General Motors today delivered its first hybrid vehicles in the Middle East to the Government of Dubai and the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA). The vehicles, which include the Chevrolet Tahoe hybrid and the Chevrolet Malibu hybrid, are part of a ground-breaking project that involves a 12-month trial using the vehicles as public taxis that could eventually lead to one of the largest hybrid fleets in the world.

The trial is the first of its kind in the region and firmly places Dubai among the world’s leading cities in pioneering the use of environmentally-friendly public transportation.

The agreement between the Government of Dubai and GM is a first step in the RTA’s comprehensive plan to make all taxis in Dubai environmentally-friendly, and is in line with their vision to reduce vehicle pollution and ensure a clean environment for future generations.

Terry Johnsson, President of General Motors – Middle East Operations, said “When the Dubai Government decided to investigate the feasibility of alternative propulsion systems in the Middle East, GM moved very quickly to support them. Naturally, we are very pleased to be part of such an historic and important project.”

GM was the first automotive company to approach the Dubai government on this project. The rapid introduction of the Chevrolet hybrids was the result of close cooperation established between GM and the RTA, and included training over 100 personnel, including first responders, in on the operation, safety protocols and maintenance of hybrid vehicles.

The Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid offers full-size SUV functionality with lower emissions and 50 per cent better fuel economy in city driving than its gasoline-only sibling. With 21mpg in city driving, the fuel efficiency of the world’s first hybrid full-size SUV is similar to that of much smaller sedans. The Malibu Hybrid – Chevrolet’s first production hybrid car – also delivers lower exhaust emissions as well as the highest fuel economy of any Malibu model.

-New car, powertrain programs to meet the changing needs of U.S. customers
-Chevy Volt production gets the green light from the GM board
-GM builds on car momentum with additional capacity; adjusts truck capacity
-Hummer brand set for strategic review

GM today announced a range of strategic initiatives to aggressively respond to growing demand for fuel-efficient vehicles and to economic and market challenges in North America. Rick Wagoner, GM chairman and CEO, made the announcements here as part of the GM annual meeting of stockholders.

Major initiatives announced by Wagoner include:

-A new global compact car program for Chevrolet, a next generation for the popular Chevy Aveo, and a high efficiency engine module for the U.S. market.
-Funding for production of the Chevy Volt extended-range electric vehicle.
-Addition of third shifts to Lordstown and Orion, which build hot-selling Chevy and Pontiac cars.
-Cessation of production at four plants that build pickups, SUVs and medium-duty trucks.
-A strategic review of the Hummer brand.

“From the start of our North American turnaround plan in 2005, I’ve said that our goal is not just to return GM to profitability, but to structure GM globally for sustained profitability and growth,” said Wagoner.

“Since the first of this year, however, U.S. economic and market conditions have become significantly more difficult,” he said. “Higher gasoline prices are changing consumer behavior, and they are significantly affecting the U.S. auto industry sales mix.”

In North America, GM has been moving rapidly and successfully to revitalize its car lineup and grow its crossover business. New GM cars and crossovers, including the Cadillac CTS, Chevy Malibu, Pontiac Vibe and Buick Enclave, have been selling strongly, and GM intends to build on this success. In fact, 18 of the next 19 new GM products for the U.S. will be cars or crossovers.

Additional operational and strategic actions will be required to position GM for sustainable profitability and growth. These initiatives fall into three broad areas: product and technology, manufacturing facilities and capacity, and the Hummer brand.

New Chevrolet models and a high-efficiency engine module approved
To further strengthen GM’s lineup of fuel-efficient cars, the GM board has approved a next-generation compact Chevy for the U.S. and global markets, a next generation of the popular Chevy Aveo, and a U.S. production module of GM’s 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine.

The new Chevy compact will be better equipped than today’s compact cars, and will be designed to set quality and safety benchmarks for the compact class. Production will begin in mid-2010 at GM’s Lordstown, Ohio, plant, subject to final negotiations with state and local authorities.

“This car will represent the first U.S. application of our global architecture strategy,” said Wagoner. “This strategy will pay major dividends as we leverage our extensive car product development capability in Europe, Korea, and other locations to accelerate the shift in our U.S. product portfolio.”

The next-generation compact will be pure Chevrolet in design, and will feature the 1.4-liter turbocharged version of GM’s global four-cylinder engine. With this engine and a manual transmission, the new Chevy is expected to achieve a 9 mpg improvement over Chevy’s current entry in this segment. The engine will be produced in Flint, Michigan, again subject to final negotiations with state and local authorities.

Also recently approved was a next generation of the popular Chevy Aveo. Based on a global architecture, the Aveo is also expected to have segment-leading fuel economy when it goes on sale in the U.S. market in the second half of 2010.

