washington auto show –

By Tom Stephens
GM Group Vice President GM Powertrain and Global Quality

When someone says “hybrids,” you probably think about passenger cars and trucks. They get the lion’s share of attention. But the benefits of hybrid technology aren’t limited to personal vehicles. We can also drive environmental benefits by providing cleaner mass transit options – and with the cost of petroleum somewhat unstable or unpredictable for the foreseeable future, many municipalities are looking more closely at hybrid technology. And that’s where we come in.

Today at the Washington Auto Show, we announced major orders for GM-Allison hybrid buses, totaling up to 1,732 buses to public transit authorities in Washington, Philadelphia, and Minneapolis-St. Paul. These orders will more than double the number of GM-Allison hybrid-powered buses on the road, to more than 2,700 buses in more than 80 cities.

As you may know, GM-Allison has been building hybrid transmissions since 2003, and we announced earlier this month the 1,000th bus equipped with GM-Allison hybrid technology will be delivered to Las Vegas.

These buses have driven more than 14 million miles in service for public transportation agencies from Germany to Yosemite National Park.

We’ve taken that proven technology and scaled it down to our 2-Mode Hybrid system, which is now available in the 2008 Chevy Tahoe Hybrid and GMC Yukon Hybrid, the industry’s only full-size hybrid SUVs. And, as I said last week at the North American International Auto Show, we’ll introduce the first front-wheel drive version of the 2-Mode Hybrid system in the 2009 Saturn Vue Green Line 2-Mode Hybrid.

Whether it’s passenger vehicles or transit buses, this hybrid technology significantly improves fuel efficiency and reduces emissions while maintaining the vehicle performance and capability expected by our customers. For example, Chevrolet Tahoe/GMC Yukon Hybrid SUVs offer up to eight-passenger seating and 6,200 lbs. towing capability, with a 50% improvement in city fuel economy.

The GM-Allison hybrid-powered buses have saved transit systems millions of gallons of diesel fuel, with up to a 75% improvement in fuel efficiency over conventional buses, according to a 2006 study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

In fact, we estimate that the 1,732 hybrid bus deliveries we’re announcing today will save 2.4 million gallons of diesel fuel per year. That’s enough fuel to fill 300 tanker trucks, and save 6,600 metric tons of carbon d
Source: washington auto show – Orders for Hybrid Buses Will Double GM-Allison Fleet

                        

Releted News:

• chevy tahoe hybrid – GMC Bringin’ On the Hybrid Pickups at Chicago Auto Show
• Detroit Auto Show, Day Two [Detroit Auto Show]
• washington boat show – I hear the "Jaws" theme now
• The Year in Energy
• scuba car – Rinspeed to debut submersible sQuba at the March 4th Geneva auto show
• houston auto show – The bioeconomy at work: researchers develop low-cost, bio-based technique to make antimicrobial paint
• for keeps – Links for 2008-01-25 [del.icio.us]
• Knight Rider Shelby GT500KR Giveaway Answers