General Motors CNG & LPG Vehicles : hybrid car CNG LPG review 2009

General Motors CNG & LPG Vehicles
by Robert Jent

American demand for CNG (compressed natural gas) or LPG (liquefied natural gas) powered vehicles may not be high currently, in part, because American car companies like Detroit’s General Motors are not actively promoting them to U.S. customers. However, overseas in European and Asian markets, General Motors has quite an interest and prolific production of alternatively fueled vehicles with production continuing through GM’s foreign subsidiary companies. Truthfully, the amount of CNG and LPG filling stations that exist within the fueling infrastructure of the United States would necessitate expansion. While there do exist nearly 1,100 CNG filling stations across the U.S., many are for private or commercial fleets, and a large amount of them are located within California’s borders, so a cross-country trek in a natural gas powered vehicle would currently be out of the question. In Europe, because of the smaller distances to travel, and the more readily available filling stations, natural gas powered automobiles are on the rise.
Most American consumers are not familiar with the popularity of natural gas powered vehicles in Europe and do not realize that the same products could be marketable in the United States as well, with the right promotional help from General Motors and other American motor companies. In addition to producing natural gas fuelled vehicles for European motorists, General Motors is currently working with natural gas distributors and providers to expand and enhance the compressed natural gas infrastructure in Europe. With General Motors help, Germany’s number of filling stations will rise to 1,000 this year, Austria and Switzerland are expanding their numbers, and France will have over 300 in the next few years. Western European totals are currently around 2,000 and growing. General Motors Korean subsidiary, GM Daewoo, has an increasing number of liquefied natural gas powered vehicles on the road, 117,270 vehicles since 2002, helping to improve the overly polluted air of South Asia. GM Thailand hasn’t missed a beat either, with their Optra model being the first and only compressed natural gas vehicle offering a three-year/100,000 kilometer full warranty. General Motors is stepping up efforts in the United States, if hesitantly, with an increased focus on the renewable fuel E85 ethanol, made up of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline. Ethanol can be produced locally and domestically from a large selection of different materials such as corn, grass, sugarcane, and agricultural waste.
As U.S. motor companies like General Motors increase their products’ relationships with natural gas, American companies such as Triple Diamond Energy Corp will undoubtedly be prepared to fill the new fueling needs.