GM gets 2nd test battery for its Volt

GM gets 2nd test battery for its Volt

Ford delivers 1st of fleet of Escape Plug-in Hybrids

December 4, 2007

BY KATIE MERX

FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER

Lithium-ion battery suppliers LG Chem and Compact Power delivered a second test battery for General Motors Corp.'s Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric vehicle on Monday, GM vice president of Global Program Management Jon Lauckner announced Monday at the Electric Vehicle Symposium in Anaheim, Calif.

GM is working with two sets of suppliers, the LG Chem-Compact partnership and a partnership of A123Systems and Continental AG, to develop a lithium-ion battery that will have enough power, safety and durability for automotive use. GM hopes to take its range-extended Volt to market by 2010.


At the same event, Ford Motor Co. delivered its first plug-in electric vehicle, which also uses a lithium-ion battery.

With ambitious production goals, GM aims to use the Volt to leapfrog Toyota Motor Corp.'s Prius as the world's most fuel-efficient mass-market vehicle. The stated goal is to produce a Volt that can drive 40 miles on a plug-in electric charge alone, or 640 miles on the plug-in charge and the recharge from a gas-burning engine and 12-gallon tank.

The battery pack delivered to the Warren Tech Center on Monday incorporates improvements found from testing of an initial battery pack, Lauckner told an audience.

The Free Press first reported the Oct. 30 delivery of the Volt battery pack following an interview with GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz. Lutz also said GM expected the A123-Continental partnership to deliver its battery pack in December.

"Testing ... in our battery lab confirms that the characteristics of the individual lithium-ion cells, scaled-up to a pack level, will deliver the required power and range," Lauckner said.

GM plans to start testing the battery packs in "mule cars" early next year, Lauckner said.

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SUVs are leading the boom and now account for almost one in every five vehicles sold. Demand for mid-size models is growing at 21 per cent, spurred by the arrival of the new Toyota Kluger.

Another standout is the luxury SUV category, led last month by the Mercedes-Benz M-Class and new BMW X5.

"Rising fuel prices don't appear to have had much impact on the SUV market, with sales volumes of larger SUVs growing just as fast as the smaller ones," Mr McKellar said.

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