GM-VOLT : Chevy Volt Electric Car Site

Today GM announced it would begin a pilot program to test an all electric version of its popular compact car the Chevrolet Cruze.  The Cruze EV demo fleet will be deployed in Seoul, the capital of South Korea.

The fleet will actually consist of both electric Cruzes and electric Daewoo Lacetti Premieres.  The lithium ion batteries will be supplied by LG Chem  and propulsion systems will be supplied by LG Electronics.

The Cruze EV will contain a 31 kwh lithium ion battery which is floor-mounted, leaving the trunk space unaffected.  It will have a 150 kw motor allowing the car to accelerate from 0 to 60 in 8.2 seconds.  Top speed is 102 mph and electric range will be 100 miles.

This test fleet deployment is a key component of GMs global electrification strategy and compliments the Chevy Volt commercial production program.  The trial will allow GM to approve its core competencies in vehicular electrification and will provide real world feedback to use in future projects.

“This Cruze EV demonstration project reinforces GM’s commitment to being a leader in the development of electric vehicles and green technologies, building on our portfolio of hybrids and the Chevrolet Volt,” said Karl Stracke, vice president, GM Global Vehicle Engineering. ”We’ll apply the learnings from this and our other demo projects to help us deliver the world’s best vehicles for our customers.”

The Cruze EV can be recharged at 220-v in 8 to 10 hours, and the vehicles will be equipped with quick-charge capability.

The program is set to begin next month.

“Although there is much more work to be done, our ability to develop this vehicle in less than a year offers a peek at the very promising plans we have for our customers in Korea and around the world,” said Mike Arcamone, GM Daewoo President and CEO.

GM has been planning a global EV deployment program.  A pure electric Chevrolet New Sale is also under development in China, and a pure electric Chevrolet Spark is being developed for India.  Additional EV fleets throughout the world will be announced later this year.

GM still intends for the Chevrolet Volt to remain its key electric vehicle for the US market but hasn’t ruled out the possibility of a US-based pure electric urban car in the future.

Source (GM)

Remember Saab? That’s right, they used to be one of GM’s brands before they were sold off to Spyker and the Swedish government in bankruptcy proceedings.

Now in an ironic twist of sorts, the new Saab has announced its own pure electric car.

It is called the Saab 9-3 ePower and as Saab reports is “the first practical family estate with all-electric propulsion.” It will debut in the flesh at the upcoming Paris Motor Show

Saab will build a limited production run of 70 of these vehicles for a test fleet to be used in Sweden from 2011-2012. The car is a result of a co-operation between Saab Automobile, Boston Power (batteries), Electroengine in Sweden AB (electric power trains), Innovatum (project management) and Power Circle (Sweden’s electric power industry trade organization).

The vehicle will sit atop the “Phoenix Architecture” platform which will also underpin the next gen 9-3 and 9-5. These prototypes will eventually lead the way to future all electric medium and large sized sedans.

The ePower has a 35.5 kwh lithium ion battery pack designed to operate in especially old climates down to minus 30 degrees C, “at least 10 degrees C below the operating level of other battery packs on the market,” claims Saab. It is air rather than liquid cooled, something Saab calls a “key benefit” by reducing weight and cost. The pack is designed to last for 10 years of regular use and can be recharged from 3 to 6 hours.  Saab claims the range will be 124 miles (200 km).

The battery sits in a tunnel in the floor of the car filling the space normally occupied by the fuel tank and exhaust system. Motivation is provided by a 135 kW/184 hp electric motor driving the front wheels through a single speed transmission. This configuration will allow a zero to 60 time of about 8,5 seconds and a top speed of 93 mph.

Hundreds of drivers and their families throughout Sweden will be enlisted to drive the 70 cars across a variety of real-world conditions, making the program similar to a smaller version of BMW’s MINI E trial.

“This program is designed to evaluate the potential for developing a high performance, zero emission electric vehicle and is an important next-step in the extension of our EcoPower propulsion strategy,” says Mats Fägerhag, Executive Director, Vehicle Engineering at Saab Automobile. “This includes engine rightsizing, which exploits Saab expertise in turbocharging, as well as the use of alternative fuel, such as bio-ethanol through Saab BioPower technology.”

“By 2015, annual global sales of electric vehicles are expected to reach 500,000 units and Saab is determined to be represented in this important, growing segment,” adds Jan Åke Jonsson, Saab Automobile’s CEO adds. “The 9-3 ePower program is our first step towards developing a potential production vehicle that will deliver the sort of advanced performance our customers expect. We now look forward to working with our technical partners in developing such a product.”

