After months of bad news, General Motors Co. on Tuesday eagerly showed off once-secret product plans to illustrate that it's on the road to recovery.
GM said its Chevrolet Volt, slated to come to market next year, could be rated for an estimated 230 miles per gallon in city driving, and it also promised to launch 25 new vehicles by 2011.
Just a month ago, GM emerged from 40 days in bankruptcy as a new company largely owned by the U.S. Treasury.
"It feels great to be talking about cars in the auto business again," GM CEO Fritz Henderson said during a daylong event for news media and industry analysts.
GM opened its design center at the Warren Technical Center and proving grounds in Milford to the group a day after it gave a similar tour to 100 hand-picked consumers.
Among the new vehicles coming to market, Henderson said, is a small sports sedan for the Cadillac brand. While no launch date was provided, the new vehicle will be smaller than the popular Cadillac CTS and have rear- and optional all-wheel drive. GM says the vehicle will compete with the popular BMW 3 Series.
The plans also include doubling the current size of Buick's showroom from three vehicles to six within 24 months. In addition to an SUV crossover hybrid announced last week, GM is preparing a small crossover SUV and midsize and compact sedans.
GM also showed off a GMC concept vehicle that resembled a boxy Scion xB or Nissan Cube.
The other future vehicles revealed Tuesday, such as the small Cadillac, will mean a lot more to GM’s bottom line than the Volt. But at least initially, the big-number announcement was the kind of display needed to get consumers talking — and looking at all the new cars and trucks the new GM has in store for would-be buyers.
New mileage calculation
Mileage ratings are tricky to calculate with the electric-drive Volt and have an uncertain meaning for most drivers.
That's because GM is aiming for the Volt to drive a 40-mile range on an electrical charge alone. The car will have an onboard generator to produce electricity to power the vehicle after 40 miles, and that generator will be powered by gasoline.
GM previews models, says Volt may get 230-m.p.g. rating | Detroit Free Press | Freep.com
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GM said its Chevrolet Volt, slated to come to market next year, could be rated for an estimated 230 miles per gallon in city driving, and it also promised to launch 25 new vehicles by 2011.
Just a month ago, GM emerged from 40 days in bankruptcy as a new company largely owned by the U.S. Treasury.
"It feels great to be talking about cars in the auto business again," GM CEO Fritz Henderson said during a daylong event for news media and industry analysts.
GM opened its design center at the Warren Technical Center and proving grounds in Milford to the group a day after it gave a similar tour to 100 hand-picked consumers.
Among the new vehicles coming to market, Henderson said, is a small sports sedan for the Cadillac brand. While no launch date was provided, the new vehicle will be smaller than the popular Cadillac CTS and have rear- and optional all-wheel drive. GM says the vehicle will compete with the popular BMW 3 Series.
The plans also include doubling the current size of Buick's showroom from three vehicles to six within 24 months. In addition to an SUV crossover hybrid announced last week, GM is preparing a small crossover SUV and midsize and compact sedans.
GM also showed off a GMC concept vehicle that resembled a boxy Scion xB or Nissan Cube.
The other future vehicles revealed Tuesday, such as the small Cadillac, will mean a lot more to GM’s bottom line than the Volt. But at least initially, the big-number announcement was the kind of display needed to get consumers talking — and looking at all the new cars and trucks the new GM has in store for would-be buyers.
New mileage calculation
Mileage ratings are tricky to calculate with the electric-drive Volt and have an uncertain meaning for most drivers.
That's because GM is aiming for the Volt to drive a 40-mile range on an electrical charge alone. The car will have an onboard generator to produce electricity to power the vehicle after 40 miles, and that generator will be powered by gasoline.
GM previews models, says Volt may get 230-m.p.g. rating | Detroit Free Press | Freep.com
View attachment 945
