GM Gets $7.7M for Better Engines

American manufacturer GM once again tapped into federal money, as it received a $7.7 million grant from the US Department of Energy to "accelerate development of four technologies to improve the fuel economy of light-duty vehicles" by some 25 percent. The research is needed for GM to be able to meet the stricter emissions and consumption requirements which will come into effect in future years.

“The DOE grant helps accelerate our efforts in bringing breakthrough technologies to production that optimize fuel efficiency, emissions and vehicle performance,” Dan Hancock, GM vice president of global powertrain engineering said in a release.

GM will use the money to develop technologies which include lean combustion, a stop-start system, an active thermal management one and a new passive selective catalytic reduction (SCR) after-treatment system.

The most complex of all is the SCR, which will also use a stop-start subsystem to eliminate fuel waste during idle and reduce hydrocarbon emissions. GM says an active thermal management system will also be developed to further improve both fuel economy and emissions.

The cars on which the first applications to be developed will be fitted on is the 2010 Chevrolet Malibu with an advanced Ecotec direct injected engine and six-speed automatic transmission.The first stages of the projects will be carried out at GM’s advanced engineering center in Pontiac and is hoped to progress rapidly, thanks to the global use of Ecotec engines.