http://businessweek.com/autos/conten...dex_best+of+bw

Ironically, this article goes to print the same day Toyota is picketed for launching a non-green SUV and a Toyota official smashed a photographer's camera on stage.......

Is GM's Green Tech Better Than Toyota's?

That's what Chrysler, Daimler, and BMW seem to think. They're all using GM's hybrid technology for their new trucks and SUVs

by David Kiley

In the next 24 months, General Motors (GM), Chrysler, Daimler (DAI) and BMW (BMWG) will collectively bring out at least nine hybrid trucks and sport-utility vehicles, including the Chevrolet Tahoe and Chrysler's Aspen and Dodge Durango, which are being unveiled this week at the Los Angeles Auto Show. But for the conditions of a joint technology agreement among the companies, each vehicle might have a badge on its side-panel that says "GM Inside."


That's right, GM, once a laggard in fuel efficiency technology, is making its nemesis Toyota (TM)—the undisputed image leader in fuel-efficient transportation—take notice by starting a new and legitimate rivalry for the next generation of hybrid trucks and SUVs, as well as plug-in vehicles. Chrysler, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW all opted in 2005 to adopt GM's hybrid technology in a four-company venture, rather than to license Toyota's hybrid hardware.
Hybrid Trucks Ready to Roll

GM launched the Chevy Tahoe hybrid last month, while the rest of the companies are rolling their hybrids out in 2008 and 2009. The Durango and Aspen hybrids are expected to increase fuel efficiency by 20% to 25% over their gas-only counterparts, or about 18 city/23 highway. The SUVs will come with 5.7-liter HEMI V-8 engines with Multi-Displacement System (MDS), also known as "cylinder deactivation," as well as a feature that allows the engine to stop at traffic lights. That means, under highway cruising conditions, only four cylinders will push the SUV down the road unless it's packing a huge load. The improvement in city driving fuel economy, though, is 40% over the gas-only version.
Mercedes is using the same two-mode, hybrid transmission technology in the ML450 Hybrid, set to launch in 2009. BMW showed its first vehicle utilizing the technology from the venture in the X6 ActiveHybrid concept vehicle it showed last September at the Frankfurt Auto Show. The X6, scheduled to go on sale in the fourth quarter of 2009, can be driven on electric power only, on the combustion engine alone, or with a combination of both power sources.
It may surprise many consumers that companies as historically finicky and image-conscious as Mercedes-Benz and BMW would opt for GM's hybrid technology over Toyota's. After all, an internal study by GM last year showed that 70% of the consumers the automaker polled described GM as "part of the problem" when it comes to climate change and the impact of automobiles on the environment, whereas 70% of the same group described Toyota as "part of the solution."
GM's Solution Packs More Power

GM began its hybrid technology program in the shadow of Toyota. The Japanese automaker introduced the Prius hybrid in 1998 in the face of GM skepticism that there was a market for such a vehicle, or that it was the right sort of vehicle to carry a hybrid system. GM was developing a system for diesel-electric hybrid city buses with technology it planned to leverage into pickup trucks and SUVs. Toyota was clearly successful in terms of tapping into consumer desires and in developing a green halo that serves it well today. "There is no question that we [GM] underestimated the marketing power of the technology," says Larry Burns, GM's executive vice-president for research and development.
However, Toyota's hybrid system does not work well for towing or pulling heavy loads associated with pickups and SUVs. That's why Toyota has yet to introduce a hybrid version of its Tundra pickup (BusinessWeek, 1/30/07), or of SUVs such as the Sequoia and the Land Cruiser.

Because Chrysler, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz were interested in creating hybrid versions of its SUVs, it turned to GM's technology. Chrysler executives estimate the venture with GM saved it at least six to nine months of replicating work that GM had already done. "The GM technology was very sound and very adaptable to BMW's desire for high-performance in the vehicles we develop," says Wolfgang Epple, who led BMW's involvement in the venture.
The advantage of GM's so-called two-mode system, points out GM's Larry Nitz, who has headed the automaker's venture with the other three companies, is that the engine speed remains constant when the gears of the vehicle are changing. This is extremely important in the performance of a pickup or SUV when it is carrying loads or going uphill. The power is sent to the wheels mechanically through a series of clutches and gears. In a conventional hybrid, such as Toyota's, power is sent to the wheels electrically, which is less effective for bigger vehicles.
Greening GM's Image

GM may not be known yet for "green" vehicles. But it is on a mission to change that. David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich., says that automakers developing hybrid or electric vehicles invariably stumble over patents or intellectual property held by either Toyota or GM.
It was GM, after all, that developed the EV-1 electric vehicle, though it suffered a tremendous public-relations backlash when it killed the vehicle, bought back all the models it had already sold and then destroyed them. Nevertheless, says Cole, "In a few years GM will probably be earning more than a half-billion a year from other car companies licensing its technology, a big portion of which will be related to hybrids and plug-ins."
Will Truck Drivers Care?

