During the recent British Motor Show, GM Europe boss was expecting to get deluged with questions about the precarious financial situation at the home office in Detroit. To his surprise he found that the subject most of the European media were interested in was the status of E-Flex in Europe. For those just joining the conversation, E-flex is the extended range electric drive power-train architecture GM is developing for the Chevrolet Volt. Forster provides responses to some of the most common questions in a post on the GM Europe Blog, Driving Conversations today. Our friends across the pond will get their first chance to sample E-Flex vehicles about a year after the US launch. An Opel/Vauxhall branded E-Flex vehicle will be the first to appear in late 2011. Since Opel and Vauxhall in the UK are GM's volume divisions there, they will get the first ER-EVs while a Chevrolet branded vehicle will arrive a few months later. Those first Opel ER-EVs will be exported from the Detroit plant that is building the Volt but as production ramps up, additional capacity will be added in Europe. What Forster doesn't discuss is whether the Opel ER-EV will have the same styling as the Volt or a unique body, perhaps looking like the Flextreme concept that appeared at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show. Forster also didn't discuss the range extender which we have been told will be the same 1.4L gas engine that will appear in the production Volt. Clearly GM is counting heavily on E-Flex to help it meet future EU carbon dioxide emissions limits.


[Source: General Motors]

Is it possible that we'll see a Ford Volt at some time in the not to distant future? If a story in the Detroit News is to be believed, yes! Ford and General Motors are apparently in talks to share the E-Flex powertrain technology that underpins the Volt. It wouldn't be the first time that Ford and GM have collaborated. The front wheel drive 6-speed automatic transmissions used in the larger cars and crossovers (Flex, Taurus, Acadia, etc) was jointly developed by the two companies. GM has also collaborated with Daimler, Chrysler and BMW on the Two-Mode hybrid system.

Sharing the E-Flex hardware would allow GM to more rapidly ramp up production volumes and drive down costs. At the same time Ford would be able to pick up an advanced powertrain that they are currently lacking. GM reportedly approached Ford and the Dearborn board of directors approved negotiations. Several meetings have been held but nothing has been agreed to yet. At the same 2007 Detroit Auto Show where the Volt Concept debuted, Ford showed its own Airstream concept with a plug-in fuel cell series hybrid powertrain. Ford has had a prototype Edge running with that powertrain since November 2006 and could provide some controls and system integration experience to the collaboration. GM is likely well ahead of Ford on the battery development side at this point.

[Source: Detroit News]

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Opel Flextreme

The internal debate over whether the upcoming Volt will be badged as a Chevrolet or an Opel across the pond has been decided. The first Euro-bound EV's from the General will be Opels, though we are not sure how much in common the vehicle will share with the Flextreme concept. Carl-Peter Forster, president of GM Europe, indicates that a Vauxhall version is also in the works (this would be nothing more than a right hand drive variant for the British market) and that all three of the vehicles will be quite similar in design. A gasoline range-extending powerplant will see shared duty in the trio as well, though we would expect a diesel option in Europe at least at some point.

For the forseeable future, all three E-Flex variants will be built at the same factory in Detroit, and Europeans should expect to see the Opel in 2012. Of course, the extended-range electric car will carry a price premium, with a €10,000 bump over a comparable gas engined vehicle currently being thrown around. We hope that the Volt and its clones will prove popular enough to see that cost premium dwindle somewhat as the cost of batteries drops and allow the General to make a few bucks in the process.


[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

Following his speech to the Commonwealth Club a few days ago, GM CEO Rick Wagoner apparently told reporters that a second E-Flex platform vehicle was also under development at the company's Warren MI technical center alongside the Chevy Volt. This second ER-EV is destined for the Opel (and presumably Saturn) brand. Following the debut of the Volt in January 2007, GM has shown two other E-Flex concepts, the Opel/Saturn Flextreme and the Cadillac Provoq. The Provoq is expected to make the production transition in 2009 as a conventionally-powered crossover.

The Flextreme, however, carries some of the design language of the new Opel Insignia that was recently revealed. The significantly more aerodynamic Flextreme also carries the hatchback/wagon type body shape that is more popular in Europe. An Opel-badged model would likely have an appearance similar to the Flextreme but with more conventional style body openings and without the pair of Segways in the back. It's unknown at this point what type of range extender would be used with the Opel although the concept used a diesel.

So far we've only found one source for this report of a second E-Flex vehicle and we're still waiting to hear back from GM for any confirmation or comments on any of this. As soon as we here back we'll provide updates.

[Source: Green Car Congress]