How GM makes a business case for its electrified vehicles

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. -- General Motors uses modular parts to dramatically reduce costs for batteries, motors and other components in its fleet of six electrified cars.The gasoline-electric powertrain in the upcoming Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid, for example, is nearly identical to that of the 2016 Chevrolet Volt, even though both operate differently.Speaking today at the 2015 CAR Management Briefing Seminars, Pam Fletcher, GM’s executive chief engineer for electrified vehicles, explained how GM shares components between its electric, hybrid and plug-in hybrid cars.All of GM’s six electrified vehicles -- the Chevrolet Bolt, Volt, Spark EV and Malibu and the Cadillac ELR and CT6 PHEV -- share powertrain components and technologies, Fletcher said.“All of those cars use the same battery pack, module, electronics, cooling systems, etc. But the finished products look different because the packaging in vehicles very is different,” she said.Fletcher pointed to the battery cells and electric motors to show where GM’s strategy to share electrified components among vehicles makes good business sense. GM buys the cells from Korean supplier LG Chem, but assembles them into packs in a GM plant in suburban Detroit. That reduces procurement costs and improves manufacturing efficiency.Other keys to making electrified vehicles make good business sense include flexible manufacturing, deep strategic supplier relationships and expansive in-house technical expertise.The 2016 Volt, which is now in pilot production, shares an electric motor configuration with the Malibu Hybrid. “The rotor is slightly different, but they are made on the same line,” she said.Of the thousands of parts in the Malibu Hybrid and Volt powertrain, she said only about six part numbers are different between the two vehicles.Other parts and technologies common among GM’s electrified vehicles include air-conditioning and regenerative brakes. She said GM’s electrified components are not unlike Legos in that they all fit together and can be “plugged in” in many combinations.Fletcher said the 2016 Volt, scheduled to arrive this fall, will carry an EPA rating of 53 miles on a single charge, up from the 38 mile range available in the 2015 Volt. Fletcher said GM expects about 90 percent of trips in the new Volt will be made on electricity alone.When driven with the gasoline engine running the car gets an EPA-rated 42 mpg.

How GM makes a business case for its electrified vehicles

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