GM-VOLT : Chevy Volt Electric Car Site

Alex Cattelan is head of the Volt propulsion engineering team.  I had the chance to discuss the current state of Chevy Volt development from her perspective.

What is your role in the Volt program?
I head up the team that does all of the propulsion systems for the Volt. That includes motors, power electronics, we don’t do the battery but we work extensively with the battery team to do the integration of the battery, and the EV propulsion system

Are you only working on the Volt?
I am dedicated to the Volt and I heave a team of people that are dedicated to the Volt and I’m extremely enthusiastic about the Volt. We have segregated a team of people that are working on the Volt and the Volt only.

What are you doing now?
The specific stage of the program that we are in, for powertrain, is building on our third level of hardware which is integrated in the the vehicles. We’re doing all of our validation testing on that level of hardware; we’ve got past development where the architecture needs to be, through two generations of hardware we’ve confirmed all of our performance requirements with that architecture.

There are three major areas I’m focused on right now. Making sure that all of our hardware that has been built to date, that third level of hardware is in testing. We are validating all of our parameters for it; durability, that’s the hugest piece, the reliability, making minor fixed to areas that we’d like to improve.

The other major area that we’re focused on is the calibration of the system which is huge, because it’s a very complex system from the perspective of the torque generators we have, the engine, the motors, the power electronics. So we’re tuning all of those systems to make the vehicle fun to drive, to meet all of our efficiency requirements, our drivability requirements, noise vibration and harshness requirements, and we are now entering the phase of program where we will do all of the development for certification. So that’s fuel economy label certification, and that will continue for some months now. We’re going to test per the procedures that are being developed for this program and verify that all of our calibration is tuned in for optimization of the driving experience along with the efficiency of the vehicles. And that’s really the stage that were tuning into now.

In addition the third element that we’re working on is tuning in the manufacturing systems. So we’ve been building our production in our manufacturing plant and we’re right now preparing for what we call pre-production level hardware. That before we build saleable parts we’re going to build pre-production parts in the assembly plant so that its ready for volume. Make sure that our suppliers are prepared for that, make sure that our supplier’s tools are prepared for that and tweaked for quality, our manufacturing plant is tweaked for quality. I was just there last week and walked through all of their systems and systems development to make sure there ready for the production phase.

So those are kind of my three major areas of focus right now.

When you mention the production plant are you talking about Detroit-Hamtramck (DHAM)?
No that’s vehicle assembly plant but ahead of that we’re going to our suppliers and their manufacturing plants for individual parts and systems. And in addition, our drive unit and engine have their own manufacturing facilities that we are walking through and making sure they are ready.

Is GM building its own electric motor for the Volt?
The motor is actually supplied to us but we will be integrating that motor in our drive unit so its encased in our drive unit, we provide tooling, rotating components and all of that which is built in a manufacturing plant owned by GM. We are getting ready to do all of that manufacturing , so the housings, for example we take the castings from a supplier we do all the machining of the housings, the bearing the gearing, all of that kind of stuff.

So you get some of the parts from outside but you put them all together?
Exactly, so it’s a manufacturing step that happens and we send that drive unit and that engine to the assembly plant in DHAM for installation into the vehicle.

Have they done anything at DHAM yet to get ready?
There’s a ton of work going on at DHAM to get ready, and we’ve built our what we call our integration vehicle, and we’re towards the end of that phase. That is being built in pre production operations, however the DHAM team has been very integral in those builds. They have been overseeing the builds they’ve been doing slow builds, they’ve been identifying all issues for their production processes. They’re currently working on tooling for the body. There’s a number of things that DHAM’s doing to get engaged and ready. Because the next phase of vehicle, which is not a saleable vehicle yet, but its our next phase of product, will be built in DHAM so they are getting all of their systems tuned, the personnel trained and ready to go.

When will the first vehicle be built at DHAM?
We’re tuned towards first quarter of next year for that date.

Its hard to believe, but we are actually drawing close to the day the first saleable Volts roll off the production line in November 2010.

