM, get the Volt out with 4 seats and it will change the vehicle industry forever.

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Jake Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 12:17 pm

I guess the concept always looked like a mid-size car to me, not a small commuter vehicle. So I was surprised by the 4 seats thing. Maybe it is not such a big deal then. Nonetheless, people are used to having 5 seats in all but the smallest cars (even “commuter” vehicles), so I hope this does not turn off too many people. I will be interested in seeing what further E-Flex vehicles are released.

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noel park Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 2:20 pm

We have a giant ‘95 Impala SS. You could count the number of times we have used the middle seat in the back in 12 years on your fingers. 4 seats work for us.

Right on SteveF, #36.

I tried to get my wife to drive an Insight. No go, as she wants a back seat and 4 doors. But she is OK with the Volt, so let’s get going.

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Leon Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 2:51 pm

Jim #35, Yes it would be the exception not to plug it in.

As for the 5th seat, I frequently taxi the kids around (wife and I both work) and since we have 3 kids, if I need to haul a friend at the last minute I would be out of luck. Yes, longer trips (more than 30 minutes) would require the mini-van. But I’m in even if there are only 4 seats. If enough people get on the bandwagon, oil prices will drop and the mini-van won’t be so expensive to operate.

Hey, how about towing it behind a motorhome? It would be perfect for buzzing around town while the motorhome sits at the camp-ground (or where-ever).

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Grizzly Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 4:05 pm

Jim I Says:
December 12th, 2007 at 9:14 am Quote

I can not imagine why you would not want to plug in this vehicle, as that is the main design feature. If that is your situation, you would really be better suited to a hybrid vehicle instead of an E-REV.

****

For commuting, I would have to agree. However, there are many including myself that like to take road trips and if that’s the case, the ICE will run, and run a lot.

I was puzzled as to why GM referred to the ICE/genset as “emergency”. If you use the vehicle for commuting in the most efficient way, then maybe. But, if you want to take a road trip I sure hope it’s not “emergency”.
That tends to imply that it’s not made to run for long periods and I hope that’s not the case.

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Eisemann-Theater.com Says:
December 13th, 2007 at 12:44 pm

I know some car companies have functional ports.

IE to re-duct air so that area of the car does not have to deflect it.

They could take the air from the grill and re-duct it out the sides etc.

I know Porsche models did this with air cooling and then let it escape.

I suspect the air drag and the efficiently of re-genera rating electricity from a turbine would be less than just making it more aerodynamic.

The only effect of wind generation would be going down hill but then you could use effective breaking regeneration.

I know the new solar panels are now 30% + so that would be a good idea for those who park there cars outside at work. After working 8 hours at work or so you would have a nice trickle charge.

I also think that the plug idea is not the best to recharge at home. An induction pad on your driveway. A simple coil pad and a coil pad on the car, when the pad is sensed a simple motor raises it to the car. This would improve efficiently of the pad as the distance from the charge pad has to be minimized.. This is like your electric tooth brush. So you drive your car over the pad. A green light lights up in the car saying it’s charging. No finding the plug in the cold and no worries when you are a rush.

I have not studied this that carefully just some ideas?

G

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GM’s Brand New E-Flex Design Center

41 Responses to “GM’s Brand New E-Flex Design Center”

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