These new Chevy models will help build on GM’s leadership in fuel efficient vehicles. For example, GM continues to offer more vehicles with a 30-mpg or better highway fuel economy rating than any competitor.

Chevy Volt is a go
The Chevy Volt took a major step toward the showroom with formal approval by the GM board of funding for production of the extended-range electric vehicle. This approval, which includes funding for production development and tooling, indicates that GM leadership believes that the technology for the Volt, including its lithium-ion batteries, will be ready for volume production on schedule.

“The Chevy Volt is a go,” said Wagoner. “We believe this is the biggest step yet in our industry’s move away from our historic, virtually complete reliance on petroleum to power vehicles.”

“We intend to show a production version of the Chevy Volt publicly in the very near future, and we remain focused on our target of getting the Volt into Chevrolet showrooms by the end of 2010,” Wagoner said.

Preliminary plans are to produce the Volt at GM’s Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly Center, subject to successful discussions with state and local governments.

Capacity adjustments address market shifts
GM will react to the shift in the U.S. market by increasing production of small and midsize cars and reducing production of pickups and truck-based SUVs.

GM will add a third shift in September to the Orion Assembly Center in Michigan, which builds the hot-selling Chevy Malibu and Pontiac G6. Also in September, the company plans to add a third shift at Lordstown Car Assembly in Ohio, which builds the Chevy Cobalt and Pontiac G5.

On the other side of the mix equation, market-related declines in truck sales mean that, over time, GM will cease production at four truck plants.

Oshawa Truck Assembly in Canada, which builds the Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra, will likely cease production in 2009, while Moraine, Ohio, which builds the Chevy TrailBlazer, GMC Envoy and Saab 9-7x, will end production at the end of the 2010 model run, or sooner, if demand dictates. Janesville, Wisconsin, will cease production of medium-duty trucks by the end of 2009, and of the Tahoe, Suburban and Yukon in 2010, or sooner, if market demand dictates. Chevrolet Kodiak medium-duty truck production will also end in Toluca, Mexico, by the end of this year.

GM expects that these actions, along with the recent announcement to remove shifts at two other U.S. truck plants (Pontiac and Flint, Michigan), will result in an additional GM North America structural cost savings of more than $1 billion, on a running rate basis, by 2010. This is on top of the approximately $5 billion running rate reduction by 2011 that we announced earlier this year, and also in addition to the $9 billion reduction accomplished over the 2006-07 period in North America.

GM will work closely with its union partners to mitigate the impact of these difficult actions, which are made necessary by long-term changes in consumer demand for trucks and SUVs.

Strategic assessment for Hummer brand
Finally, GM is undertaking a strategic review of the Hummer brand to determine its fit within the GM portfolio. At this point, the company is considering all options, from a complete revamp of the product lineup to a partial or complete sale of the brand.

Moving forward
“We are making a number of important announcements today, covering everything from product and technology investments to capacity adjustments to a strategic review of our Hummer brand,” said Wagoner. “These moves are all in response to the rapid rise in oil prices and the resulting changes in the U.S., changes that we believe are more structural than cyclical.

“While some of the actions, especially the capacity reductions, are very difficult, they are necessary to adjust to changing market and economic conditions and to keep GM’s U.S. turnaround on track and moving forward.”

This weekend Corvette will participate in the FIA GT4 European Cup at Silverstone. The English circuit hosts the first two rounds of this FIA Championship. Among the cars on the grid is the new Corvette GT4, built by Callaway. Earlier, the experienced German specialist was already responsible for a number of very successful Corvette racecars. The new car will be driven by the Dutchmen Danny van Dongen and Rogier Kroymans, both team members of the Kroymans Racing team.

The GT4 series was initiated last year. The races will be held on six European circuits (Silverstone, Monza, Oschersleben, Francorchamps, Brno and Nogaro). Race fans will notice that the race calendar more or less echoes that of the GT3 series. This is indeed the case, since the GT4 Cup derives from GT3. The difference lies in the fact that GT3 is a race series for semi-professionals, which most certainly cannot be said of GT4. From a technical point of view, the GT4 cars are much closer to the production cars in the dealer showroom. Every effort has been made to keep the GT4 Cup as accessible as possible. ‘Gentleman-drivers’ are most welcome, professional racing drivers however are not.

Corvette enjoys a fine reputation in the world of international motor sport, due in part to the various competitions and race series in which the American supercar goes to battle with other cars. The American racing legend has won the GT1 class of the 24 Hours of Le Mans as well as Francorchamps and the European FIA GT3 Championship 2007. The GT4 is a logical, affordable addition to the more professional and more expensive race categories; without a Corvette, the GT4 grid is not complete.

