A week's vacation finds auto analysts changing
the odds on who will be first. Now the
handicappers put GM in the lead. (What a change:
even six months ago it would have been
astonishing to see top Toyota and GM execs to be
responding competitively? Today, when you search
at Google for the exact phrase, "plug-in hybrid
race" you get 1,840 links; and if you search
simply for the four words, you get 1.45 million...)

For readers who haven't been tracking all the
details, this distillation of the most important
aspects in media reports follows our August 6
posting, "Media See 2 Races: PHEVs and V2G"
<http://www.calcars.org/calcars-news/817.html>.
It offers our take on recent developments and
includes excerpts from stories about GM in
Autoweek, Forbes, Reuters, LA Times, Chicago
Tribune , Associated Press and Detroit Free Press.


GM VOLT: BACKGROUND AND WHAT'S NEW
GM has been in the news about its battery
contracts, but it's difficult to see what's
changed. Recall that in addition to battery
contracts for a Saturn Vue PHEV, the company has
contracts for Volt battery development with two consortia:
* Compact Power Inc. of Troy, MI, with its
parent, LG Chem of Korea for lithium-polymer
batteries: read the summaries and listen to the
two-part interview by EVWorld.com editor Bill
Moore with CPI's President and CEO Prabhakar
Patil at
<http://evworld.com/article.cfm?storyid=1293> and
<http://www.evworld.com/article.cfm?storyid=1298>.
(Both are "Premium Access" articles, meaning you
need to subscribe to EVWorld.com, well worth the $29/year.)
* Continental Automotive Systems of Frankfurt,
Germany, partnering with A123 Systems: A123 has
also made available its nanophosphate lithium
batteries for conversions by two aftermarket
companies: Hymotion of Ontario, Canada (which
A123 recently acquired) and Hybrids-Plus of
Boulder, Colorado (the only company currently
offering conversions to individuals). See
<http://www.calcars.org/howtoget.html> for links.

The news came from GM's Vice Chairman Bob Lutz in
speeches and press briefings at an auto
conference in Traverse City, Michigan. (See the
press release at
<http://www.a123systems.com/newsite/index.php#/news/news070809>.)
What's changed? A direct co-development project
means A123 will accelerate design and production
of large-format cells specifically for the Volt.
For technical and business discussions, see the
informative AutoblogGreen interview with A123's
CEO David Vieau and VP Ric Fulop
<http://www.autobloggreen.com/2007/08/13/autobloggreen-qanda-ric-fulop-and-david\
-vieau-of-a123-systems>.
To read 38+ comments, see
<http://www.greencarcongress.com/2007/08/gm-and-a123syst.html>.)

The other news is Lutz projecting delivery of the
first cells this October, with cars on the road
to test next spring, and an "expected" delivery
date for the Volt now stretched to "by the end of
the 2010." As we see it, GM is still hedging
because it isn't sure batteries will be ready to
meet what we see as unrealistic standards for
Version 1.0 PHEV prototypes: 40-mile range,
battery not needing replacement, and fully
competitive pricing. GM says it has a "timeline."
We think it's the case that GM still has NO FIRM
TIMETABLES for production of the Volt. (Barely
mentioned is that GM also says its Saturn Vue PHEV could arrive in 2009.)


Below, from news stories that pick up the "PHEV
race" theme and provide details, we present
excerpts; in some reports, we've also combined short paragraphs:


AUTOWEEK
Plug-In Hybrids: Will the General get there first?
http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070810/FREE/70810013/1024/l\
atestnews

At one of the auto industry’s annual gabfests
(this one called the Management Briefing Seminars
and held in Traverse City, Michigan), General
Motors Corp. vice chairman Bob Lutz said his
company has cut a deal with battery maker A123
Systems Inc. to help develop electric-car
batteries. Lutz said his goal is for GM to
develop a plug in hybrid on sale by 2010.

