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E-Flex vehicle line executive Tony Posawatz with the fuel cell E-Flex
Following up on the plan they laid out when they revealed the Chevy Volt at the Detroit Auto Show, General Motors has unveiled the second major iteration of the E-Flex platform at the Shanghai Motor Show. The whole premise of E-Flex was to have a plug-in electrically driven vehicle that could accommodate different auxiliary power units for extending the range. E-Flex version two replaces the flex-fuel gas/E85 engine with the latest generation of GM's internally developed fuel cell technology. All the details on the new concept are over at AutoblogGreen.
[Source: General Motors]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
supercujo @ Apr 19th 2007 11:35PM
That is way cool. All they need now is to trim some of the production costs down a bit and they are on a winner.
Oh, and they also need to set up a hydrogen infrastructure that doesn't produce its hydrogen from oil...
HotRodzNKustoms @ Apr 19th 2007 11:46PM
It is wonderful that GM has remembered the value of being the industry leader in technology. This new 5th generation Fuel Cell system at half the size of the 4th generation with the same power and twice the efficiency the E-flex is simply amazing, a engineering marvel to advance technology so quickly.
3cubedminus3squared @ Apr 19th 2007 11:59PM
1. That is way cool. All they need now is to trim some of the production costs down a bit and they are on a winner.
And maybe some smaller wheels...
KC @ Apr 20th 2007 12:49AM
Definitely think GM is on the right path with E-Flex. Making a platform that can support different fuel systems sounds like the right way to get alternative fuel vehicles mass produced at affordable costs.
Like Hydrogen as a fuel or not, it is going to be in the mix and is likely to play a large roll in the future of automotive transport.
Bio fuels and hydrogen offer the range that batteries currently can't and many people will not be willing to give up 50%+ of their vehicles range just to drive green so they'll choose either bio-fuels or hydrogen.
Now, throw that 8Kg Hydrogen tank from the sequel in that instead of the 4Kg tank they have in there, boosting the range to over 1000 miles per tank and people will really rally behind it.
Deezee @ Apr 20th 2007 1:11AM
I really hope GM keeps developing this system. Who knows what Toyota has up their sleeves when it comes to flex fuel. They better be prepared.
Dan @ Apr 20th 2007 1:57AM
It's a pipe dream.
Also, why is that guy wearing an ABC Sports jacket from 1981?
ruggels @ Apr 20th 2007 2:11AM
pipe dream... why.. just because they're not actually leasing fuel cell cars like their competitors, or because that damn fuel cell sled made zero advances for so long, come on :P
Tony Belding @ Apr 20th 2007 7:50AM
There is a good reason why GM chose to show the hydrogen fuel cell version in China. The Chinese have ambitious plans to build 300 new nuclear power plants. Those plants could use high-temperature electrolysis to convert steam into hydrogen; it's probably the most efficient way to make hydrogen without reforming fossil fuels.
GM's plan is to make versions of the E-Flex that can tap into whatever fuels become popular in different parts of the world. That means hydrogen in China, ethanol in Brazil, diesel or biodiesel in Europe, and I think the USA is still up in the air. Even a pure battery-electric version could be cooked up relatively easily, if the market goes in that direction.
I think GM's plans have some shortcomings (and the Chevy Volt, as it has been shown thus far, is an automotive abomination), but at least there is some method to what they're doing, and I think they are pretty serious about wanting to do it. They have seen the writing on the wall, and they must be aware the Japanese are also quietly researching this stuff.
Let's give some credit. . . GM are way ahead of Ford, DaimlerChrysler and VW, to name a few. Those companies have thinking stuck in the 1990s when they were all fighting against CARB and alternative fuels.
Mike @ Apr 20th 2007 8:13AM
I still DON'T UNDERSTAND why a car with just a battery seems like such a bad idea to people.
If they made an electric car with a solid 200 mile range that is all 50% of America would need. Just plug it in at your house every night.
People give the, "but it might run out of charge" argument...but if you actually logged your daily miles I bet the number of days 50% of Americans drove more than 200 miles per day in a year you could count on one hand...
AMERICANS ARE JUST AFRAID TO BE TIED DOWN, that is the problem.
FrankTheCrank @ Apr 20th 2007 8:30AM
F China and F GM.
GM could care less about this space. This is just FLUFF.
supercujo @ Apr 20th 2007 9:36AM
#10 F China and F GM
It is thinking like that that makes the world hate the US and the domestic automakers to die.
rem83 @ Apr 20th 2007 9:59AM
#9 I know I'd be happy with an electric car with a 50 mile range. The only caviat is that it needs to be able to do that at 90 mph since people will run you off the road if you're going any slower on a Texas highway.
dave @ Apr 20th 2007 12:01PM
9-
a) 200 miles worth of batteries are expensive.
b) 200 miles worth of batteries are heavy.
c) 200 miles worth of batteries take up a lot of space.
d) 200 miles worth of batteries leave no power for a/c.
e) 200 miles worth of batteries have no chance of defrosting my windshield and heating my interior in RI in January.
Ron Fischer @ Apr 21st 2007 12:36AM
Dave, I disagree about A/C, defrost. I leased an EV-1. It used a heat pump for HVAC and electrically heated windshield for defrost. Depending on vehicle weight a 200 mile battery would be about 25KW/Hr. Expensive, yes, but I'd wager one big battery is much less expensive than a platinum coated FC plus dual 10,000 psi carbon fiber tanks, plus 8KW/Hr battery. Advancing battery and recharging tech is much simpler than pushing the fuel cell and hydrogen approach. Plus you don't need to build an entire hydrogen infrastructure from scratch.