With the arrival of the GT4 version, based on the Corvette C6, Corvette is active in almost all categories of GT racing. It is proof of the fact that motor sport is an important part of the brand philosophy. ‘Win on Sunday, sell on Monday’ is a maxim held in high esteem by Corvette.

The 2008 C6 GT4 is built by Callaway Competition in Leingarten, Germany. This car is based on the 2008 C6 model. The 6.2 V8 LS3 engine features dry-sump lubrication. The close-ratio 6-speed manual gearbox is supplied by Tremec and the triple-plate race clutch by Tilton. Further modifications: ventilated disc brakes from AP Racing (front: diameter 355 mm, 6-piston calipers; rear: diameter 330 mm, 4-piston calipers), racing ABS, cast-magnesium wheels from OZ Racing with Pirelli tires (front: 265/645-18; rear: 305/680-18) and a Koenig Hans bucket seat with 6-point safety harness. The C6 GT4 is also equipped with a roll cage, safety fuel tank with a capacity of 104 litres and refuelling valves on both sides, pneumatic jack system, polycarbonate rear and side windows and a GM Performance T1 chassis with adjustable anti-roll bars front and rear.

The engine delivers 437 bhp, but Callaway can boost this to 500 bhp for non-FIA race categories. An aerodynamic body kit is available too, consisting of a large front spoiler with splitter and a rear wing for added downforce. These options are fitted on Corvettes participating in the Dutch Supercar Challenge (DSC).

Callaway has the capacity to build five GT4 cars this year. Delivery of these cars will take place at the Corvette Experience Centers, where GT4 drivers can also turn to for spares. The FIA GT4 version carries a price tag of approximately € 125,000; the DSC version is approximately € 150,000.

As another key element in its overall global strategy to improve fuel economy and reduce oil consumption and CO2 emissions, General Motors Chairman Rick Wagoner announced today that GM will introduce a second-generation version of the GM Hybrid System with a new, more powerful lithium-ion battery.

Hitachi Vehicle Energy Ltd., a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Hitachi Ltd., will supply an advanced lithium-ion battery, which will help make the next-generation GM Hybrid System nearly three times more powerful than the system it replaces. Overall fuel economy improvements for cars and trucks using the system are expected to be up to 20 percent, depending on engine and vehicle application.

“This new system is another important step in our broad-based strategy to reduce vehicle fuel consumption and emissions,” Wagoner said at the 78th International Geneva Motor Show.

The next-generation GM Hybrid System will build upon the successful belt-alternator-starter hybrid technology currently available in the Saturn Vue, Saturn Aura and Chevrolet Malibu. By building on this proven technology, Wagoner said, GM will be able to make the GM Hybrid System more cost-effective and expand its application in GM’s global vehicle portfolio.

“In order to have a real impact in reducing oil consumption, oil imports, and CO2 emissions, advanced technologies must be affordable enough to drive high-volume applications,” he said. “We plan to roll out this next-generation hybrid technology globally, across our brands and regions, starting in 2010 in North America, and we expect that volumes will eventually exceed 100,000 units annually.”

The next-generation GM Hybrid System will complement GM’s widely acclaimed Two-Mode Hybrid system as part of the company’s advanced powertrain portfolio. The Two-Mode Hybrid system debuted in 2007 in the Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon, and will be offered this year in the Cadillac Escalade full-size SUV and the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra full-size pickups. The first front-wheel-drive application of the Two-Mode Hybrid system will debut in the 2009 Saturn Vue Green Line.

The increased power from the lithium-ion battery will allow the next-generation GM Hybrid System to be used in a wide range of global powertrains, including naturally aspirated engines, new high-efficiency turbocharged engines, bio-fuel engines and diesels.

This technology is showcased in the Saab 9-X BioPower Hybrid concept car, which debuted today at the Geneva Motor Show. The Saab concept is capable of 117 g CO2/km, or projected fuel consumption of just 4.9 l/100 km (48 mpg) when running on gasoline over the combined cycle.

The next-generation GM Hybrid System helps optimize fuel efficiency and reduce emissions by:

Turning the engine off at idle
Offering brief electric-only propulsion
Using a more powerful electric motor to enhance engine efficiency
Extending fuel cutoff during deceleration
Extending regenerative braking to recapture more energy
Performing intelligent hybrid battery charging
For additional energy savings, an advanced six-speed automatic transmission also may be used, depending on the vehicle application.

The current GM Hybrid System was introduced in 2006 on the Saturn Vue Green Line SUV, which remains the lowest-priced hybrid SUV in the U.S., starting at a $25,995 MSRP. Shanghai GM announced in January that the Buick LaCrosse Eco-Hybrid sedan will be the first application for the current GM Hybrid System in Asia-Pacific.

By the end of 2008, GM will offer eight hybrid models in North America and nine worldwide. GM will introduce 16 new hybrid vehicles over the next four years.