Click above for more early images of the production Chevy Volt

It's no secret that we appreciate what General Motors has been able to do with just two-liters. The direct injected and turbocharged mill powering the rear-wheel drive Solstice GXP and Sky Redline along with the front-wheel drive HHR SS and Cobalt SS models is an excellent one. What's more, its 260 horsepower represents 130-horsepower per liter, the highest ever from a GM production engine and on par with the best from the world. Expect to see more of this kind of technology from new GM engines along with more six-speed transmissions. Also expect an ever-higher percentage of aluminum to appear in all engines from all manufacturers.

GM also has plans for diesels and hybrids. The upcoming 4.5-liter diesel for full-size trucks and SUVs manages to weigh about seventy-five pounds less than other diesels of similar size. On the hybrid front, Automotive News says that GM will offer one new hybrid per quarter for the next four years -- that's sixteen new hybrids. That number would not include the Volt, a car which GM considers fully electric with a range-extender, and is something we've heard for a while now.

GM is also hard at work on HCCI engines, which we have covered extensively and offer the promise of diesel-like economy with the ability to use gasoline. Fuel cells are still on the table, though we'd imagine that today's tough financial times could slow down the development of GM's hydrogen plans. We'll take the trade-off of an HCCI engine over a hydrogen fuel cell as it would likely have a much larger impact and be ready for primetime much sooner.

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

They say that an image tells more than a thousand words. The same can be said about this GMNext video, which you can find after the jump, which has GM's diesel guru Gary Arvan answering, some common questions from some Los Angeles passers-by, The diesel questions include queries such as why diesels are more popular in Europe than in the U. S., why diesel is more expensive at the pump, what happens if you use the wrong fuel at the pump and how it affects your health from the exhaust pump.

[Source: GMNext]

Click the Flextreme for a high-res gallery

We all got an early look at the Opel Flextreme after the images leaked onto the web the other night. In case you missed it, the Flextreme is Opel's interpretation of the E-Flex architecture that debuted last January in Detroit. Unlike the low-slung, almost coupe-like sedan shape of the Chevy Volt, the Opel features a similarly sleek mono-box shape. The more utilitarian wagon/hatch body style has always been popular in the European market where smaller more efficient cars dominate.

When General Motors gave us the first glimpse of E-Flex just before the Detroit Show, they emphasized the flexibility of the power-train architecture. As a system that is designed to be primarily electrically driven, the AC motor and battery packs are common across all variants. But as we move into a future where world-wide energy demands are increasing and petroleum gets more expensive, locally-soursed fuels will become the norm.

Full details of the Flextreme after the jump.

[Source: General Motors]

In the latest Bob Lutz video released on the Fastlane Blog the other day, Vice-Chairman Bob Lutz talked about diesels and didn't seem to exited about the prospects. Toward the end of the video he did mention that some diesels will come to US cars, crossovers and trucks but offered no details. GM did introduce a new 2.9L V-6 diesel at the Geneva Motor Show and has said it wasn't coming to the US. That position may be changing now.

If GM does offer the V-6 it would likely be in premium models like Cadillac and maybe Buick. Since Saturn is now the effectively the US branch of Opel and has been largely Europeanized, it would also be a logical home for diesels, especially in the Outlook crossover which is pretty thirsty with its current gasoline 3.6L V-6.

GM will be showing a diesel variant of the E-Flex system in an Opel body shell at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September and reportedly will also put the same powertrain in a Saturn Aura for the January Detroit Auto Show.

Update: After talking to a spokesman at General Motors, it appears that most of what Automotive News wrote and everyone else is repeating is pure conjecture. For the time being the 2.9L V-6 is a Europe only engine set to debut in the 2009 Cadillac CTS. There are currently no plans to bring this engine to the US market. Of course depending on what happens with regulations (both fuel economy and emissions) and market demand, plans can change. All work on the E-Flex architecture is being done on the Global Compact Car platform (currently known as Delta) and the Aura is built on the larger Epsilon mid-sized platform. With the Saturn/Opel tie-up a Saturn diesel E-Flex is not out the question, but if it happens it will be on something derived from the Astra.
[Source: Automotive News - Sub. req'd]

Even though the Senate has now passed a new energy bill that includes requirements for fleet fuel economy average of 35mpg by 2020 we still have a ways to go before the House passes it, the bill gets reconciled and ultimately signed into law. Nonetheless, the car makers have to get down to work and start cranking up the fuel economy of their vehicles, especially the larger trucks. All three of the domestic automakers have announced plans to add new diesel engines for their light duty trucks by the end of the decade with GM announcing a 4.5L V-8 and Chrysler last week mentioning plans to add a new smaller Cummins diesel to their Ram 1500 models.

The problem with the diesels, especially the newer clean diesels, is that they are more expensive to produce than gas engines. During our recent dinner with Gary Smyth of GM he indicated that the total coast of a clean diesel powertrain is about twice that of gas. The diesel engines do work though with the new GM diesel estimated to get close to 30mpg on the highway when mated to a conventional six speed automatic. If the new engine were to be matched up to the Two-Mode hybrid system, mileage in the mid-thirties would not be out of the question for the big trucks but at an added cost of several thousand dollars.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. req'd, thanks to Mike for the tip]

This post is not meant to say anything bad about GM, in fact, I believe that GM has been doing a pretty good job lately of cleaning up their act. I guess history is hard to forget, though, because GM has taken some flak recently due to the name of one of their websites: whygas.com

This site will soon be changed to whygasengines.com to better "match the site's purpose," according to Greg Martin, a spokesman for GM, acknowledging "the irony of the name." The site uses quotes such as "Our Gas Engine. Powerfully cost-effective" and "the advantages of gas. Why gas? Learn more".

The site says the "Advantages of Gas" are:

• Gasoline engines cost less than diesel engines
• Gasoline is more readily available
• Quiet Operation
• Good solution for lower-mileage applications
• Easy to service
• Fast cab heater warm-up

However, the site also shows the better emissions of their newest diesel engines as compared to their earlier efforts. But, understandably due to the mission of the site, it does not mention any drawbacks of gasoline engines.

Gasoline engines are being promoted by GM in some of their medium duty applications, and the engine cited is usually their Vortec 8.1 liter giant. I think that this goes on to prove what I said in my recent editorial: All carmakers will build and advertise what sells in a specific market. This includes large gasoline-burning eight cylinder engines in trucks from GM, Ford, Toyota and Nissan... and that's not likely to change any time soon.

[Source: Whygas.com via Detroit News]

On the heels of announcing that the Duramax engine will meet tough 2007 federal emissions standards, GM says it will build a new V8 diesel for the light-truck market.

Truck enthusiasts have been begging for a light-duty diesel in their 1/2-ton pickups, and now GM says it will build one that will meet 2010 emissions standards and improve fuel efficiency by 25 percent. The new DOHC V8 turbo-diesel will be built around a compacted graphite iron block, aluminum cylinder heads, integrated manifold and common-rail fuel system. A NOx after-treatment system and diesel particulate filter will help the engine achieve Tier 2 Bin 5 and LEV 2 emissions standards. The engine will be available in trucks after 2009 but no word was mentioned if the engine could be ordered in fullsize SUVs.

Diesels make up more than half of all heavy duty pickup sales; those trucks commonly called 3/4- and 1-ton models. The engine is popular not so much for the fuel efficiency but the massive torque needed for towing heaving trailers. No horsepower or torque numbers were given for the new engine. However, GM did announce that the 2007 Duramax will be offered in two versions. The base 300-horsepower model is rated at 520 lb-ft of torque while a new 330-horsepower option is rated at 620 lb-ft.

[Source: GM media]