Next gen GM hybrid pickups to get 50% better towing, Voltec possible
click for a high res gallery of GM’s hybrid pickups General Motors is currently in the midst of launching its hybrid full-size pickup trucks and our man Jeremy is in San Antonio this week to try them out. One thing about the auto industry is that as soon as you get one product out the door, you’re already working on the next generation. Such is the case with GM’s two-mode hybrids which are due for a second generation in about 4 years. Mike Levine over at PickupTrucks.com has been talking to GM about where they are going for the next generation models. While the trucks launching right now have pretty decent towing power at 6,100 lbs for the RWD version (5,900 for the 4WD), big truck buyers want more. GM’s truck vehicle line executive, Gary White, told Mike that the next-gen models would have 50 percent better towing power in addition to greater efficiency. Perhaps more interesting is where GM is going with the hybrid architecture itself. While a next generation two-mode system will definitely be developed, White told Levine that something like the Volt’s Voltec (formerly E-flex ) system is on the table for the trucks. The trucks certainly have room between the frame rails for plenty of batteries, and electric motors that provide enough torque for 9,000 lbs of towing capacity are pretty straightforward. Such a system would also eliminate the limiting factor with the current two-mode, which is the planetary gear-sets. However, a truck would need a very large range extender to maintain that towing capacity beyond the plug-in battery range when the vehicle gets into charge sustaining mode. It’s certainly an interesting idea. We’ll be watching to see what happens. Gallery: 2009 GM hybrid pickups Photos Copyright (C)2008 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc. [Source: PickupTrucks .com] Auto Blog: Hybrid , Chevrolet , GM , GMC Next gen GM hybrid pickups to get 50% better towing, Voltec possible originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 26 Feb 2009 08:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green
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Next gen GM hybrid pickups to get 50% better towing, Voltec possible
Is the Saturn Vue Two-Mode hybrid DOA? Not yet
Click above to view high-res gallery of the Saturn VUE 2 Mode Hybrid We got a comment from a reader the other day on a post we published back in December indicating that the Saturn Vue 2-mode hybrid had been canceled. Our reader had placed an order for one of the new hybrid crossovers last summer but received a call from his dealer this week. The aspiring Vue driver was informed that the vehicles would not be built. Since Saturn had not made any official announcements about the fate of the Vue, we contacted spokesman Brian Corbett. It turns out that what the dealer said was only partly true. According to Corbett, “due to a variety of factors including decreases in consumer spending, demand for vehicles and demand for hybrid vehicles in particular, the decision has been made to begin production of the Vue 2-Mode for the 2010 model year. It will hit the market this summer. ” So there won’t be any 2009 Saturn Vue 2-mode hybrids built. At this point of course, it’s impossible to predict what will happen between now and summer. All of GM’s product plans remain in flux, as does the future of Saturn. If things continue to get worse for GM, it’s possible this vehicle will never be produced. The most likely scenario may in fact be that GM will simply install the Vue’s hybrid system in the new Chevy Equinox instead and call it a day. Gallery: First Drive: 2009 Saturn VUE 2 Mode Hybrid All Photos Copyright (C) 2008 Alex Núñez / Weblogs, Inc. [Source: General Motors] Auto Blog: Hybrid , Saturn Is the Saturn Vue Two-Mode hybrid DOA? Not yet originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 26 Feb 2009 08:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green
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Is the Saturn Vue Two-Mode hybrid DOA? Not yet
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Leave a commentSpy shots: Mercedes Benz ML450 BlueHybrid spotted in the wild
Auto Blog: Hybrid , Mercedes Benz Click the ML450 hybrid for a gallery An alert reader spotted an unusual Mercedes ML SUV cruising down a suburban Detroit freeway the other day. The HEV stickers on the windows and lumps in the hood indicate this is a prototype of the upcoming Mercedes-Benz ML450 BlueHybrid. The ML450 is the first product of the Two-Mode hybrid partnership between GM, Chrysler, BMW and Daimler to wear the three-pointed star. When the ML450 launches late this year, the hybrid will be paired with the 3.5L direct injected V6 used in the base ML350. The ML was spotted not far from the joint development center the team members use in Troy, MI. Mercedes will be building its own version of the Two-mode transmission for its applications as well as supplying it to BMW for the X6 ActiveHybrid . Thanks to Andres for the tip! Gallery: Spy Shots: Mercedes ML450 BlueHybrid Spy shots: Mercedes Benz ML450 BlueHybrid spotted in the wild originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 03 Feb 2009 07:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Spy shots: Mercedes Benz ML450 BlueHybrid spotted in the wild
Posted in Auto Green | center-the-team, entry, high-efficiency, mercedes, taken-the-boat, two mode hybrid, usa, using-the-same, wear-the-three | Leave a commentYes the GM Two-Mode hybrids can tow, but what of MPG?
