General Motors worked with personal mobility firm Segway on a concept called the Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility (PUMA) that was unveiled in April 2009. The next generation of the PUMA is the Electric Networked-Vehicle (EV-N) developed by GM and the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC). Three versions of the EV-N concept will be displayed at the SAIC-GM Pavilion during the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai from May through October 2010. This two-seat electric vehicle seems to represent a broadened vision of automotive technology by one of America’s Big Three.
Visitors to Shanghai this summer will see variations on the EV-N called the Jiao, Miao and Xiao. These names are translated into pride, magic and laugh respectively. The EV-N concepts were developed by GM laboratories in Australia (the Xiao), Europe (the Jiao) and the United States (Miao). All three versions of the EV-N feature dynamic stabilization similar to the Segway, small cargo spaces and a pair of electric motors. The most significant advancement in the EV-N is what GM refers to as autonomous operation. This concept vehicle combines a GPS system, vehicle-to-vehicle communications and distance sensors to make for a safer and more comfortable ride. The EV-N would be able to save power by analyzing traffic routes and finding the quickest path to a driver’s destination.
GM and SAIC laid out some performance statistics during their EV-N announcement. The EV-N is capable of travelling up to 25 miles per charge on a 5kw lithium-ion phosphate battery. GM limited the speed of the EV-N collection to 25 miles per hour, making it a neighborhood vehicle rather than a commuter car. The design of all three EV-Ns means that it is a third the weight of a compact car and a fifth the size. GM and SAIC pointed out that a typical parking space could be filled with five EV-Ns.
The reasoning behind the PUMA and the EV-N shows why General Motors needs to partner with other companies on green vehicles. Segway and SAIC understand that conventional vehicles are large, expensive and crowd cities that are running out of free space by the day. These partners tout both concepts as solutions to traffic congestion, parking shortages and air quality. General Motors needs to leverage these benefits of their concept vehicles as they highlight the affordability issue. Instead of buying an oversized truck or SUV, couples and individuals in the near future could purchase smaller vehicles that can fit into the smallest of parking spots, require no gasoline and cost thousands less than conventional vehicles.
