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Toward a Plug-in Hybrid Saturn Vue

Plugs and Cars

GM today announced two contracts to "design and test lithium-ion batteries" for use in the Saturn Vue Plug-in Hybrid announced last month at the LA Auto Show. Johnson Controls/SAFT, the huge battery company at which President Bush first publicly announced his support for plug-in hybrids, received one contract.

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GM Suspending 2010 Malibu Hybrid Production; Next-Generation Li-Ion Mild Hybrid Expected for 2011

Green Car Congress

General Motors has announced that there will be no retail production of the Chevrolet Malibu hybrid for model year (MY) 2010 due to “elevated inventory levels of the 2009 model.” A limited amount of 2010 Malibu hybrids may be produced to fulfill fleet sales requests. 2008 Malibu hybrid. Click to enlarge. Jack Rosebro.

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GM Will Apply Plug-in Hybrid Technology To One of Its Remaining Four Core Brands, Delivery Still in 2011

Green Car Congress

Prototype Saturn Vue PHEV plugging in to a Coulomb Chargepoint ( earlier post ) in San Jose, CA. In a post on GM’s FastLane blog, Vice Chairman Tom Stephens said that the company will apply plug-in hybrid technology to one of the four core brands remaining after the restructuring: Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC. Click to enlarge.

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UW-Madison Hybrid Vehicle Team working with Engine Research Center to apply dual-fuel RCCI engines in series and parallel hybrids

Green Car Congress

The University of Wisconsin-Madison Hybrid Vehicle Team will work with the UW-Madison Engine Research Center to test implementations of Reactivity Controlled Compression Ignition (RCCI) engines being developed by UW mechanical engineering professor Rolf Reitz and his colleagues. —Glenn Bower. —Glenn Bower.

Engine 199
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GM to Debut Two-Mode Plug-in Hybrid Technology in New Buick Crossover in 2011; LG Chem to Supply the Li-ion Cells

Green Car Congress

The 8 kWh battery pack for the new 2011 Buick PHEV crossover vehicle is prepared for testing at the General Motors Tech Center in Warren, Michigan. General Motors will debut its two-mode plug-in hybrid technology—originally intended to appear first in a Saturn VUE, prior to that brand’s sale—in a new Buick crossover vehicle in 2011.

Buick 210
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ANL Project on Actively Coupled Ultracapacitor-Battery System for PHEVs Attracting OEM Interest

Green Car Congress

The actively coupled ultracapacitor-battery system has four primary components. and Gold Peak Battery-USA are research partners in the project. The ultracapacitor bank actively coupled via the power electronics allows the use of an energy optimized battery by reducing peak loads and minimizing internal battery heating.

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Ohio State University Takes Top Spot at 2009 EcoCAR Competition with EREV Design

Green Car Congress

The competition challenges university engineering students across North America to re-engineer a 2009 Saturn VUE to improve fuel efficiency and reduce emissions while retaining the vehicle’s performance and consumer appeal. In year two of the competition, teams incorporate their unique powertrains into the Saturn VUE.

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