GM FYI Blog

By Matt Snider
GM Lead Engineer, Oil Life System

Would you feed 25 bucks of your hard-earned money into a shredder? Would you drain a perfectly good tank of gasoline and replace it with new gas? Of course not. Yet, if you own a GM vehicle and change your oil every three months or 3,000 miles just because that little sticker on your windshield says so, you may be wasting your money.

Thanks to GM’s Oil Life System – a simple yet amazing technology that I’ve had the privilege to work on – the three-month/3,000-oil change is a myth that belongs in the automotive scrap heap with leaded gasoline and carburetors. There are more than 31 million vehicles on the road today equipped with the GM Oil Life System, and more than 97 percent of GM vehicles sold today in the U.S. are equipped with this technology. If everyone who has OLS used it as intended, we’d save 100 million gallons of motor oil every year.

Of course, oil is the lifeblood of your engine – without its special lubricating properties, an engine will cease to operate. The GM Oil Life System is based on an algorithm that “tells” vehicle owners when engine oil is wearing out and needs to be changed. And when it is time to change your oil, I recommend visiting your local Goodwrench service technician. The system is based on individual driving habits, so your recommended oil change intervals could be drastically different from your neighbor’s. But on average, a motorist who drives 15,000 miles a year could save two to three oil changes annually.

There’s an environmental reason for saving oil, too. We know many well-meaning home mechanics do not properly dispose of waste oil, and the California EPA says that one gallon of oil can contaminate a million gallons of water.

I talk to people who believe they can look at their dipstick and determine if their oil needs changing just by the color. That’s another myth. As an engineer and chemist, I’ve examined used motor oil from different vehicles that, on appearance, look the same. Yet, upon analysis, one still has useful life and the other doesn’t.

If you own a GM vehicle equipped with the GM Oil Life System and use it, your wallet and the environment will thank you. If you don’t use it, I encourage you to try it. After all, technology is way smarter than a window sticker.

By Mark McNabb
GMNA Vice President, Premium Channel

Popular Mechanics’ publisher Bill Congdon; Detroit editor, Larry Webster and Rob Reynolds visited GM last week to recognize Cadillac, Chevrolet and HUMMER for their award winning performance in the magazine’s fourth annual Automotive Excellence Awards.

According to Congdon, each year Popular Mechanics’ editors drive more than 100 of the newest cars, trucks and sport-utility vehicles to determine the award winners, amassing well over 100,000 miles in the process.

This year GM captured three of the competition’s 10 award categories, more than any other automaker.

The 2009 Cadillac Escalade Platinum won the Technical Innovation category as the world’s first SUV to use LED headlamps – and one of the very first applications of this technology in any car or truck.

Earning top honors in the Performance category, the Popular Mechanics editors praised the 2009 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 for its combination of power and polish.

And the 2009 HUMMER H3T Alpha earned the editors’ admiration for Off-Road Ability after experiencing the combination of a functional truck bed and its front and rear locking differentials on the slick rock of Moab.

These awards are a testament to GM’s continued passion for automotive innovation and excellence, and we’re honored to be recognized by the experts at Popular Mechanics.

By Alan Adler
GM Biofuels Communications Manager

After a summer of $4 a gallon gasoline, it’s a relief to shell out about half as much to fill up these days. But as we gleefully watch the prices of unleaded drop – one of few positives in the current economic crisis – have you noticed that just as a barrel of oil has dropped in price, so has the price of a bushel of corn. It’s about half what it was earlier this year. And if corn and other commodities are cheaper, shouldn’t we be seeing lower food bills, too? Yet just about everything in the grocery aisles seems to cost more.

Just a few months ago, grocery manufacturers, beef ranchers and chicken and turkey farmers that use corn for animal feed began complaining that the increasing diversion of corn to ethanol production was driving their feed prices higher. And higher feed prices meant higher food prices. And since ethanol production was rising, it was ethanol that made food more expensive. It was a simple and compelling message, and it was emotional – signs appeared on the counters of Panera Bread locations that essentially said, “Don’t blame us because your bagel costs more.” The food vs. fuel argument had legs, and it became the centerpiece of a well-financed smear campaign against ethanol.

Fast forward to September. Reuters was the first to notice a reversal. Looking into what was happening on the Chicago Board of Trade, the news agency found that speculators that had been buying and selling corn futures were largely out of the market.

Like most arguments, there was some truth to what the ethanol critics were saying. Ethanol demand does create a floor price for corn – adding 80 cents to a dollar a bushel for corn. But that demand allowed corn farmers to grow their product for ethanol instead of being paid to avoid planting creating surpluses.

Lower corn prices and lower oil prices should mean lower food prices. It costs less to transport groceries to the market than four months ago. So where are the savings? U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley, a staunch ethanol supporter and farmer from Iowa, asked that question of the head of the Grocery Manufacturers of America last week. Grassley asked for either an apology or, preferably, lower prices to reflect the lower prices being paid for commodities.

For their part, grocers don’t seem to have a lot to say about prices on the shelves these days.

Makes you wonder.

“For the 1949 model year, Buick’s Roadmaster series offered the industry’s first hardtop, with the sleek look of a convertible. That same year, Cadillac and Oldsmobile brought out their own “hardtops.”

Thanks for your requests for photos from General Motors’ archives. Please keep them coming.

This week’s featured photo is of a 1905 Cadillac.

