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To: peter dumbrille who wrote (4412)	10/19/1999 9:39:00 PM
From: Hawkeye	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 5827

GM eyes innovation, alliances for Asia 3 concept vehicles, including a hybrid, unveiled in Tokyo October 20, 1999 BY CHARLOTTE W. CRAIG DETROIT FREE PRESS AUTOMOTIVE WRITER TOKYO -- General Motors Corp. hopes innovative ways to power cars and trucks, the ability to connect vehicles to the Internet and other services while they are on the go and alliances with Japanese automakers will help it boost sales in Asia over the next few years. All of those plans were discussed and the new technology displayed at the Tokyo Motor Show on Tuesday when GM showed three new concept vehicles. The program was conducted by a star-quality roster of auto executives that almost outshone the cars: GM Chairman Jack Smith, GM President Richard Wagoner, Isuzu Motors Ltd. Chairman Kazuhira Seki and Suzuki Motor Corp. President Osamu Suzuki. The three vehicles were a basic, entry-level sport-utility vehicle from Isuzu; an electric-powered, two-seater sports car from Suzuki, and a small utility vehicle developed by GM and Suzuki. Of the three, Isuzu's Asian Utility Vehicle, or AUV-160, is likeliest to be produced, particularly in Indonesia and the Philippines, where Isuzu already sells the Panther and High Lander sport-utilities. The new AUV-160 is seen as the successor to those models and as a possible offering in Latin America, Africa and Eastern Europe to "facilitate the motorization and overall growth" of developing countries in those regions, said Seki. GM owns 49 percent of Isuzu and counts part of that company's sales in its 4-percent Asia-Pacific market share, which GM wants to raise to 10 percent in the next few years. Suzuki President Osamu Suzuki unveiled his company's concept convertible roadster, containing the newest generation of GM's electric power plant plus a small so-called emergency gasoline engine. GM has a 10-percent stake in Suzuki. But the most interesting of the three concept cars was the small all-wheel-drive utility vehicle, developed jointly with Suzuki and unveiled by Jack Smith as the Chevrolet Triax. It is engineered to be powered three different ways: with just a gasoline engine, with a battery-powered electric motor or as a hybrid combining those two power sources. ATSUSHI TSUKADA/Associated Press General Motors Corp. Chairman John Smith unveils Triax, a concept car co-developed by GM and Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp. Wagoner said none of the three concept vehicles is currently envisioned for the North American market. And the two electric vehicles may never see an assembly line; the new-generation GM electric power system is still in the development stage and could be overtaken by other, fast-changing alternate technology such as fuel cells. But GM executives said the value of the Triax experiment lies in its unique power train and chassis design, which can be adapted to a variety of propulsion systems, including compressed natural gas and fuel cell. The front third of the vehicle holds the electric motor in the electric and hybrid versions. The rear third of the vehicle holds the internal combustion engine in the engine-only and hybrid versions. The middle third houses the energy storage -- gasoline for the engine and nickel-metal hydride battery pack. GM believes the Triax's flexible architecture could be a pattern for cutting product development costs by using one common chassis design -- with multiple body styles -- to suit a wide variety of world markets and differing power systems. "No single option is either a certainty or a complete solution to all requirements of all markets. Our strategy is to work on a broad range of propulsion systems ...that might make the most sense for different customer needs and markets," Wagoner said. The Triax also offers a peek at a GM trend that is likely to show up in several sophisticated markets, including North America. The Triax is loaded with electronic gadgets, including a Suzuki system that warns a driver if another car is in the vehicle's blind spot or is following too closely. It also has GM's OnStar satellite information and security system, hooked to a screen on a console trolley that can be moved fore and aft for use by all passengers. Smith said GM's strategy -- particularly in the tech-savvy Japanese market -- is to "develop innovative products and aggressively apply new communications technology to the vehicle itself ...connecting drivers and passengers with every aspect of their lives."