Source (Saab)

The Chevy Volt comes equipped with two bright high resolution 7 inch LCD displays, one in the dash behind the steering wheel and the other atop the center stack. The screen on the center stack is touch sensitive.

Over the years we’ve seen bits and pieces of these informational screens which are also highly configurable. GM has gone out of their way to make these displays and their graphic themes both beautiful and compelling while at the same time useful and informative.

GM has just released a series of photographs illustrating exactly how these displays will look and convey data.

The main driver informational display reveals a large white MPH indicator in the center and an efficiency driving style feedback meter to the right.  Odometer and range are nicely displayed black on gray.  Whether the car is in EV or generator mode is indicated on the left where either a gas pump or battery icon will be shown along with that modality’s total remaining range.  It can also be configured to show both EV and CS range simultaneously as seen below.

When the car is plugged in and charging the dashboard screen can display that it is taking place, even when the car is shut down.  It also indicates how much battery range has accrued and at what time charging will be complete.

A delayed charging screen accessible on the touch sensitive center stack let’s drivers program in delayed charging, to take advantage of nightime utility rates, letting the car know what times it will be needed each day.

Owners can choose one of three different charge modes; immediately, delayed based upon departure time and delayed based on both rate and departure time.

The center stack is also capable of providing the driver information about his or her energy usage.  One display shows how the driver’s style and climate control choices affected energy use.  A link to efficiency tips is provided.

Another display shows the energy usage and miles per gallon used since the last charge.

Cabin climate control can be set from a special screen in the center stack.

General Motors has relaunched its in-vehicle cellular-based subscription service OnStar to include new cutting-edge technological capabilities.  The new features are being rolled out to the 6 million current subscribers and revolve around a theme GM is calling ‘responsible connectivity.’ A few select customers are getting to beta test these features right away.

The company is testing new connected technologies that will increase a driver’s in-car connection to the outside world while at the same time not compromising safety.

“These initiatives are all about OnStar’s role in keeping drivers and passengers connected and safe,” said OnStar President Chris Preuss.  “Building on the rock-solid foundation of OnStar’s safety and security platform, we were given a clear directive to develop OnStar as one of the chief pillars in defining General Motors’ business going forward.”

“With the extremely high awareness and respect for the OnStar brand, we’ve created a long-term vision that includes new in-vehicle hardware, an all-new IT infrastructure and a host of new partnerships and services that provide the basis for growth,” Preuss added.

One of the new features GM unveiled includes the ability to update one’s Facebook status and to receive Facebook updates verbally.  The other similar feature lets users verbally create text messages and listen to them being read, a service called “voice-texting.”

The company also unveiled the MyLink service that lets smartphones act like keyfobs, and be capable of remotely starting, and activating horn and lights and door locks and unlocks securely.  This will now be available on Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac mobile apps powered by OnStar, and are included in the Volt and Cruze.

These systems and services will all run on GM’s new 9th generation OnStar hardware and redesigned IT infrastructure.  This includes the Advanced Telematics Operations Management System (ATOMS) computing platform, which GM considers “one of the most powerful and comprehensive machine-to-machine telematics systems in the world.”  Also included is “new natural voice recognition, Bluetooth phonebook, improved navigation, the ability to work with advanced traffic management and severe weather alert services,” said GM in a statement.

A new marketing campaing called “LiveOn” accompanies the relaunch.  “The new campaign retains all of the core strengths of safety and security that OnStar is known for, but also adds the idea of ‘powerfully simple connectivity,’” said OnStar Chief Marketing Officer Sam Mancuso.  “The creative showcases how we provide our customers connectivity to all the things that matter most to them, like family, friends, social media tools and our OnStar Advisors.”

“One aspect of our business that will never change is our live Advisors who are just a simple button press away,” said Preuss. “They are what set us apart, and they’ll continue to be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

Along with these new features GM has also unveiled its new OnStar testing simulator that will allow the company to evaluate how these in-car infotainment services could if at all impact driving safety.

The simiulator uses 360 degree high definition projectors and large theatre-sized screens.  Car interior mockups with infotainment options digitally appear before the test subjects as well as real-world driving situations outside the virtual windshield.

During testing, the subject “drives” the car while various infotainment tasks are performed.  The driver’s behavior and performance are measured.

“Within the next nine to 18 months, GM will aggressively introduce a wide variety of in-vehicle infotainment solutions providing smart, intuitive and safe technologies that will improve the driving experience,” says Micky Bly, GM’s executive director of Electrical Architectures and Infotainment.  “In bringing this technology to market, the one thing we never lose sight of is that driver safety remains our highest priority.”

