General Motors reveals the brand new 2016 Chevrolet Volt to the media on the 2015 North American International Auto Show on January 12, 2015 in Detroit, Michigan.
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DETROIT – General Motors is changing its product lineup strategy to include plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, CEO Mary Barra told investors Tuesday.
Barra didn’t disclose specific details of the plans apart from that PHEVs, which include an internal combustion engine together with battery technologies, will probably be rolled out on “select vehicles” in North America to assist in meeting more stringent federal fuel economy regulations.
More firms are reconsidering the viability of hybrid vehicles to appease consumer demand and avoid costly penalties related to those federal fuel economy and emissions standards. Most of GM’s fundamental competitors offer traditional hybrids in addition to plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.
“Let me be clear, GM stays committed to eliminating tailpipe emissions from our light-duty vehicles by 2035, but, within the interim, deploying plug-in technology in strategic segments will deliver a few of the environment or environmental advantages of EVs because the nation continues to construct this charging infrastructure,” Barra said in the course of the automaker’s quarterly and 2023 earnings call.
Barra alluded to the automaker using plug-in hybrid technology that the corporate has already adopted overseas in countries resembling China. The one hybrid GM currently offers within the U.S. is a standard hybrid version of the Chevrolet Corvette.
GM led the way in which for plug-in electric vehicles with the Chevrolet Volt in the course of the 2010s. The corporate discontinued the vehicle in early 2019, citing demand and value concerns.
The shifting strategies are counterintuitive to the industry’s recent messaging on EVs. Many vehicle firms have begun to invest billions of dollars in all-electric vehicles, and the Biden administration has made a push to get more EVs on U.S. roadways as quickly as possible.
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