Recently the DOE announced a $30 million grant for GM to use to release a test fleet of 500 Chevy Volts to consumers, and 125 to commercial entities. GM has not officially indicated their specific plans about this keeping it rather coy.

I had the chance to briefly ask Volt executive Frank Weber about it.

He said the grant, “means when we do our development activities with charging infrastructure activities and vehicles and provide test data that we will make available to the DOE, they can learn from the vehicle to understand how the vehicles operate.”

Asked specifically if these cars would be distributed prior to November 2010, he said “it is part of rolling it out for Nov 2010.”

Pressing for more specifics as to whether it would before or after November 2010 he said “its (both) coming to November 2010 and after November 2010.”

Understanding that to mean some cars would be released prior to November 2010, and undeterred, I asked specifically “Will consumers get into those cars before Nov 2010?” At that point Weber looked at me wryly, smiled, and said nothing.

You can take that anyway you want, but don’t say I didn’t try.

Some sources are suggesting that the Volt production run for 2010 will be extremely limited anyway. According to Automotive News, “GM plans to build only 200 to 400 cars in November and December 2010, as 2011 models.”

They also report GM will build just 10,000 copies during the entire year of 2011.

It is also clear GM will limit roullout geographically.

So no matter how you cut it, assuming you can afford it, getting an early Volt won’t be easy.

On Thursday GM CEO Fritz Henderson announced that GM has begun construction work on a factory in Brownstown Township Michigan in which the Chevy Volt battery packs will be assembled.

GM invested $43 million to develop the plant where packs for the Volt and “other extended range electric vehicles” will be assembled.

The 160,000 square foot facility will be landfill-free and provide 100 jobs. It is the first US based lithium ion battery plant operated by an automaker and will be part of a wholly-owned subsidiary of GM called GM Subsystem Manufacturing LLC.

Equipment installation there is already underway and series production will start in the fourth quarter of 2010 to support Volt launch. Prototypes will be built earlier next year.

“Developing and producing advanced batteries is a key step in GM’s journey to become the leader in electric vehicles,” said Fritz Henderson, GM president and CEO. “This state-of-the-art battery manufacturing site reinforces our commitment to achieve that goal and to deliver clean, fuel-efficient vehicles to our customers.”

GM VP Gary Cowger provided pack details:

- 400 pounds, 5 feet long (next generation will be smaller and lighter)

- 16 kwh, 360 Volts, over 220 cells

- 400 amp peak level

- Cells provided by LG Chem

The plant consist of three areas:

- The Battery Module Pre-assembly

- The Battery Module Final Assembly

- The Pack Main Line

The goal is to process 70,000 cells per day or one every 2.7 seconds.

Press Release

Here is an animation of the Battery Pack Assembly Plant in Operation:

It is being reported that General Motors has chosen the site where it will assemble Chevy Volt battery packs. They have not officially announced this but sources indicate a press event is expected within a month.

The Chevy Volt is dependent on its state-of-the-art lithium-ion battery packs for propulsion. The 16 kwh packs are composed of lithium-ion manganese large format cells that are being supplied by LG Chem in Korea. GM had previously announced that it was using its special learning from Volt development to achieve in-house core competency for pack assembly. Besides the cells, the packs are composed of thermal management systems, electronic controls, and proprietary software

GM had previously stated it would eventually choose a location in Michigan within which the packs will be assembled.

According to anonymous GM sources the facility has been chosen. It is an existing building that will be converted into a battery pack factory for $43 million. The facility is the 370-acre Brownstown Business Center industrial park, which is between Sibley and King roads east of Interstate 75 in Brownstown Township Michigan, about 15 miles south of Detroit (see map).

The plant will produce 100 jobs. Most of the pack assembly process will be automated.

LG Chem’s CEO has previously announced it was his company’s intention to eventually build a battery cell production factory in Michigan as well.

And the launch of the Volt moves one step closer.

Source (Detroit News )

GM has just released a video of and blog post by Andrew Farah, the Volts chief engineer. Andrew demonstrates one of the new pre-production genuine Chevy Volts that has rolled of the assembly line. He reports he drove the first one on Tuesday, Integration Vehicle #1, more than a week ahead of schedule, and drove it again today.