Keep checking back as we post more of the photos you asked for. And keep those requests coming. - By Will Stewart, blog editor

Chevrolet recently launched its own YouTube channel, which provides a glimpse into Chevrolet’s rich history as well as its exciting future. Stop by and watch the Corvette ZR1 zoom around the Nurburgring or top out at 205 miles an hour. The Traverse visits the wind tunnel and a California mom shares thoughts on the Equinox Fuel Cell experience. There’s something for everyone, and upcoming video stories will include exciting products and initiatives at Chevrolet – so take a look and keep coming back for more! - Wendy Clark, manager, General Motors Social Media

Enjoy November’s Flickr calendar. Download the large size over at Flickr. - Will Stewart, blog editor

By Byron McCormick
Executive Director GM Fuel Cell Activities

Imagine – 300 miles of emissions-free, petroleum-free driving. It’s possible with hydrogen. Today, I’m at the Fuel Cell Seminar & Exposition in Phoenix, Arizona, speaking with industry leaders from around the world about the reinvention of the automobile. It’s taking place right now at GM. Among the many promising technologies that will play a role in this exciting period of unprecedented innovation is the hydrogen fuel cell.

It’s still probably not common knowledge, but road-ready hydrogen fuel cell vehicles exist today. Our “Project Driveway” fleet consists of 100 fuel-cell Chevy Equinoxes, which are currently in the hands of regular drivers in Los Angeles, New York, and Washington, D.C. Unfortunately, at the moment this test program can only take place in select locations because of one critical problem – infrastructure. There simply aren’t many stations yet where a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle can go for a fill-up.

At GM, we believe there’s too much riding on fuel cells to let an obstacle like this stop our pursuit of the goal. Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe. Currently, more than 56 billion kilograms of hydrogen are produced globally each year – enough to fuel more than 180 million fuel cell electric vehicles! We could free ourselves from fossil fuels and take the automobile out of the environmental equation forever. And we could go from producing hydrocarbons from millions of car exhaust tailpipes to simple water vapor.

Right now, there are only 40 hydrogen fueling stations in the country, but an investment of $10-15 billion dollars could bring that number up to an impressive 11,700 stations in the top 100 urban areas. The technology is ready. The safety question has been put to rest. The reliability and performance challenges have been ironed out. The know-how is there. Now all we have to do is put the pieces together and build the partnerships to make it happen. With the right efforts, fuel-cell vehicles could become a reality.

The U.S. National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council has proposed an approach to bridge from today’s “demonstration” programs to full commercialization beginning in earnest by 2015. We owe this initiative as part of our best collective efforts to solve the growing energy-petroleum-environmental crisis for ourselves, our kids, grandkids and fellow citizens of the world.

There is a way – now we collectively need the will.

By Brian Riendeau
Pontiac Ad Manager, GMCanada

Want to know what General Motors of Canada has been up to recently? Two words: PontiacPulse. (Well, one word actually).

This brand new online community for Pontiac fanatics, by Pontiac fanatics is taking the Internet by storm and is definitely a first for Pontiac enthusiasts from around the world.

At PontiacPulse, you’ll find over 200 historical brochures to peruse and download at your leisure, as well as histories and specs from basically every Pontiac ever made.

The rest, well, is entirely up to you!

PontiacPulse is what you make of it. You can post pics and videos, create and join clubs and events, show off your wheels and comment on others. The canvas is yours and the community is ever growing.

Sounds cool doesn’t it?

So come join the elite community of Pontiac aficionados. Create a profile at PontiacPulse and I’ll see you there.

Thanks for your requests for photos from General Motors’ archives. Please keep them coming.

This week’s featured photo is of a 1959 Chevy Corvair.

Keep checking back as we post more of the photos you asked for. And keep those requests coming. - By Will Stewart, blog editor

Congratulations to Dana Roberts, of Gilroy, Calif., who won a brand-new Saturn Astra in IMSaturn’s Kiss My Astra contest. Roberts, whose photo jokingly offered her neighbors’ miniature donkey, Poppy, in trade for a new Astra, gathered more than 8.000 votes during two weeks of voting. The next five finalists each won $300 gift cards and the 14 remaining finalists each received $100 gift cards.

The Kiss My Astra contest was a lot of fun, generating nearly 250 entrants and more than 25,000 votes. Thanks to everyone who participated in this fun and creative contest. - Will Stewart, blog editor

By Lesley Hettinger
GM Social Media Communications

In July, Saturn’s Hands on Homes program, Jon Bon Jovi’s Philadelphia Soul Charitable Foundation and Habitat for Humanity Detroit joined forces out to build five homes on Detroit’s East Side.

Jon Bon Jovi stopped by for the ground breaking on the way to his sold-out concert at the Palace at Auburn Hills. Over the past four months, numerous groups from the community have come out to participate in making the dream of owning a home become a reality for five families. The build is scheduled to be completed by the end of November. This weekend, members of the GM Communications team and local media will roll up their selves in an effort to get these houses finished before Thanksgiving.

For more information on this project, how to get involved, and to see photos from the build (yes there are some more of Jon) check out www.saturnhandsonhomes.com.

Thanks for your requests for photos from General Motors’ archives. Please keep them coming.

This week’s featured photo is of a 1905 Cadillac.

Keep checking back as we post more of the photos you asked for. And keep those requests coming. - By Will Stewart, blog editor