How GM is Making the Volt Plug-In Hybrid "Real"
By Todd Kaho
News Flash: E-Flex test mules are operational. Three 2005 Chevy Malibu test cars have been running 18-20 hours (double engineering shifts) for the past six months at General Motors’ Milford proving grounds as part of the process. These engineering mules have been fitted with a special “T” shaped battery tunnel that matches the Chevy Volt battery structure, along with early renditions of the Volt’s electric drive powertrain with a gasoline engine range extender. All necessary E-Flex components are under the Malibu skin.
This very early phase of development was completed with nickel-metal-hydride (NiMH) cells in the “T” battery pack while lab testing moves forward on lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery packs from various vendors. The NiMH battery offers just over one mile of all-electric range, but that’s enough for early testing of the major systems. Those NiMH variants are currently being retrofitted with the latest versions of the Li-ion battery pack and should be operational by late April.
During our recent visit to the GM Tech Center; one of the Malibu mules was displayed on a lift, where the “T” battery compartment was clearly visible beneath the car along with one of the Li-ion packs. While we weren’t able to peek below the Malibu’s hood, the current gasoline powerplant under development is said be a version of GM’s European small car engine. That family of engines includes 1.0-liter, 1.2-liter, and 1.4-liter displacement internal combustion engines, though GM representatives wouldn’t comment on which engine is currently being tested. These cars are obviously highly modified to accept the Volt powertrain and running gear. One obvious giveaway was the oversized wheel openings that require molded black composite wheel flares to accommodate the wider track and changes in wheel travel.
The race toward a November 2010 product launch goal has all phases of development working simultaneously at an amazing pace. The mules are serving the needs of propulsion development, thermal development, drivability, and battery testing. Perhaps most interesting is the fact that with all the unique components and electronics packaged within the Malibu mules, the first prototype started and ran as designed at the first turn of the key.
So much of modern car development occurs in a virtual world that it’s often difficult to relate to just how much progress has really been made on a given project. Today, cars are designed with three-dimensional “math data” rather than physical lines on a drafting board to be hammered out in prototype shops. Even the scale and full-size clay models are now “milled” by computer numerical control (CNC) machines working from a designer’s computer generated math data.
This virtual design world is a perfect one for General Motors to cloak their most anticipated yet mysterious model during development. The Chevy Volt is a landmark vehicle for GM. It signals a new direction and a new way of doing business for the world’s largest automaker. One could understand if GM played this one close to the vest, carefully controlling information about the product in all phases of development.
With all the information swirling around the Internet (both good and bad) about the Volt, General Motors decided to open its doors and give a select group of journalists an inside look into progress to date. Call this a “day-in-the-life” of the E-Flex platform in general and the Chevy Volt in particular. Our tour of various parts of the GM Tech Center provided a good cross-section of just how far the program has come, and the progress is astounding.
Obviously, GM has a lot of intellectual property they were not willing to share … proprietary information the competition would love to get their hands on. Still, our tour was refreshingly open. Clearly, Volt and E-Flex represent the number one priority within General Motors. The team has been granted the resources to move at light speed and they are doing just that. Considering the array of new technologies going into this platform, the progress is remarkable.
We will bring more in-depth coverage of various phases of Volt development in the coming weeks as all the information downloaded from our inside look is sorted and digested. The most impressive aspect of the time spent talking with executives and engineers working on the program is the sense of pride and purpose everyone involved seems to have. This is a true team effort, something quite uncommon in the auto industry. There is a general understanding that Volt is a landmark vehicle in the evolution of the auto industry and a major move that can leapfrog GM to the forefront of the green car market. The stated goal of taking the automobile out of the environmental equation suddenly seems not that far fetched at all.
Want to know more about GM’s E-Flex development program? Be sure to check out these articles on GreenCar.com:
Chevrolet Volt Plug-In Hybrid
General Motors Unveils Opel Flextreme Diesel-Electric Hybrid
GM Debuts the Provoq, the Cadillac of Fuel Cell Vehicles
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