General Motors

  • Envia Battery Technology

    Researchers and development firms regularly reveal battery-technology breakthroughs. Now, Envia Systems--one company that gained much public attention by promising such a breakthrough--faces two lawsuits. One claims that Envia stole its technology from other companies. And General Motors, which invested $17 million into the company in January 2011, has canceled its deal with Envia altogether. Headlines lead to GM deal The company, formed in 2007, has made several headlines in recent years. Envia said it could increase the energy density of batteries by a third, yet do so for less money. So...

  • GM EV1 and Tesla Model S electric cars, at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, MA, Oct 2013
    GM EV1 & Tesla Model S: Looking At 20 Years Of Electric Cars

    Last week, we were struck by a single photo that captured electric cars across two decades. The image, showing a GM EV1 and a Tesla Model S on the Worcester Polytechnic Institute campus, was posted on Facebook by Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA]. More than anything we've seen in a while, that photo showed...

  • GM's military fuel cell fleet
    GM Gets New Partner For Fuel-Cell Vehicle Research: U.S. Army

    An expanded partnership with the U.S. Army gives GM more fuel cell development resources.

  • Tesla Motors, Palo Alto, California
    Is Tesla Motors Really Worth Almost Half The Value Of GM?

    Discussions of Tesla Motors sometimes seem couched in the terms of a religious tale: Tesla as David vs General Motors in the Goliath role. One company is the plucky Silicon Valley electric-car startup that's never built a vehicle with a gasoline engine. The other is the largest U.S. automaker, one...

  • 2014 Cadillac ELR
    Can 2014 Cadillac ELR Electric Car Rescue GM's Luxury Brand In California?

    The ELR's plug-in powertrain and unique styling could be the right combination for success in the Golden State.

  • 2013 Chevrolet Volt
    Chevy Volt Plug-In Electric Car Development: Academic Study Published

    The development of the Chevrolet Volt is now the subject of a 29-page academic paper.

  • Dan Akerson

    It looks like the success of the Tesla Model S all-electric luxury sedan may be starting to get under GM's skin. CEO Dan Akerson told the Detroit News that General Motors will compete with Tesla Motors--"ultimately"--through its Cadillac luxury brand. But, Akerson said, he remained unconvinced that battery-electric vehicles were "the panacea that I think the American public wants." That may indicate that GM believes a plug-in hybrid version of its future large Cadillac LTS sedan will be its Tesla Model S competitor. $30,000 electric Chevrolet? On Monday, Douglas Parks, the company's vice...

  • 2014 Chevrolet Spark EV prototype, Sausalito, CA, Nov 2012
    GM Developing Tesla Model E Rival: 200-Mile, $30,000 Electric Car?

    GM's Tesla-rivaling electric car could be powered by a new type of battery with greater energy density, which would create more range without dramatically raising price.

  • GM EV1 electric car at Missouri S&T, Rolla, Missouri [photo: Jalopnik/Joel Johnson]
    Rare Surviving GM EV1 Waits For Savior At Missouri University

    The late and much lamented GM EV1 electric car is by now a mythical creature. It's been the subject of a much-discussed documentary, and is still cause for blind loathing of General Motors in some quarters. Designed, engineered, and offered for lease in California and a few other locations from...

  • GM OnStar and TimberRock's on-demand solar charging
    GM To Test Utility-Controlled Solar Charging For Electric Cars

    If there's one thing that most people agree on when it comes to electric cars, it's that powering them with electricity generated by renewable energy is generally the greenest thing to do. Solar is a popular choice with those in warmer climates, but even that endless nuclear furnace we call the sun...

  • Dan Akerson
    It's Official: General Motors Now Sees Tesla As A Threat

    "History is littered with big companies that ignored innovation that was coming their way because you didn’t know where you could be disrupted." General Motors will be hoping those words, from vice chairman Steve Girksy as the automaker begins to study electric upstart Tesla Motors...

  • Supporters of the Climate Declaration, drafted by Ceres & BICEP
    GM Becomes First Automaker To Sign Call For Action On Climate Change

    When we think of the companies and organizations concerned with climate change, we don't often think of major automakers. But maybe we should think again. Yesterday, General Motors became the first automaker to sign onto the Climate Declaration, a statement drafted by Ceres and its Business for...

  • Buick Riviera Concept, 2013 Shanghai Auto Show

    You may have read about the latest Buick Riviera concept car, which was unveiled last Saturday at the Shanghai Auto Show. Perhaps you also noticed that it uses a new and innovative plug-in hybrid powertrain that includes wireless battery charging. In the words of GM's own press release: The new Riviera has adopted BIP (Buick Intelligent Performance) technology. It is equipped with GM's all-new, dual-mode W-PHEV (wireless plug-in hybrid electric vehicle) propulsion system. The user can drive the car on green power in electric mode and enjoy the exhilarating handling and performance of a sports...

