The foundation of GM Canada's success is our commitment to innovation and technology within our vehicles. GM Canada is the only automaker in Canada with a Canadian Engineering Centre dedicated to advanced technologies like the Equinox Fuel Cell. Discover how we're crossing the boundaries of science and engineering to benefit our customers and, in the long run, our world. After all, the little things we do today will make a big difference tomorrow.
Two Modes. One Greener Future
Hybrid vehicles give you the power and capability you expect from an every day vehicle, while delivering efficiency you never imagined. GM's ground-breaking 2-mode hybrid system optimizes power and torque for various driving conditions. In the first mode, at low speed and light loads, the vehicle can operate in three ways: electric power only, engine power only, or any combination of engine and electric power. When operating with electric power only, it provides all the fuel savings benefits of a full hybrid system. Leaving the engine shut off for extended periods of time and moving under electric power is key to reducing fuel consumption in heavy stop-and-go traffic.
The second mode is used primarily at highway speeds to optimize fuel economy, while providing full engine power when conditions demand it, such as trailer towing or climbing steep grades. Customers will experience the satisfaction of low fuel consumption while maintaining SUV-like power and utility.
Today, GM offers three of the most affordable hybrids in the market, the Chevrolet Malibu, the Saturn VUE Green Line and the Aura Green Line. That's in addition to the recently introduced two-mode system on the Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon full size SUVs and soon to become available on the Cadillac Escalade, and Chevrolet Silverado and Sierra pickup trucks. This brings GM's total hybrid offerings to eight by the end of this year- more than any other automaker.
GM is committed to helping more drivers go further on every tank of gas. Since the 1970s, GM innovations have reduced smog-forming emissions by 99%, and today, GM Canada offers more vehicles with 7L/100km (40mpg), or better, highway fuel consumption than any other manufacturer. The Chevrolet Aveo, Cobalt, HHR, Impala, and Malibu are all GM fuel-efficiency leaders. Come to Murray Chevrolet Cadillac today for a test drive. You won't be disappointed.
Use Half Your Cylinders On The Highway
Active Fuel Management? is the GM exclusive fuel-saving technology that enables engines to automatically and seamlessly operate on half their cylinders when full power is not needed. When cruising down the highway or driving long distances on level roads, Active Fuel Management deactivates half of the six or eight (depending on the engine) cylinders with seamless precision. When load demands increase, such as when the vehicle accelerates or travels uphill, cylinders are reactivated to provide full power. The result is a reduction of fuel consumption between 4% and 12%. Best of all, you don't have to do a thing behind the wheel to make it happen, and the deactivation and reactivation of cylinders happens without you even noticing it.
A Flexible Solution
E85 FlexFuel vehicles are capable of running on fuel containing up to 85% ethanol or regular fuel. Because ethanol is a fuel that is made by turning starch or sugar from plants (such as corn) into alcohol, it creates less greenhouse gas emissions and smog-forming emissions. It is also a renewable resource that can help reduce petroleum consumption and dependency in the future. We always knew eating your vegetables was a good thing!
GM has been selling Ethanol FlexFuel vehicles since 1999. We are industry leader in the production of these vehicles, and today, we have more than 2 million E85 FlexFuel vehicles on the road.
Don't Forget To Recharge The Car !
Imagine commuting to work all week without using a drop of gasoline. Studies currently indicate that 78% of commuters drive 64 kilometres (40 miles) or less to and from work*. If we replaced the technology behind these daily drives with the developed electric technology, imagine the amount of gasoline, emissions and money we'd be saving.
The Chevrolet Volt is a stylish gasoline electric car that is designed for everyday city drivers. For Canadians who typically drive 65 kilometres per day or less, this rechargeable, plug-in electric vehicle can cut out trips to the gas station all together. All you have to do is charge the car overnight, and when a range of 64 kilometres is not enough, the Volt has a small gasoline / E85 ethanol-powered generator that kicks in to recharge the lithium ion battery and extends the Volt's range to several hundred kilometres. Unlike a conventional battery-electric vehicle, the Chevrolet Volt eliminates "range anxiety", giving the confidence and peace of mind that the driver will not be stranded by a depleted battery.
Fuel For Thought
A fuel cell is like a battery. It works by harnessing the electricity created in the chemical reaction that occurs when hydrogen from a vehicle's fuel tank and oxygen from the air combine. This electricity is stored within the fuel cell, and hundreds of these fuel cells (or stacks) can be used to power vehicles. Since the conversion of the fuel to energy takes place via an electrochemical process, not combustion, a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle is a zero-emissions vehicle that only emits water vapour and heat as its waste products. The overall process is clean, quiet and highly efficient - two to three times more efficient than fuel burning. Despite the fact that it doesn't run on gasoline, the Chevrolet Equinox Hydrogen Fuel Cell Test Vehicle still effortlessly integrates fuel cell technology with all the comfort and safety of Chevrolet's current-production, gasoline-powered Equinox. It is able to carry up to four occupants and their gear, and it is also engineered to reach a top speed of up to 160 km/h. GM's "Project Driveway", is a field market research project that has placed 100 test fleet hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicles with customers across the United States. Today, our engineering centre in Oshawa, Canada is playing a key role in producing these vehicles which will be driven and tested by various consumers across different terrains. This project constitutes the first meaningful market test of fuel cell vehicles anywhere and will ultimately provide unique insight including customer reaction to the smooth, quiet performance of a fuel cell vehicle, and the benefits behind using clean hydrogen gas.