This could help GM in a big way in what has
become a two horse race between it and Toyota to
get a plug in hybrid on the market. The same day
Lutz was talking, the Wall Street Journal
reported a bit of a setback for Toyota when it
said it might delay the launch of its new
gas-electric hybrids by perhaps as much as two
years because of possible safety problems with
its lithium-ion batteries. “It very definitely
opens a window of opportunity for us,” Lutz said of Toyota’s potential delay.

The system GM is developing is called E-Flex. It
has the potential to match battery power with
several different energy sources, like an
internal combustion engine, or a hydrogen fuel
cell. A123 Systems Inc.’s batteries are essential
because they could provide a 40-mile range.
E-Flex was in the Chevrolet Volt unveiled at the
Detroit auto show in January. In addition to the
Volt possibly being on the market by 2010, Lutz
said GM is pushing to have Saturn Vue plug-in hybrid on the road by 2009.


FORBES
GM Says It Could Lead Electric Car Race
By TOM KRISHER 08.09.07
<http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/08/09/ap4004892.html>http://www.forbes.com/\
feeds/ap/2007/08/09/ap4004892.html

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. - General Motors Corp. has
signed an agreement with a battery maker that
could propel it ahead of Toyota Motor Corp. in
the race to bring plug-in hybrid and electric
cars to market, a top company official said
Thursday. A123 Systems Inc., based in Watertown,
Mass., already produces millions of nanophosphate
lithium-ion batteries for use in cordless power
tools, and it plans to apply the technology to automobiles.

GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said the deal, coupled
with a published report that Toyota Motor Corp.
would delay launches of lithium-ion battery
powered hybrids for up to two years, could give
GM the lead in bringing the new clean technology to market.

"I think that our No. 1 competitor has some
problems with their technology, and I do think
that it very definitely opens a window of
opportunity for us to be first to market with a
genuine plug-in hybrid," Lutz said at an
automotive industry conference in Traverse City
where the battery deal was announced.
<snip>
Toyota spokesman John McCandless said the company
does not comment on its product plans, but he
disagreed that the developments give GM an edge.
"No one can leap ahead of anybody until the
products get to market," McCandless said.

Lutz said the lithium-ion battery being discussed
by GM is safer and manages heat better than the technology Toyota was using.
<snip>
A123 expects to have the batteries, which would
be flat and similar in appearance but larger than
those that power cell phones, ready for GM to
test in vehicles by October. GM still hopes to
have electrically powered vehicles on the market
by the end of 2010. David Vieau, A123's president
and chief executive, said the technology can be
moved from power tools to plug-in hybrid and
electric vehicles. "What you have to do now is
put it in a vehicle" to test its thermal
properties and see how it stands up to shock and
vibration in a car, Vieau said.
<snip>
A123 provides batteries made in China for Black &
Decker and DeWalt power tools, and plans to
develop a flat, rectangular battery for use by
GM, Vieau said. The companies expect the
batteries to have a life of 10 years with more than 7,000 charge cycles.
<snip>
Lutz said that despite the setback Toyota is not
out of the race. "Never discount Toyota. They're
extremely smart people," he said.


REUTERS VIA CNN
GM to begin testing Volt electric car by spring
Product chief Bob Lutz says the plug-in vehicle
is on track for production in 2010.
August 9 2007
http://money.cnn.com/2007/08/09/autos/gm_electric.reut/index.htm?cnn=yes

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (Reuters) -- General Motors
Corp. will begin road testing its Chevrolet Volt
plug-in hybrid in the spring of next year and
remains on track to produce the rechargeable car
by late 2010, a senior executive said Thursday.

As the race to bring a mass-market, rechargeable
electric vehicle to the market heats up, GM's
global product chief Bob Lutz said he expects to
have next-generation lithium-ion battery packs
ready for the vehicles by October this year.

"We should have the battery packs by October," he
said, speaking to reporters on the sidelines of
an industry conference. "We'll have some on the
road for testing next spring, and we should have
the Volt in production by the end of 2010."

