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Products and Development in China Key to General Motors’ Zero-Emissions Vision

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Buick Velite 5 rear exterior

Buick Velite 5 EREV

Key to General Motors’s recently-announced plans to launch 20 new all-electric vehicles by 2023 and pave the way for a future of zero-emission driving will be the automaker’s efforts in China. GM and its joint ventures in the world’s largest new vehicle market offers more domestically-built electrified passenger vehicle options than any automaker in the country, and the insight gained in China from those offerings will be key to growth of EV offerings in China and other markets.


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“Globally, but especially here in China, car companies are shifting and new companies emerging with a focus on electrified products,” said Jennifer Goforth, GM China chief engineer of Electrification. “Our industry cannot get to zero emissions overnight. It will require testing components, suppliers, and systems, and proving their worth in the real world and in the hands of customers.”

GM sees its current lineup of mild and strong hybrids, PHEVs, extended-range EVs, and fully-battery-electric vehicles as opportunities to develop and perfect the technologies that will guide the automaker’s zero emissions ambitions. GM also has a battery systems lab in Shanghai, which is the sister location for the largest battery systems lab in North America.

“Our engineers have always prioritized safety, reliability and durability as guiding principles of development,” Goforth said.

The idea that China would be so key to this development would connect nicely with the suggestion that Buick will be the brand at the fore of its all-electric movement. Buick already offers a number of hybrid and electric vehicles in China, and as General Motors’ largest brand in the country, badging new EV products as Buick would likely aid in the adoption process.


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