Renewable Gossip

Tom Stephens, GM vice chairman of product development, with Saturn Vue plug-in hybrid concept in early 2008. The plug-in small SUV is now planned as a Buick.

A mash-up of the Chevy Volt, GM’s full-size SUV “two-mode” hybrids, and the Buick brand.

General Motors announced last week that it plans to produce the world’s first plug-in hybrid SUV, in the form of a new yet-to-be-named Buick crossover. The new model will first be released in 2010 as a gas-powered vehicle available with two sizes of direct injection engines—a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine and a 3.0-liter V-6.

The plug-in version, planned for 2011, will curiously use a larger 3.6-liter engine.

The company said the new vehicle would appeal to customers who like the Buick Enclave, but want a smaller more fuel-efficient version. GM claims the plug-in version will get double the fuel efficiency of the gas-only version—but specific targets were not provided. Charging the plug-in Buick’s 8-kilowatt hour battery pack—packaged under the cargo floor—is expected to take four to five hours at 110V.

Excitement, But Potential Customer Confusion

The Buick plug-in will use some of the same technology GM is developing for the Chevrolet Volt. For example, it will be powered by a lithium ion battery pack provided by South Korea’s LG Chem. But there will be key differences. Unlike the Volt, a plug-in series hybrid capable of 40 miles of all-electric driving regardless of traveling speed—and exclusively using electricity to power the wheels—the Buick plug-in crossover will take a blended approach in which gasoline and battery power are combined, especially at high speeds. At lower speeds, the Buick plug-in will be capable of all-electric driving for as much as 10 miles, according to GM.

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