Group items tagged

GM said it will divide vehicle engineering into two organizations: Global Product Integrity and Global Components and Subsystems.

The product integrity organization will include the new global vehicle safety group that GM created in February, led by Jeff Boyer. That unit also will oversee supplier quality and include vehicle, powertrain and electrical-systems engineering; vehicle performance; industrial engineering and validation, GM said.

GM said the product integrity organization will use "advanced analysis tools and processes to flag and prevent issues during vehicle development." It also will analyze field reports "to react quickly to safety and product quality issues customers may experience."

GM introduced one of the biggest engine programs in its history. Later this spring GM will debut the first of a new family of small Ecotec engines, 11 in all, that will be built around the world in five plants by 2017. The new three- and four-cylinder engines will eventually account for nearly 25 percent of GM’s total engine production and produced at the rate of 10,000 engines a day.

GM and Ford are collaborating on a new generation of 9- and 10-speed transmissions. The 10-speed gearboxes will be used in both company’s pickups in about two years. The F-150 and the GM twins, Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra, lag far behind Chrysler’s Ram 1500 Ecodiesel in the fuel economy race.

for the time being, both trucks use six-speed transmissions, while the Ram has 8-speeds.

While the Detroit Three dominate big pickups, Toyota Motor Corp. has become the top mid-size truck seller in the U.S. with its Tacoma. GM, which stopped building a mid-size pickup for the U.S. last year, is returning to the segment with a redesigned version of the Chevrolet Colorado, betting it can appeal to Toyota buyers.

Along with the Colorado, GM will also offer a GMC version called the Canyon.

Ford Motor Co., whose F-Series has been the best-selling truck for 36 years, only sells full-size and heavy-duty versions, as does Chrysler Group LLC's Ram brand. Toyota doesn't offer a heavy-duty pickup while offering full-size and compact trucks.

GM has said there is pent-up demand for the redesigned 2015 Silverado heavy-duty pickups, which are expected to begin arriving in showrooms by the end of January. In

Testifying before Congress last month, GM CEO Mary Barra said the recall of 2.59 million affected cars may prompt the company to make push-button start standard in all its vehicles.

In a survey conducted by auto researcher AutoPacific, consumers ranked the technology the fifth most coveted upgrade for $100 or less

the new belt assurance system will be offered as an optional feature in select 2015 models, including the GMC Sierra and the Chevrolet Cruze, Colorado and Silverado. GM does not plan to charge extra for this feature.

the company would like buyers who opt for the belt assurance system to provide feedback to help improve the technology before it becomes standard

GM’s new belt assurance system does not use an interlock ignition, Ecclestone said. The new system taps into the sensing and diagnostic module used to detect passenger weights and turn airbags on and off. To apply it to seat belts, the SDM detects front seat passengers, and communicates with the brakes and transmission to prevent the driver from shifting the vehicle into gear before both front passengers are buckled up.