He writes:

I adjusted the seat and mirrors, pressed the POWER button, moved the shifter to D, and then took it on a few laps around our Technical Center campus in Warren, Mich. This was the moment I’d been looking forward to and it was exhilarating. And when I was done, I pulled it into the garage and charged it with the production intent equipment.

As Andrew says, the preproduction properties “are the Volt” He notes this new era is not the end but the beginning of what he calls “the most important part of the process.”

Farah says the fundamental issues of the car are under control, but at this point his team needs to go into the refining the vehicle and make it something people “want to drive.”

Its the little things he says like “the ways the blinker sounds, the way the door sounds, and the way the steering responds.”

People, he says rightly, expect all of that to be flawless and finish developing.  You can see the new location of the charging port door.

What makes it wonderful is that they are a few weeks ahead of schedule.  And so the next major phase of the Volt coming into begin has occurred, 2 years 5 months, and 8 days after this site began as little more than a hope and a dream.

Source (FastLane)

GALLERY:

I have seen the electric car promised land.

This month I became one of the first people outside of GM to visit the pre-production operations (PPO) facility at a time where the first genuine Chevy Volts, called integration vehicles (IVers) were being assembled.

The PPO plant was vast though moderate in size relative to full automotive production plants which can occupy several million square feet. Within it were two assembly lines each likely about 500 feet long along which the cars were being built by hand.

The day I was there was only 12 days after the first car was begun. At that point there were four Volt vehicles in various stages of construction. One was white, one was black, and two were gray. The paint on the surface was primer.

The sheet metal skeletons of the vehicles arrive there from the pre-production body shop, there 1000 or so pieces already welded together with hoods and hatchback in place.

The cars are built from the Volt math models developed by design and engineering. Little fit variations or flaws are detected such as for example the fit of the hood or rear window, and then are hand corrected for the next iteration.

The body shells were unmistakably Volts and seeing them in the flesh drove home more than anything the reality of these cars and this program in a deep and more meaningful way than ever before.

The most advanced or “lead” vehicle was fitted with many components including a high to low voltage converter and electrohydraulic brakes. None had their lithium-ion T-packs yet. In the lead vehicle the interior was nearly complete along with leather seats and the beautiful center console in jet black. White or black will be options. The heated leather seats were two-tone and looked great. I was told cloth seats would also be an potion.

I actually saw the electric motor-generator sitting on a wood table. Within it I was told are two motors. One was to turn the driveshaft and to recapture kinetic energy during deceleration (112 kw), and the other acts a a generator (53 kw) while the engine was running. Together the object was strikingly compact and a testament to the space advantages of electric cars. Volt Chief engineer Andrew Farah noted it was about the size of a conventional transmission, something this car wouldn’t need.

Another black Volt had just been put through a heavy water soaking to check for leaks in the design which could then be corrected.

These cars, unlike the mules before them, also had soundproofing installed onto the frame ensuring a very quiet ride.

There will be some changes from the show car which we have all seen, but these are 100% production intent.

One notable change was the location of the charge port. Now it will have its own door like a fuel tank and site below the front nameplate. The sliding cover design was abandoned due to risks of mechanical failure. The top surface of the center console was somewhat different too with some design tweaks and a storage area with trap door.

In the end, this facility will crank out 5 to 10 cars per week for a final goal of 80 to 100 vehicles. All of the learning here, the fixing of slight errors, and refinement of the assembly plan will lead early next year to the first assembled cars called validation builds on the Detroit-Hamtramck line where the production Volts will finally be built for sale. That plant has the capacity if needed to make up to 200,000 cars per year.

As of now the first fully built Chevy Volt IVers have rolled off this small assembly line and are being lab tested prior to their actual first drives. In the video below you can see Volt chief engineer Andrew Farah giving a tease and sitting in the true Volt about to go for “a shakedown drive.”

And so without any doubt the Volt has truly been born and its arrival into public production for launch in November 2010 appears at this point an absolute certainty.