When General Motors jettisoned its Saturn division as part of its reorganization plan, we wondered what would happen to the Vue plug-in hybrid that had been in development. It seems that the sports utility-type vehicle will be resurrected and repurposed as a Buick.
Tom Stephens, G.M.’s vice chairman, announced Thursday that an as-yet-unnamed Buick plug-in electric vehicle will arrive in 2011. It will be preceded by a gasoline-powered version of the compact, five-passenger S.U.V., set for release in 2010.
G.M. says the baby lithium battery packBuick will be the “first commercially available plug-in hybrid produced by a major automaker.�The plug-in hybrid will have an 8 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack, using the same lithium manganese spinel cells as the Chevrolet Volt (due in late 2010) but in a size about half that of the lithium battery packpowerpack in the Volt.
The Buick’s hybrid system would operate on either gas, electricity or both, which differs from the Volt in that the gas engine can be in operation at any time. The Volt’s all-electric range is supposed to be about 40 miles, after which its lithium battery pack needs a recharging assist � either from a small gasoline engine onboard, or by stopping for a plug-in recharge from an outside power source.
The Buick hybrid’s gas engine will be a 3.6-liter V-6 that lithium battery packwill be flex-fuel capable. The system also features two electric motors, and G.M. said the battery pack can be recharged in four to five hours at 110 volts.
Production of the T-shaped lithium-ion battery packs in salable versions of the Volt will begin in the fourth quarter of 2010 on a single shift. Capacity will be 70,000 packs a year on three shifts.
Salaried workers will come from GM's current ranks, but hourly workers will be new hires, said GM CEO Fritz Henderson. If they choose to be represented by the United Auto Workers, the lithium battery pack plant still will be competitive, he said, as employees would be paid at the lower wage level negotiated for components plants.
The 160,000-square-foot vacant building, 14 miles southwest of Detroit, will be part of a wholly owned subsidiary of GM called GM Subsystem Manufacturing LLC.
Battery cells will come from LG Chem in South Korea. Eventually LG Chem's U.S. subsidiary, Compact Power Inc., also will build cells in the U.S.
The Volt is to go on sale in November 2010. It is lithium battery pack an extended-range electric vehicle that can run for 40 miles on electricity, after which a small gasoline engine kicks in to recharge the batteries and allow the car to continue for another 300 miles. The car will be assembled at GM's Hamtramck plant; the gasoline engines will come from Flint.
GM will invest $43 million in the plant, including renovation and lease costs, machinery, equipment and special tooling. Most will be recouped from portions of a number of grants, including a $105.9 million federal stimulus grant.
There are also tax credits: a 50 percent tax break from the township, $167 million in state tax credits and $6.8 million credit from Michigan's Economic Growth Authority. Loan money could still be coming from the Department of Energy's $25 billion retooling program.
Richard Zablocki, GM general director for tax operations, said only portions of the many funding programs are for the plant; others cover engineering work, wages, preproduction costs, training and more. All are designed to reduce the cost of making the Volt to make it more affordable for consumers. |