GM is the only automaker to have provided a
timeline on the production of a plug-in hybrid
vehicle, even though other companies, such as
Ford Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. are working on similar technology.
<snip>
"The cost of the battery would likely be high
even at the time of production," Lutz said,
adding that GM is exploring options that would
allow consumers to lease the battery when buying
the vehicle in order to bring down the sticker price.
<snip>
Lutz said GM is requiring a 10-year life for the
battery, and said the No. 1 U.S. automaker would
look to price the vehicle like a "traditional mid-market car."

GM is racing rival Toyota to offer the first
mass-market electric vehicle. Toyota last month
unveiled a "plug-in" car based on its popular
Prius hybrid model, saying it would test the
fuel-saving vehicle on public roads - a first for the industry.

But Toyota said the car, called the Toyota
Plug-in HV, is not fit for commercialization
because it uses low-energy nickel-metal hydride
batteries instead of lithium-ion batteries,
believed to be a better fit for rechargeable plug-in cars.

Environmental advocates have been pressing
automakers to roll out plug-in vehicles that
could be recharged at standard electric outlets
as a way to reduce oil consumption and greenhouse-gas emissions.
<snip>
On Thursday, GM announced another contract with
A123 Systems, which has been working with
Continental on battery technology. GM said both
Compact Power and A123 could end up providing the
batteries for the Volt, or only one of them might
meet the automaker's requirements.


LOS ANGELES TIMES
GM deal to spur development of plug-in hybrid batteries
A123Systems will help the automaker power its Volt electric car.
By Martin Zimmerman, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer August 10, 2007
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-battery10aug10,1,440369.story?ctrack=1&cse\
t=true

General Motors Corp. took another step Thursday
in its quest to develop a car that will be able
to travel as far as 40 miles on a single electric charge.

GM said it had signed a contract with battery
maker A123Systems to develop lithium-ion
batteries specifically designed to power the Volt
plug-in hybrid vehicles that GM hopes to put on
the market in the next few years.

The battery technology used by A123Systems is
potentially safer, cheaper and more durable than
other designs now being tested, the automaker
said. This would give Detroit-based GM a boost
over Toyota Motor Corp. and other rivals in the
race to produce a viable plug-in car for the U.S. market.

GM said it expected to start road-testing
prototype vehicles powered by A123Systems'
lithium-ion batteries by the end of this year or in early 2008.

Cars equipped with the batteries could be in
commercial production by the end of 2010, GM Vice
Chairman Bob Lutz said at an industry conference
Thursday. The company said this previously
announced timetable was dependent on the development of a suitable battery.

The contract with A123Systems "should
significantly accelerate commercial release of
the Volt," said Michael Millikin, editor of Green
Car Congress, a website that tracks developments
in eco-friendly transportation technologies.
<snip>
California, the No. 1 state for sales of
gasoline-electric hybrids such as the Toyota
Prius, would be a major market for vehicles with
extended all-electric range, Millikin said. If GM
succeeds in getting the Volt or something similar
into showrooms before its rivals, it would be a
major coup for the company whose green
credentials are somewhat tarnished in the Golden State.
<snip>
The company already makes batteries in China for
use in power tools. The GM road tests will help
determine whether the batteries can stand up to
the extreme conditions of powering a full-size
vehicle in daily use. "We'll be able to tell at
that time how close these guys are to developing
the battery technology that meets our needs for
power and energy storage," said Nick Zielinski, chief engineer of the Volt.

Toyota is working with Panasonic to develop
lithium-ion batteries for its proposed plug-in
hybrid. The Japanese car company has been saying
for months that it would take years before it had
a battery capable of powering a commercially
viable plug-in. "There's still a lot of
development that needs to be done from the
standpoint of cost, safety and weight," a Toyota spokesman said this week.

Analysts have speculated that Toyota's plug-in
prototypes would have an electric-only range of
about 10 miles. If true, that would give GM a
huge competitive advantage if the A123Systems
batteries prove successful as an automotive power source.