/wait wasn’t Micky Bly just the Executive Director of Hybrids and EVs?

Source (GM) and (GM)

See the new OnStar commerical below:

It is GM’s intention to be as transparent as possible about the Volt ordering process.  Since demand is expected to outstrip supply, it is important the company provide robust feedback to customers who are waiting for their cars.

To that end, beginning today GM is allowing customers to view the real-time status of their Chevrolet Volt order online.  The Volt tracking functionality is available directly on the Chevrolet.com website and is intended for all Chevrolet vehicles.  Just go to Chevrolet.com, click the “owners link” and you will see a drop down to “track your order.”

Courtesy of GM-Volt reader Sharon O., the following email message was sent to some Chevrolet dealers yesterday:

Chevrolet is pleased to announce the addition of the Track Your Order functionality to the already robust research/shopping tool set that is available on Chevrolet.com today.

This new functionality, which will be live at 12am on Wednesday (9/15), will allow our customers to log-in and watch the status of their new Chevrolet as it goes through the production process and finally ends up at their dealership of sale. Additionally, consumers will be able to see a 360 degree image of the vehicle they’ve purchased (trim, color, most options/accessories), vehicle build information and window sticker, and selling dealer information amongst other things.

Don’t be disappointed if you type in your Volt order number today and don’t find much, the apperance of your order there is part of a several step process.

First a customer contacts their Chevrolet dealer and orders the Volt configuration of their choice. “The dealer then types in that order online,” explains Volt marketing manager John Hughes.

Once the order gets typed in it won’t yet be available for tracking.  The next step is for the dealer to “look at their orders and then prioritize them within the 30 or 60 day production cycle,” says Hughes.  The dealer “physically controls which cars they sell first,” he adds.

Still, even at that point the car may not go on to assembly.  “The dealer has to have a sufficient earned allocation,” for that car to be built says Hughes.

So if your Volt is the 30th Volt a dealer ordered who only has an allocation of twenty cars, it wont be assembled.  Hughes laments that dealers often blame GM for not building such customers’ cars, but the reality is that the dealer hadn’t actually qualified for that allocation and shouldn’t have ordered it.

“Our allocation system is extremely equitable,” sasy Hughes. “It is applied accross all of our dealers.”

The magic moment of your order’s appearance in the tracking system is when the dealer asks for it and GM determines the dealer is eligible for it.  “It is then pulled into the production system process and then it gets built,” he says.

Hughes wouldn’t say exactly how many Volt orders GM has gotten so far since the pricing and ordering process was annouced on July 27th, but implies it is quite significant.

“We have over 100,000 handraisers, which is great,” he says.  “Orders are coming in pretty hot and heavy.”

“We’ll be more than sold out,” he said.

Toyota has been a little more slow and cautious in its move to electrification, relying heavily on its long track record and voluminous sales of the Prius hybrid.

However, considering the intense public interest and spate of carmakers bringing electric cars to production, headed of course by GM and the Volt, Toyota doesn’t wish to be caught watching from the sidelines.

Earlier this week Toyota executive vice president Takeshi Uchiyamada, told reporters Toyota will begin retail sales of a plugin version of its popular Prius hybrid in mid-2012.  He also said the car would only be sold at a $3000 to $5000 premium over the non-plugin version.  Uchiyamada said it would be priced “so close to the current version that customers really have to hesitate and think about it.”

He said Toyota plans to produce 20,000 plugin Priuses in 2012

The car would be able to go 13 miles on electricity alone.  In the future Toyota expects to boost that range.  “Over time, we would like to offer consumers the option of paying more for a bigger battery and longer range, but that won’t be possible with the first version,” said Uchiyamada.

A current fleet version of a plugin Prius prototype was able to manage 83 mpg over 3450 miles of driving among 10 drivers.

Toyota also plans to introduce a small battery electric commuter car in the same year for “urban shoppers.”  Through a  partnership with Tesla, the company is also readying a reincarnation of the all electric RAV4.  ”The engineers say the early development has been very encouraging,” said Uchiyamada  of the RAV4 EV program.

Toyota will unveil this car at the LA Auto Show in November.  It is not clear that it will be ready for production in 2012, though it will have a large battery pack and be priced at a premium when it does arrive.

Uchimiyamada also said Toyota was learning from Tesla’s fast moving Silicon Valley style.  ”People have said that Japanese companies are slow to make decisions and even among that group, Toyota is slow,” he said.

Furthermore Toyota also plans to introduce 6 more non plugin hybrids by 2012 expanding that section of their portfolio to a total of 20 hybrid cars.

Source (Reuters)