  • 2013 Chevrolet Spark EV cutaway
    GM Now Building Chevy Spark EV Electric-Car Motors In Maryland

    Eighteen months ago, GM announced that it would build the electric motor for its upcoming Chevrolet Spark EV electric car in the U.S. Now, that motor is officially in production at the company's Baltimore Operations plant in White Marsh, Maryland--along with the associated final-drive...

  • 2014 Chevrolet Spark EV prototype, Sausalito, CA, Nov 2012
    GM Working On 200-Mile Electric Car, Says CEO Akerson

    Last summer he dropped a hint that it might be possible. Now Dan Akerson has confirmed it: GM is working on an electric car with a 200-mile range, according to its CEO. The chief executive officer of General Motors made the comment yesterday at an energy conference, as reported in Reuters. He...

  • BMW using 1-Series and MINI Cooper in DriveNow initiative
    BMW Earns Profit By The Minute With Car Sharing: Is Ownership Dead?

    In case you haven't heard: car sharing is big business. Broadly speaking, there are two kinds of car-sharing companies. Zipcar -- America's pioneer in the sector -- represents one type, which is similar to a traditional rental car business, except it operates on a membership model. Renters pay...

  • General Motors' plan for powertrain expansion and work consolidation (February 2013)
    GM Moves Electric, Fuel-Cell Work To Michigan From CA, NY

    General Motors has announced more shuffling of its future-tech facilities. Back in October, the automaker shut down a fuel cell center in Honeoye Falls, New York and shifted operations (along with 220 jobs) to Pontiac, Michigan. Outposts in Torrance, California, Castleton, Indiana, and Warren...

  • 2014 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
    Official: GM Quietly Drops Hybrid Pickups; Are SUVs Next?

    GM's full-size hybrid pickups, the Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid and GMC Sierra Hybrid, for much of the time they've been on sale, have offered the highest gas mileage of any full-size truck on the U.S. market. Yet these hybrid pickups, which were introduced for the 2009 model year, have been...

  • 2012 Chevrolet Volt

    General Motors has narrowed its portfolio of future technologies, and will focus on plug-in and electric vehicles over the coming years. The company will build on the success of its Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric car, an area where it leads its competitors, while downplaying more traditional full hybrid technologies. GM Product Chief Mary Barra said in a videoconference yesterday that GM will "make educated bets on which technologies hold the most potential for creating values for our customers and our company." The company will continue with its mild-hybrid eAssist system, which...

  • GM Production Facility, Fairfax
    GM’s Aluminum Welding Process Means Lighter Cars, Better Gas Mileage

    As long as the auto industry has existed, various automated and non-automated processes have been developed to bond two or more pieces of metal together through the art of welding. Normally, how a car is welded together would be of little interest to the average car buyer. However, improvements in...

  • Silverado Hybrid Badge
    GM May Kill Two-Mode Hybrid Pickups, SUVs: Report

    "We can't provide you with any information related to future product technologies or timing." That's the standard response from carmakers--in this case, from Kevin Kelly, GM's Manager, Electric Vehicle and Hybrid Communications--when asked a question they'd rather not address. Our question was...

  • First 2011 Chevrolet Volt built on production tooling at Detroit Hamtramck plant, March 31, 2010
    2013 Chevy Volt Production To Halt For 4 Weeks From Mid-September

    Yesterday, Automotive News (subscription required) reported the news that the Detroit Hamtramck facility, where the 2013 Chevrolet Volt is made, is to pause production of the plug-in hybrid for four weeks. The second time General Motors has temporarily halted production of the plug-in car, the...

  • Envia Battery Technology
    GM CEO: Electric Car With 200-Mile Range Within 4 Years Possible

    In the world of plug-in cars, making an affordable car with a range equal to that of a conventional gasoline car is something of a Holy Grail. According to General Motors CEO Dan Akerson talking at a GM employee meeting last night, that dream could become reality in the next two to four years...

  • 2013 Chevrolet Volt
    2013 Chevrolet Volt: Already At Dealers (If You’re Lucky)

    Sometimes, automakers mark the switch between one model year and the next with some pomp and ceremony, especially if the new model year is significantly better than the outgoing one. Despite the 2013 Chevrolet Volt getting an improved all-electric range, better EPA rating and the addition of a...

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