The cars that move thanks to gasoline begin to be part of a history of General Motors (GM) that is changing. Several years, the American company stopped developing vehicles with such technology and has focused on promoting an all-electric future, with a view to no longer selling internal combustion cars after 2035 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2040.
Thus, GM, which has been one of the leaders in the manufacture of combustion vehicles for more than 100 years, joins the efforts and environmental commitments that are being made at a global level and that involve governments, companies, legislators and all citizens of the world.
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As if it were a mantra that is mentioned from the depths and repeatedly, the American giant is governed by this guideline that keeps it focused on the goal of leading the transformation of mobility around the world: “Zero accidents, zero emissions and zero congestion.
These words make more sense when you tour the facilities of the GM Technology Center on the outskirts of Detroit (USA), specifically the laboratory, where ideas are ‘cooked’ and what is necessary is made a reality so that the projections are comply. Before entering, mobile phones must be turned off and, to avoid any temptation to take pictures, camera lenses are covered with red quotes.
Everything is top secret there. However, with the peace of mind that no image of the processes will be leaked, one of GM’s greatest prides is exposed to journalists from all over the world: its batteries, a fundamental part of the chain that will make the goal of being ‘zero’ a reality.
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The American company stopped developing vehicles with such technology and has focused on promoting a fully electric future.
Batteries are the heart of electric vehicles, they are what allow them not only to start and run, but also ensure that services such as air conditioning, windshield wipers and the audio system operate optimally.
This is how GM created its own battery platform called Ultium, large-format cells that can be stacked vertically or horizontally in the lower part of the car, in its base (chassis). “This allows engineers to optimize battery energy storage for each vehicle design,” they explain during the tour.
On this battery platform, everything from basic cars to high-performance vehicles are installed. Thus, it seeks to offer alternatives according to the taste and possibilities of consumers, maintaining the same technology to electrify them, regardless of size, design or even luxury. The heart is the same, because as they explain there, it seeks to “promote a totally electric future that is inclusive and accessible to all”.
Consequently, GM is investing $35 billion to develop 30 models of electric and autonomous vehicles by 2025.. Of these, several are already beginning to be seen in the windows of the United States and soon three will do so in South America. The bet is with the so-called SUVs (Sports Utility Vehicles) and which GM has called Bolt EUV, Blazer EV and Equinox EV.
The first will be launched in Colombia in the coming months, and the other two are still in the development phase in the US: “They are all technologically innovative products, with an attractive design and high performance, but each of them will have their own proposal and characteristics to meet different consumer profiles”, they explained at the Detroit factory.
autonomous cars
The car drives itself. It is true. They are not stories. On one of the freeways leading to the GM test track in Detroit, you have the experience of letting go of the steering wheel, taking your feet off the pedals and letting the car go on its way.
This is how you ‘drive’ a super cruiser, a Cadillac, whose steering turns green when it’s ready to do its thing: if there’s a car very close, it brakes gently; if you see room to pass, change lanes and overtake another car; if it perceives any alert ahead (such as road work or lane reduction) it turns on a red light on its rudder, vibrates and thus announces to the human pilot that it is time to take back control.
As a driver it is not easy to let go of control. Not holding the steering wheel and not being responsible for the speed of the car generates a strange feeling, somewhere between fear and mistrust. It is a matter of changing the mentality and abandoning oneself to the idea that everything is calculated to work well and safely.
Indeed, this type of vehicle has an advanced system of cameras, radars and sensors that connect to a GPS so that the car moves towards its destination. For this reason, this high technology is only possible to take to cities or well-signposted roads and with enough information so that the GPS and everything else works perfectly.
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One hundred percent autonomous vehicle driving is a reality
Another accomplished fact that shows that 100% autonomous vehicle driving is a reality are the public service cars that have already been approved in San Francisco (USA). Small, electric vehicles that run without a human at the wheel. Some passengers who have already used the service say that they felt some fear and distrust, but recognize that time and use will make this new technology accepted.
And so GM is walking its path and showing how it will be able to fulfill the promise of being “Zero accidents, zero emissions and zero congestion”. Designers, innovators, companies, factories, governments are setting the stage, offering the options.
Now, the change is in the consumers who begin to do the calculations to determine what their environmental contribution will be and if this consideration will be above the economic one.
Interview with Santiago Chamorro
‘There is going to be a transformation of the business’
Santiago Chamorro, president and executive director of GM for South America, spoke with EL TIEMPO about the launch in Colombia of the brand’s first electric car for the region.
Why was Colombia chosen to launch this first vehicle of the brand?
Because within the South American context, Colombia has one of the most progressive laws regarding electric vehicles, with incentives for consumers to buy them. They are not only economic incentives, but also mobility, due to the permits that exist to travel in cities that have peak and license plate.
What leads you to believe that it is a good business in Colombia?
It is a market that, although it is still low, we are seeing rapid growth in sales of electric vehicles. Little by little, Colombia begins to expand its offer of this type of car and that is a great opportunity.
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One of the concerns of consumers is where to recharge the batteries. What does GM propose?
The infrastructure is growing rapidly and we are working with private companies and governments to find solutions. The important thing is to take into account that 85 percent of consumers are in the big capitals and their average journey is 45 kilometers per day. For this mission, a vehicle like the Bolt works perfectly.
In this sense, we focus our efforts to provide our customers with solutions so that they can charge at home or in buildings, as is done with a cell phone. It is also an opportunity so that where the chargers are located, customers are offered the option of having a drink or coffee or something else while charging. In our network of dealers, it will surely be a good cargo center.
So wouldn’t it be like now, that any car fills up with gasoline at any station?
We are going with a standard that is shared with other brands, which makes the matter easier. There are brands that come with their own charger and that does create a difficulty.
How to conquer the consumer, if the electric ones are more expensive than the gasoline ones?
Colombia has one of the most progressive laws on electric vehicles, with incentives for consumers to buy them
They are initially more expensive. But the cost of ownership of an electric is cheaper, less is spent on maintenance, consumption is cheaper. As this technology is more massively implemented around the world, the costs of electric batteries will fall and prices will be equal to those of internal combustion vehicles.
But it is not about looking only at the price. Right now the decision is: a car that doesn’t emit and does the world good or one that just doesn’t. That is the invitation we make to our clients: help the planet.
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What will happen to traditional workshops and mechanics with the arrival of this new technology?
There is going to be important training because it is not the same to put your hand in a gasoline vehicle than in an electric one. But the message is calm, because here what is going to happen is that there is going to be a transformation of the business, because, for example, the client is going to acquire a vehicle with all the technology and software services.
*Special report for EL TIEMPO Martha Luz Monroy
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