General Motors announced last week that it plans to produce the world’s first plug-in hybrid SUV, in the form of a new yet-to-be-named Buick crossover. The new model will first be released in 2010 as a gas-powered vehicle available with two sizes of direct injection engines—a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine and a 3.0-liter V-6.

The plug-in version, planned for 2011, will curiously use a larger 3.6-liter engine.

The company said the new vehicle would appeal to customers who like the Buick Enclave, but want a smaller more fuel-efficient version. GM claims the plug-in version will get double the fuel efficiency of the gas-only version—but specific targets were not provided. Charging the plug-in Buick’s 8-kilowatt hour battery pack—packaged under the cargo floor—is expected to take four to five hours at 110V.

Excitement, But Potential Customer Confusion

The Buick plug-in will use some of the same technology GM is developing for the Chevrolet Volt. For example, it will be powered by a lithium ion battery pack provided by South Korea’s LG Chem. But there will be key differences. Unlike the Volt, a plug-in series hybrid capable of 40 miles of all-electric driving regardless of traveling speed—and exclusively using electricity to power the wheels—the Buick plug-in crossover will take a blended approach in which gasoline and battery power are combined, especially at high speeds. At lower speeds, the Buick plug-in will be capable of all-electric driving for as much as 10 miles, according to GM.

Tom Stephens, GM vice chairman of product development, said that the Buick would be “the company’s first plug-in hybrid.” That claim may confuse some customers, who consider the Volt—due in late 2010—to be a plug-in hybrid because it uses an electric motor and a gasoline engine. GM uses the term “extended-range electric vehicle” for the Volt’s technology, and “plug-in hybrid” for the approach used in the Buick.

To make matters more confusing, the plug-in Buick will also borrow from GM’s “two-mode hybrid technology,” a form of hybrid designed for larger SUVs requiring heavier loads and towing capacity. GM had planned to introduce its plug-in hybrid SUV as a version of the Saturn Vue, which was selling as a “mild hybrid”—yet another flavor of GM hybrid—and which was planned for production also as a “two-mode” hybrid. The hybrid Vue—at one point branded as “Green Line” and then simply as “hybrid”—would have therefore eventually been available with three different forms of gas-electric technology. But all of those plans were jettisoned when GM discontinued its mild hybrid vehicles, and then sold off the Saturn brand.

Top Priority, Again

When General Motors unveiled the plug-in Saturn Vue concept in late 2006, former CEO Rick Wagoner proclaimed, “This is a top priority program for GM.” In July 2009—three years and a bankruptcy later—Stephens sought to reassure green car fans that the program would not die. He said, “I can tell you that I won’t lose one day in terms of customers being able to walk into dealerships and actually purchase a plug-in.” He promised high production numbers and a speedy time to market, now set at 2011.

Stephens made the announcement last week at the Management Briefing Seminars in Traverse City, Mich. He said, “Buick has always been at the forefront of new technology, so it is only fitting that the brand should debut our new plug-in hybrid technology in a beautiful new crossover.”

GM had been using Saturn as the primary brand for its hybrid technology. The switch to Buick is an apparent attempt to find a home for the plug-in SUV, and to redefine Buick for younger customers. “One of the things we wanted to do is bring the age of the Buick customer down, and we thought one of the things associated we could do to do that would be to add this advanced-propulsion technology onto the Buick brand,” said Stephens. According to data from J.D. Power, the average age of Buick buyers last year in the United States was 63, which is 16 years older than the average car buyer.

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The future Buick crossover remains a strong candidate for the technology–on a list of candidates that includes Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC. The unnamed Buick CUV, as well as the all-new GMC Terrain, and Chevrolet Equinox all share the Saturn Vue’s Theta platform. This means the two-mode hybrid system could be installed into any of these vehicles without major technical modifications. Cost-effectiveness is obviously a concern considering that even minor changes to a system like this could cost between 50 and 150 million dollars.

Too Expensive to Abandon

Not utilizing the system at all would be embarrassing and costly for GM. The total tab for research and development of the two-mode hybrid system that was intended to go into the Saturn Vue Plug-in is reported to be in excess of $1.2 billion.

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The two-mode plug-in hybrid system is designed to maximize efficiency while providing solid on- and off-road performance. It utilizes a lithium ion battery that can be recharged by plugging into a household outlet.

GM killed plans for the Saturn Vue two-mode plug-in hybrid last year due to the company’s financial troubles. The car manufacturer has since struck a deal to sell the entire Saturn unit to Penske Automotive.

The new small to mid-size crossover from Buick was seen on CBS during an interview with GM’s design chief, Ed Welburn. Shown as a full-size clay model, the vehicle takes styling cues from Buick’s large crossover, the Enclave.

Two-mode hybrid versions of GM’s large SUVs—not plug-ins—have been suffering from lackluster sales.

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The plug-in hybrid Vue was originally planned for 2010, but now all bets are off. GM maintains its commitment to a plug-in crossover SUV, but the vehicle platform, brand, price, and production date are all yet to be determined—although 2011 is bandied about as a possible date. “I can tell you that I won’t lose one day in terms of customers being able to walk into dealerships and actually purchase a plug-in,” GM Vice Chairman Tom Stephens told Automotive News in July 2009. “My job is to get it out there and get it right the first time but then get it cost-effective so that we can do a huge number.”

The plug-in Vue was going to utilize a modified version of GM’s two-mode hybrid system, plug-in technology, and an advanced lithium ion battery pack. The system was being engineered to achieve significant increases in fuel economy, as much as twice that of any current conventional hybrid vehicle. Rick Wagoner, former chairman and CEO of GM, acknowledged that there are steep technical issues to overcome—battery technology being the most volatile.

The advantages of a plug-in hybrid-electric vehicle over a non-plug-in hybrid-electric vehicle are its extended electric-only propulsion, additional battery capacity, and its ability to be recharged from an external electrical outlet, meaning common household current. The Saturn Vue Line plug-in hybrid was expected to offer electric-only propulsion for more than 10 miles. To propel the vehicle at higher speeds, electric-only mode would switch to either a combination of engine and electric power together, or engine power by itself. The powertrain is composed of two permanent magnet motors and GM’s 3.6-liter V6 gasoline engine with direct injection.

GM’s two-mode hybrid system will be modified for use with plug-in technology. The system maintains two separate driving modes—one for city, the other for highway. The key to the whole system lies in the transmission, which is geared to maximize efficiency while still granting solid performance, whether for accelerating on the highway, treading over rough terrain, or towing a trailer.

During operation, the lithium ion energy storage is be designed to utilize the electric motors and regenerative braking. And of course, the battery can be replenished by simply plugging into a 110-volt outlet.

The combination of truck-like capabilities and ground-breaking reductions in fuel use could mean a big success for the plug-in, in whatever form it takes. That is, if and when it is reincarnated into another life form. Time will tell.

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