GM readies Volt unveiling to shift focus from crisis

[neshapop]

DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Corp is rushing to finish the production version of its Chevy Volt and plans to unveil a showroom-ready model of the heavily touted electric car in September, people familiar with the project say.

Battered by a deepening slump in sales and concerns about whether it can ride out the downturn, GM (GM.N) is counting on the Volt to break its costly association with gas-guzzling vehicles at a time when truck sales are tumbling and gas prices are near record levels.

GM is likely to complete the production version of the Volt by early August and plans to show it off in September, just when the embattled automaker celebrates the 100th anniversary of its founding, people familiar with the plans said.

A GM spokesman declined to comment on the timeline for its next announcements on the Volt, which will include naming a supplier for the vehicle's lithium-ion battery pack, the single most expensive element of the vehicle and the component seen as critical to its success.

"Everyone is waiting for the next steps," Rob Peterson, spokesman for GM's electric vehicle program, told Reuters. GM designers and engineers are "getting very close" to a production-ready version of the Volt, he said.

GM showed off a concept version of the Volt in January 2007 but has retooled the look of the vehicle significantly since then, in part in order to improve its aerodynamics, representatives of the automaker have said.

GM has already shown a near-production version of the Volt to a Los Angeles-area focus group of consumers as it pushes toward production of the vehicle by late 2010 under a development plan the GM board approved in June.

By unveiling the final version of the Volt at a centennial observation in September, GM will be looking to shift the focus for investors and consumers from its current sales slump toward the more fuel-efficient vehicles it has in development.

The automaker, which saw its stock hit a 54-year low last week, is expected to use the circuit of major auto shows that begins with Paris in October to unveil a series of upcoming vehicles that will underscore its effort to move away from a reliance on light trucks.

Those include the production version of the Chevy Beat, a replacement for the Aveo hatchback, and a replacement for the Chevy Cobalt, a small sedan.

VOLT: READY FOR ITS HOLLYWOOD CLOSE-UP

In a further bid to create buzz, the Volt is one of several GM cars set to make an appearance in the action movie "Transformers 2," scheduled for release next summer, a person familiar with the matter said.

GM was heavily involved in the production of the first Michael Bay-directed "Transformers" film, released last summer, and provided a concept version of its 2009 Camaro for a central turn in the movie.

GM is designing the Volt to run for 40 miles on a lithium-ion battery pack that can be recharged at a standard electric outlet. The Volt will also capture energy from braking, like a traditional hybrid, and feature an on-board engine that will be used to send power to the battery on longer trips.

GM is racing Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) to bring the first plug-in car to the marketplace and has already featured the Volt in its advertising, part of a bid to improve the public image of the fuel efficiency of its car line-up.

Just as the Detroit-based automakers once rolled out limited-edition performance cars to create a buzz around their brands, the Volt has emerged as a kind of environmentally friendly "halo car" that GM hopes will have as much impact as the Prius hybrid has had for Toyota.

Two suppliers have been in the running to provide lithium-ion batteries for the Volt: A unit of Korea's LG Chem (051910.KS) said last month that it was ready to supply batteries for the Volt, and German auto parts supplier Continental AG (CONG.DE), adapting battery technology used by privately held A123 Systems, is also competing for the Volt battery contract.

The Volt marks one of the first attempts to adapt lithium-ion batteries, widely used in consumer electronics, for a car, although Toyota and others are pressing ahead with their own work on the same technology.

GM celebrates its centennial on September 16, the anniversary of its founding by Billy Durant. It kicked off a series of events last year to mark the date, but those have been overshadowed by concerns about its performance and whether it has sufficient cash to ride out the downturn in U.S. sales.

GM's U.S. sales are off 15 percent this year, and analysts expect the automaker to raise additional capital to shore up liquidity as it looks to turn around its U.S. operations.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080707/tc_nm/gm_volt_dc

Strange day for GM news, this looks more optimistic...

[jkennedy293]

So cool that the Volt will be in the new movie. We need spy shots from filming soon. I don't want to wait until September.

[T-Type]

and German auto parts supplier Continental AG (CONG.DE), adapting battery technology used by privately held A123 Systems, is also competing for the Volt battery contract.

Wait, what's up with this? A123 will not be supplying the batteries directly???? What happened here? Did I miss something?

[CobaltSScrazy]

We should do a chronology of the history of GM and its products, its rise and fall, and where its projected to go. Maybe talk about its expansion into other industries and overseas?

CobaltSS

[Hitman1970]

Originally Posted by T-Type

Wait, what's up with this? A123 will not be supplying the batteries directly???? What happened here? Did I miss something?

Design (or Development) contracts and Production contracts are two separate things. Many companies will subcontract production once development (design) is complete. If their is a competition for the production contract that will likely result in reduced costs.

[Bvonscott]

I believe A123 will provide the technology while Conti AG builds them, if they win the contract that is. I say split the contract to both so that more batteries can be produced, otherwise the loser will take the technology and give it to Toyota.

[minnfang]

Originally Posted by T-Type

Wait, what's up with this? A123 will not be supplying the batteries directly???? What happened here? Did I miss something?

I don't think A123 was ever going to supply the battery pack - just the individual battery cells. Continental AG was to integrate the A123 cells into a completed battery pack with integrated cooling and control systems.

[drew770]

Good news can't come soon enough for GM, Ford and Chrysler for that matter.
With the August board meeting hopefully clearing up things and giving guidance on how GM will return to profitablity and then the debuts of the Volt, maybe GM can finally get some good press.

[big swede]

I'm thinking GM got word through the grapevine that Toyota is much closer than they were expecting. The first company to come out with this technology and make it work on a large scale will get an immeasurable boost in positive perception.

[regfootball]

the CR group will say GM rushed the car and that it will be unrelaible. can't win.

[sigma]

Two very smart moves by GM.
1) Get a production ready Volt out there to combat perceptions that the project is just Vaporware (i.e. something that will never actually be built).
2) Get the car in what is sure to be one of the biggest movies of 2009, is a sheer marketing coup. More Volt, less Topkick can only help GM's image.

[Rick_VT]

.

The automaker, which saw its stock hit a 54-year low last week, is expected to use the circuit of major auto shows that begins with Paris in October to unveil a series of upcoming vehicles that will underscore its effort to move away from a reliance on light trucks.

Those include the production version of the Chevy Beat, a replacement for the Aveo hatchback, and a replacement for the Chevy Cobalt, a small sedan.

Guess that puts the story about the Beat not coming out for 4 years into the load of crap basket, but then again how many years will it be from when GM showed the Camaro till its actually coming out??

[PontiacBixler]

So just because the production model will be shown in September still doesn't mean that it will be on lots any quicker. The Camaro is proof of that.

Just more Marketing buzz GM is trying to generate that actually means nothing.

[Ambalanche]

Originally Posted by big swede

I'm thinking GM got word through the grapevine that Toyota is much closer than they were expecting. The first company to come out with this technology and make it work on a large scale will get an immeasurable boost in positive perception.

If that's the case, it's GM's own fault for showing thier cards so soon! Toyota probably didn't even have an e-flex type car comeing until GM said, oh, here, look what we're doing! And guess what, all development is going to be transparent so you all can see what we're doing!! We don't need to be the only one's with the next generation of personal transportation, you can all have the technology, we'll just develop it for you so you don't have to spend as much on research!!

[Hurricane]

I can't wait to see more photos of the production Volt, especially the interior...