The big question, of course, is whether buyers of pickups and SUVs will buy the more expensive hybrid versions of these vehicles at anything like the rate at which car buyers have bought Toyota's hybrids. The marketplace is not a laboratory. Toyota has sold more than one million hybrid vehicles since 1998, mostly Prius sedans. A Prius today costs about $23,500, according to Edmunds.com, and gets 46 mpg. Compare that with a comparable four-cylinder Camry costing around $23,000, which gets 21/31 mpg. The fuel economy numbers on the Prius are compelling and consumers who buy the car, which has a unique design and a model name synonymous with hybrids, clearly enjoy having their neighbors and peers know they bought a hybrid.
The truck and SUV market is different for hybrids. Ford (F) has had difficulty selling its Escape hybrid (BusinessWeek, 12/27/05)>, despite its fuel economy of 32 mpg (front-wheel drive), compared with 18/24 mpg (six cylinder) for the regular gas version. GM's Tahoe gets 21/22 mpg, about 25% higher than the gas version, but still low for a car buyer looking to make a big move in fuel economy. The Tahoe Hybrid price is not yet set, but the arithmetic had better be compelling to impress whatever green-minded pickup and SUV buyers are out there.
David Kiley is a senior correspondent in BusinessWeek's Detroit bureau

Peace,

Martin

 

Two minor points:
My understanding was the first Prius was introduced in Japan in 1997. That is what "Wiki" and the Toyota announcements claim.

As for Ford having difficulty selling its Escape hybrid? My understanding is there have been waiting lists for the car. Perhaps some of our FEH owners might offer a clue? I know I test drove one in December 2005 and thought it was a fine hybrid but not the type of sedan my family prefers.

Bob Wilson

 

I'm assuming you mean 1997, not 1977. The nuance between 1997 and 1998 could be an issue of model year v calendar year. Or the writer could be just referring to US intro.

I was a little surprised on the comment about FEH being a tough sell. They may be looking at total numbers sold as opposed to % of capacity. Or maybe the market for FEH has levelled? I simply don't know on that one.

Peace,

Martin

 

The comment about the FEH being a hard sell may have been true in 2005 as the reference is given, but not today. I recall that Ford had to dial back production in 2005 and perhaps into 2006 before demand took off. Maybe the real story here is how out of date journalists tend to be.

 

I don't know...50 grand for an SUV that it's owners have $$$ anyway to spend on fuel...how will that translate to the masses?

Or the BAS with NO emissions improvement and barely an efficiency improvement (but it's cheap...come buy two!) ?

where is the real leadership here? Not in GM. How in the world can 20 MPG SUVs be the answer? And no cleaner?

There's no way I'd ever, ever buy or recommend a GM product. Not when right next door is the best hybrid system to date at Toyota...HSD. Powerful, economical, reliable, and low polluting. GM doesn't get it.

 

How in the world can 20 MPG SUVs be the answer? And no cleaner?

It depends on what question you ask. If the question is "How can we sell our big SUVs to people who want to buy green?", then hybrid SUVs might be the right answer. It isn't about making them green, efficient, better, etc. It's about making them sell.
As far as most American managers are concerned, the only question that matters is "will it sell?".

 

I would not call GM a hybrid standard-bearer. Their vehicles offer too small an improvement in absolute MPG and the price of such vehicles tends to be very high. GM makes more progress than Ford and Chrysler, however. I/we think Toyota's system has the best improvement in absolute MPG, while Honda's system makes remarkable gains out of a fairly simple architecture.

 

I think there is a chance to make a significant impact overall. GM sold 14000 Yukons, Escallades and Tahoes last month. People looking to buy one of those vehicles is in the market for that kind of vehicle. They want a big truck that is full of luxuries. They enter the market knowing they will spend a bunch of money. If GM can sell 1400 hybrid trucks each month, what is the impact going to be? If the other manufacturers are able to do the same thing with there new hybrid SUV offerings? I'm not going to figure out the overall gas savings, but if someone has a moment that would be real nice.

Not only do I think there is a market for these vehicles, but I think people that never would have considered buying a large SUV like a Tahoe will really look into one. If all the companies that are putting these hybrid systems in there vehicles can sell 100000 combined units each year that is a significant volume. If the companies start transferring this technology into small vehicles, the costs will come way down. I really hope GM is making the proper steps. I think GM is going to leap frog Toyota in the next 4 years. Toyota is a good company but I feel offering for offering, GM is providing a good product at a fair price and ridding itself of overpriced hourly manufacturing labor. GM is going to emerge from these problems a lean, strong and hopefully more nimble company that it has been in the past.

 

I agree. GM is a recent player, and to state that they are now the standard for the remainder of the industry is premature. That said, I do think GM has finally made up for the market mistake they made by not realizing the market for technology as a solution to the environment, but with a twist. GM developed a system for trucks and towing that offers some marginal improvement while maintaining consistency witht the American "Big is good" market perception (that GM helped to create) of family SUVs, puckups and minivans. They are going to win big in the short term with that concept.

If a "real" energy crunch (which I think is in our not-to-distant future) occurs and starts to impact American pocketbooks, then that market perception may change -- rapidly. Most American families do not "need" pickups or SUVs -- they "want" them. There is a big difference, and it will reveal itself when the economic well being of the family is impacted. The Toyota technology makes fewer compromises for parameters other than efficiency. The HSD series/parallel technology offers superior flexibility and efficiency in the steps toward higher efficiency hybrids, full power by wire hybrids, PHEVS and even all electrics. The TCH is a lot heavier and bigger than the Prius, but in a few short years Toyota was able to transfer the technology from the Prius to the Camry, and make almost everything lighter, smaller and more powerfull. Same for the HyHi and these were only the first generation removed from the Prius. I can't wait to see what they do with current developments in battery technology, ultra-capacitors and motor advancements.

I beleive that if we see a mass movement toward lighter personal transportation with emphasis on economy and effciency, GM's success in the "Heavy Hybrids", at least for comsumers, could be very short lived. However, it's potential for commercial trucks and buses is another matter entirely and may yet ensure GM's return for the technology.

 

Since I own a prius i will be bias to it, since it is really an oil efficient car/eco-friendly car, the pioneer of Hybrid Cars...

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Heard about Pules Star Plug ???