GM

GM has rolled out the "production" version of the Chevy Volt this week (a cheeky move since it won't go into production for another two years) and it was received more warmly for proving the Volt is real than wowing us with styling.

But looks aren't the point of the Volt: lofty and sustainable miles per gallon is. Here's a look at the car in motion with some thoughts on its challenges as it begins the longish road to showrooms.

See all coverage of the 2008 Paris Motor Show.

Having had success with the Malibu, Chevy reaches towards the East Coast to try its luck with Orlando. This new concept car, which incorporates design language seen in the Malibu and the production version of the Volt, will be shown at the Paris Motor Show. The Orlando is based on the same platform as the new compact Chevy Cruze, which also debuts in Paris, and shows the flexibility of that platform for small and large cars. Although GM doesn't use the term in its press release, the Orlando concept fits the crossover segment. The closest thing Chevy has previously … Read more

Although the car won't be available until 2010, GM introduced the production version of the game-changing Chevrolet Volt today. The Volt is an electric vehicle that recharges its lithium ion batteries from an AC outlet or an onboard gas engine. The production version looks very different from the concept car that was shown in 2007, with a design intended to be more aerodynamic while providing seating for four. GM also released pictures of the cabin, giving us a look at the cars futuristic controls and LCDs.

Click here for photos of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt.

Web site The Car Connection on Tuesday managed to get its digital hands on photos of the what is said to be the production version of the Chevy Volt, the much-ballyhooed plug-in hybrid from General Motors.

The photos were made available on GM's media Web site unintentionally, a company representative told The Detroit News. They were quickly taken down from GM's site after The Car Connection posted them.

Perhaps the most striking aspect of the photos, besides the fact that the product managers feature prominently in many of them, is that there is a significantly different look between … Read more

In this video from the GMNext series, check out interviews with random people on what they think about hybrid cars. GM's Mickey Bly, Director of Hybrid Vehicle Integration and Controls, then steps in and sets the record straight. Toward the end of the video he starts talking about electric vehicles and the upcoming Volt.

DETROIT -- After more than a year testing lithium ion batteries for the Chevrolet Volt, General Motors has decided on a supplier--which it won't identify.

GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz told reporters last week that GM will announce the battery maker this year. He wouldn't say if GM will buy batteries from Compact Power Inc. or Continental Automotive Systems.

Last summer, GM awarded development contracts to both companies. Both make lithium ion batteries for consumer electronics.

Volt production is scheduled to begin in November 2010.

(Source: Automotive News)

When we looked at the Nissan GT-R, we were impressed by the amount of engine information available through the vehicle's touch-screen display. It seems that Nissan really understands that the performance enthusiast is very interested in what the vehicle is doing behind the scenes.

Now Chevy Cobalt and HHR drivers can pretend they're behind the wheel of the GT-R with GM's new Reconfigurable Performance Display for use with Ecotec engines, according to GM's Tuner Source Blog. Intended for use with performance Ecotecs, such as the turbocharged mills in the Cobalt SS or HHR SS, the display … Read more

DETROIT -- General Motors' heavy investments in powertrain technology are beginning to pay off in terms of better fuel economy.

GM is slowly building its hybrid business and will launch one new hybrid per quarter for the next four years. The company has just opened an advanced powertrain testing laboratory in suburban Detroit. The automaker is rolling out engine technologies that maintain performance while lowering emissions and fuel use. GM has been adding gears to automatic transmissions, reducing the weight of its powertrains and designing engines capable of being mass produced with high-tech features such as direct fuel injection and turbochargers.

The template for GM's future engine strategy is already on the road in cars such as the Pontiac Solstice GXP and Saturn Sky Red Line. The engine used in those roadsters is a 2.0-liter four-cylinder with direct fuel injection and a turbocharger. Horsepower is 260 -- the most per liter of any production engine GM has ever made.

But Tom Stephens, executive vice president of GM's global powertrain, says more improvements are needed.

"I've got to make the lightest possible engines and transmissions," he says. "I've got to improve my combustion technology."

Here's a peek at some of GM's upcoming powertrains: … Read more

Update at 11:45 a.m. with additional information about Intel blogger.

Aaron Brezenski, the blogger, states the following in describing his posts: "Aaron Brezenski has been at Intel (Chandler, AZ) since 1995 and has been a product engineer for most of that time. He currently manages a team of product development engineers in STTD, but his nefarious purpose in (Intel Software Network) Blogspace is to highlight Intel Integrated Graphics in the Home Theater PC space from an end-user perspective."

An Intel engineer has posted a discussion about performance issues with its newest Centrino 2 graphics silicon.

The … Read more