CHICAGO TRIBUNE
GM betting on new hybrid battery
By Rick Popely | Tribune staff reporter August 10, 2007
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-fri_volt_0810aug10,0,6719188.story

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. - General Motors Corp. on
Thursday took a step to propel itself into the
lead in the race to get electric vehicles on the road by 2010.
<snip>
"Testing is going to take a couple of years, and,
if all goes to plan, our target is still 2010,"
GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said at an industry conference here.

That's the tentative date GM set for the
introduction of the Chevrolet Volt, a plug-in
hybrid that made the auto-show circuit this year in concept form.

"The big thing is how fast they can bring the
battery cost down," he said. "The target is to
come in at the price of a midmarket car. The
average new vehicle costs around $28,000, and
most midsize cars are in the $20,000 to $25,000 range."
<snip>
GM's deal "really one-ups Toyota," at least for
the moment, said Philip Gott, consulting director
of industry forecaster Global Insight.
<snip>
Toyota has burnished its image for efficiency and
technology with the Prius and other hybrids, Gott
said, and GM could steal some of that thunder if
it builds the Volt before Toyota has a similar model.

GM probably would lose money on the Volt, but
Gott said: "The [public relations] is going to be
worth it. The most brilliant thing about the
Prius is the marketing strategy. Because of the
Prius, people think every Toyota is fuel efficient."

Gott, however, warns of the difficulties of
making lithium batteries work in a car. "That's a
lot to ask in three years. I don't think they have enough time," he said.

But David Cole, chairman of the Center for
Automotive Research, said, "Stay tuned. Things
could unfold pretty quickly." Toyota or another
manufacturer could find the solution sooner, and
being first doesn't ensure success, he said.
"It's a question of who gets to really high
volume on plug-ins. When they start talking about
a million vehicles, then they will have a competitive advantage," Cole said.

Lutz, GM's head of global product development and
an avid proponent of the Volt and plug-in
technology, wasn't crowing. "I think we're hooked
up with the right team, and I think our
competitors are having some problems with the
technology. I'm hoping we'll be first to market,"
Lutz said. "I never discount Toyota. They're
extremely smart people and they can shift to a
different [battery] very quickly."


ASSOCIATED PRESS
http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2007-08-09-gm-electric_N.htm
GM: Deal could put it in lead in electric car race
August 9, 2009

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — General Motors (GM)
has signed an agreement with a battery maker that
could propel it ahead of Toyota Motor (TM) in the
race to bring plug-in hybrid and electric cars to
market, a top company official said Thursday.
<snip>
GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said the deal, coupled
with a published report that Toyota would delay
launches of lithium-ion battery powered hybrids
for up to two years, could give GM the lead in
bringing the new clean technology to market.

"I think that our No. 1 competitor has some
problems with their technology, and I do think
that it very definitely opens a window of
opportunity for us to be first to market with a
genuine plug-in hybrid," Lutz said at an
automotive industry conference in Traverse City
where the battery deal was announced.

DETROIT FREE PRESS
GM: Battery on track for Chevy Volt
Detroit Free Press August 10, 2007
By Katie Merx, Free Press Business Writer
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070810/BUSINESS01/708100367

TRAVERSE CITY -- General Motors Corp. is growing
increasingly confident that battery developers
will be able to create a safe, durable and
affordable power source that will allow it to
begin selling its electrically driven Chevrolet
Volt to consumers by the end of 2010.

Speaking before a crowd of more than 1,000 at the
Management Briefing Seminars in Traverse City on
Thursday, GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz announced
that the automaker will develop lithium-ion
battery cells with A123Systems Inc. to power its electric-drive vehicles.
<snip>
"Breakthrough battery technology will drive
future automotive propulsion, and the company
that aligns with the best strategic partners will
win," Lutz said. "Frankly, I think we're hooking up with the right crew."


-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
Felix Kramer fkramer@...
Founder California Cars Initiative
http://www.calcars.org
http://www.calcars.org/news-archive.html
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --