A more powerful lithium-ion battery is the centerpiece of General Motors’ next-generation hybrid system, GM announced at Geneva today. The high-volume system will make its North American debut in 2010 before expanding to the rest of the world. Improvements in fuel economy are expected to amount up to 20 percent.
Hitachi Vehicle Energy Ltd. will supply the advanced lithium-ion battery, and is the major factor for the hybrid system tripling in power output. The Saab 9-X BioPower Hybrid concept unveiled at Geneva utilizes the new system, and returns an expected fuel economy of 48 mpg on a combined cycle.
GM will be taking a high-volume approach to reducing oil imports, consumption and emissions, expecting to eventually exceed 100,000 annual sales of its hybrid vehicles. As such, plans are to use the more powerful hybrid system in a wide range of products, mating it with naturally aspirated gas engines, as well as turbocharged, bio-fuel and diesel powerplants. GM already sells nine hybrid models, and plans to introduce 16 new ones over the course of the next four years.
“This new system is another important step in our broad-based strategy to reduce vehicle fuel consumption and emissions,” said General Motors Chairman Rick Wagoner. The next-gen system will be based on the alterntator/starter mild hybrid technology already in use in the Saturn Vue and Aura and Chevrolet Malibu . In larger vehicles such as the Tahoe, Yukon, Escalade, Silverado and Sierra, it will complement the Two-Mode Hybrid system.