Auto Blog: Hybrid , GM , GMC We’ve had numerous opportunities over the last two years to drive various SUVs and pickup trucks equipped with the two-mode hybrid system spawned from GM , Chrysler, Daimler and BMW. Among the claimed advantages of the two-mode hybrid system is the ability to dramatically improve fuel efficiency while still maintaining the functionality one expects of these trucks, including towing. We’ve even had the opportunity to sample the towing capability of the now departed Dodge Durango hybrid. In doing so however, our impressions have been strictly subjective with no opportunity to evaluate fuel efficiency during an extended towing test. Over at Popular Mechanics, Larry Webster had precisely that chance recently when he purchased an old Camaro a couple of hundred miles from his Ann Arbor home. Just as we found with the two-mode Durango, the Yukon behaved pretty much the same with a load hitched up as it does without. Also, just as a non-hybrid consumes more fuel with a weightier load, so does a hybrid. Larry got 14.14 mpg with the Yukon hybrid pulling the car. While not great in and of itself, that’s 20 percent better than a conventional SUV gets under similar conditions. So the Yukon hybrid can tow and be more efficient. Gallery: ABG Garage: 2008 Chevy Tahoe Hybrid [Source: Popular Mechanics ] Yes the GM Two-Mode hybrids can tow, but what of MPG? originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 26 Jan 2009 07:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Yes the GM Two-Mode hybrids can tow, but what of MPG?
Spyshot: hybrid BMW X6 spotted in the wild
Auto Blog: BMW , Germany , Spy Shots Although it was unveiled back in 2007 during the Frankfurt Motor show, the quirky X6 with a hybrid powertrain has just now been spotted in the wild. French website Le Blog Auto found it on a street in Munich, Germany, where it was not disguised at all, with the HYBRID Erprobungsfahrzeug (hybrid test vehicle) badge on the sides and the BMW badges covered with black duck tape. Not much of a disguise. Then again, the X6 hybrid isn’t exactly a fuel miser, either, what with its 4.4-liter V8 engine mated to the two mode hybrid system that BMW co-developed with GM . [Source: Le Blog Auto ] Spyshot: hybrid BMW X6 spotted in the wild originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 17 Jan 2009 16:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Spyshot: hybrid BMW X6 spotted in the wild
Posted in Auto Green | a-friend-via, bmw x6, bmwx6, hybrid, its-4-4-liter, spyshots, two mode hybrid, x6hybrid | Leave a commentMichigan Governor approves incentives for battery makers
Auto Blog: EV/Plug-in , Hybrid Michigan lawmakers are hoping that this week’s announcement that General Motors will build a battery pack assembly facility in Michigan to support production of the Chevrolet Volt is just the beginning. Governor Jennifer Granholm signed a bill passed by the legislature that will provide up to $335 million in tax credits to companies that build R&D or manufacturing facilities in the state. The hope is to draw more high-tech jobs here and to ensure that American automakers are not totally reliant on imported batteries for future plug-in and hybrid vehicles. So far there have been a number of small scale battery facilities, mostly research institutions, in Michigan. Compact Power Inc, the U.S. subsidiary of LG Chem, has been building the prototype battery packs for the Volt in its Troy, MI facility. Legislators are hoping that actual cell manufacturing plants land here. A123 Systems may be among the first if it gets the $1.84 billion DOE loan it has applied for. [Source: Detroit News ] Michigan Governor approves incentives for battery makers originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 17 Jan 2009 14:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Michigan Governor approves incentives for battery makers
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