GM presses ahead with plug-ins beyond Volt: sources

By Soyoung Kim

DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Corp is pressing ahead with investment in a range of electric vehicles beyond its Chevy Volt even as the automaker slashes spending in other areas, sources with knowledge of the plan said.

The Chevrolet Volt plug-in and other electric vehicles that will be powered by lithium-ion batteries are key to GM's effort to reinvent itself at a time when sales are slumping and its turnaround plans have come under increased scrutiny.

To reduce costs, GM has delayed the unveiling of two models including a new Buick LaCrosse initially planned for the Los Angeles auto show this month.

GM also has scrapped development plans for a replacement platform for its full-size SUVs as it battles to shore up its cash position amid a global slump in auto sales that threatens to overrun its restructuring plans.

But even as it cuts product development costs elsewhere, GM is pushing forward with work to develop a range of rechargeable, or plug-in vehicles that will follow the Volt into the market from 2010, the sources said.

The electric-powered vehicles under development at GM include plug-ins for GM's luxury Cadillac brand, its Opel brand in Europe and a Chevy-branded vehicle with SUV styling, one of the sources said.

GM spokesman Dave Darovitz said the automaker does not comment on product plans as a matter of policy. But he said GM has signaled that it will use the technology it is developing in the Volt in a range of vehicles over time.

"We've always said it's not a niche product," Darovitz said. "The architecture is flexible."