GM: A Vision For Today And Tomorrow
The car of tomorrow doesn't float in the air or rocket back in time, as Hollywood predicted. But tomorrow's cars and trucks are likely to be radically different - powered by an abundant, renewable energy source that is more than twice as efficient as gasoline and much cleaner.
Fuel cell vehicles running on pure hydrogen will reduce our reliance on foreign oil and produce no harmful emissions- and the race to bring them to market is on, fueled by new public/private partnerships around the globe. General Motors, with more than 500 scientists and engineers on three continents working on this new technology, is poised to become the first automaker to sell a million fuel cell vehicles.
"We are at the brink of a revolution so dramatic it will reinvent the automobile," said Rick Wagoner, GM president and CEO. "We will remain competitive only by providing the technology that customers expect and deserve - today and tomorrow."
The world's largest automaker considers fuel cells so important to its future that it has kept its research largely in-house, with staff in Warren, Mich.; Rochester, N.Y.; and Mainz-Kastel, Germany.
"There is no doubt in my mind fuel cells will revolutionize power and mobility," said Larry Burns, GM vice president, research & development and planning. "The benefit and flexibility of this technology is so powerful that it will literally open up hundreds of new markets around the globe; entire populations who now only dream of owning an automobile will soon be able to buy one."
Until then, GM will continue to make the internal combustion engine more fuel-efficient and bring to market a variety of alternative technologies, such as hybrid electric powertrains.
"Vehicles that excite customers sell," Wagoner said. "Vehicles that sell well have the greatest impact on the environment and the nation's energy usage." GM currently offers a wide variety of vehicles that deliver low emissions and world-class fuel economy. These technologies include continuously variable transmissions, alternative fuel vehicles and clean diesels.
Other interim technologies that help tweak more efficiency out of the century-old internal combustion engine by combining it with other technologies are being rolled out on GM vehicles as a "bridge" to hydrogen fuel cells, as well as technology that will enable fuel cell vehicles to create their own hydrogen from gasoline.
Hybrid electric propulsion systems, for instance, combine internal combustion engines and electric drives to dramatically increase fuel efficiency and lower vehicle emissions. GM's Allison Transmission Division has developed a hybrid electric powertrain for mass transit and other commercial vehicle applications. It is so clean and efficient that replacing the 13,000 conventional transit buses in the nation's nine largest cities with Allison hybrid buses would deliver the same positive effect on the environment as selling nearly 600,000 small hybrid cars.
Soon, GM will introduce a Parallel Hybrid Truck.
"When we thought about which vehicles should get this new technology, we immediately went to trucks and SUVs," said Tom Stephens, group vice president, GM Powertrain. "Our thought was: Why not get the biggest bang for our buck? Why not use this technology on the vehicles our customers want most?"
That same philosophy will be applied to a new internal combustion engine technology being rolled out to GM trucks and SUVs. The system, known as Displacement on Demand, allows a vehicle to run more efficiently on half of its engine cylinders when full power is not needed. When engine loads demand full power, the system shifts seamlessly into eight-cylinder mode without any input from the driver.
"As we move toward a hydrogen economy, we will continue to aggressively pursue other technologies that move us closer and closer to our ultimate goal: the reinvention of the automobile," Stephens said.
GM has made significant progress on the challenges and costs associated with developing fuel cell systems through its own research and strategic partnerships.
One of the unexpected benefits of this work has been the creation of stationary fuel cells, which help alleviate electricity shortages and power outages.
But if fuel cell vehicles are to become widespread, the United States must move from a transportation economy that is based on fossil fuels to a hydrogen-based economy. Public/private partnerships with federal, state and local governments will be necessary to assure that a hydrogen infrastructure is created.
U.S. officials took the first step in that effort in January 2002, with the announcement of the new Freedom CAR program -- a cooperative research venture between the Department of Energy, General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler.
Government agencies and automakers in Japan, Iceland, China, Canada and Germany are involved in similar development efforts to help spur the commercialization of fuel cells.
"These new technologies benefit all of us in ways we are only now beginning to imagine," said Elizabeth A. Lowery, GM vice president, energy and environment. "Getting there will require continued innovation and cooperation, as well as a significant investment by industry and government."
General Motors , the world's largest vehicle manufacturer, designs, builds and markets cars and trucks worldwide. In 2001, GM earned $1.5 billion on sales of $177.3 billion, excluding special items. It employs about 362,000 people globally. GM also operates one of the world's largest and most successful financial services companies, GMAC, which offers automotive, mortgage and business financing and insurance services to customers worldwide. More information on General Motors can be found at www.gmability.com.
