GM now pursuing cng in Australia . . . arrghh!!

[cngacrossusa]

Yep, GM that two-faced lying bunch of greedy thugs now have announced that their Holden division in Australia is going to pursue OEM cng vehicles in Australia!! What a crock!!

GM claims they can't produce an OEM cng (either dedicated or bi-fuel) vehicle here in USA but they jump headfirst into cng in Australia??!!??

I say let the whole lot of US automakers go bankrupt (NO MORE AID, loans or any freebies) unless they give US customers ALL the benefits of cng and electric . . . . and NOW!!

See IANGV article at:
http://www.ngvglobal.com/en/market-d...lia-02279.html

[Tax Counsel]

Re: GM now pursuing cng in INDIA. . . too!!

General Motors gears up for more LPG, CNG cars in India

"Our strategy is to have high fuel efficiency in all our vehicles in the first place. Then we will be introducing vehicles powered by (alternative) fuels like CNG and LPG, besides having different power-trains and different displacements,” General Motors India President (GMI) and Managing Director Karl Slym said.

http://www.livemint.com/2009/01/2316...up-for-mo.html

[siai47]

Re: GM now pursuing cng in Australia . . . arrghh!!

It's just because GM hasn't been forced to do it in the US. Hopefully, the new administration will give some incentive to CNG that was lacking in the Bush/Cheney view of the world. Bush was so out of touch with reality that he didn't even know that gasoline prices had spiked last summer . (just heard that one today on Fox news of all places). When the last CNG Cavalier rolled off the line in 2004, GM finally had all the bugs out of it. It was fuel injected, used a common engine ECU (lower cost) and was installed on the Ecotec engine which is still used on just about everything four cylinder that GM makes. It got good fuel economy and started and ran with the same ease as a Honda GX--and it was a bi-fuel. I hope someone puts them to task to develop at least one car we can buy in this country so that there is more incentive to build public fueling stations. We are so stupid as a country not to demand that our government protect us from total reliance on foreign oil.

[nttrainer]

Re: GM now pursuing cng in Australia . . . arrghh!!

GM is also promoting CNG (and clean diesel) in Germany through their Opel division.

Part of the German financial stimulus program is to retire cars older than 9 years old. If you trade in an old car on a new, clean vehicle then you get a 2500 Euro credit. The new car must meet the exhaust standard Euro 4 or higher.

The cars they are promoting for the 2500 Euro credit are their CNG and Clean Diesel models. Their gasoline models must not meet that standard.

[Franz]

Re: GM now pursuing cng in Australia . . . arrghh!!

Its all about the money. Not for the vehicle, but for the consumer. In every location a major manufacturer is trying to introduce alt fuels, the comparative price of the fuel is extreme. In the US, with gasoline sitting at around $1.65 per gallon, CNG is around $0.90 to over $2.00 per GGE, right now. In Germany, CNG is around $1.35 GGE (converted to US Dollars) while gasoline is around $6.00 (converted to USD). Australia, NZ, most of Europe, Asia, etc, there is a considerable price delta and that is what is driving the push to other fuels.

If the manufacturer cannot meet the publics need for a vehicle that can run on the available fuel, it cannot sell any vehicles. Here in the US, we are a very, very, very small percentage. When the price of gasoline goes back up to almost $4.00 per gallon, the major public interest returns.

Its not about the environment, its about the money. People want clean air but dont want to pay for it.

Franz

[scottfetsh]

Re: GM now pursuing cng in Australia . . . arrghh!!

does anybody know the density of cng stations in aussi land i think if its lower than the usa they are surely screwing us. We are about to open at least 3 cng stations in florida but are having trouble finding investors based on availbility of cng cars to sell to. can't sell cng = no investors so what we are trying to do is take private stations and make them public to get the ball rolling. but we need a us auto maker or the epa to make it feasable to convert to cng soon!

[nttrainer]

Re: GM now pursuing cng in Australia . . . arrghh!!

In Germany, CNG is around $1.35 GGE (converted to US Dollars) while gasoline is around $6.00 (converted to USD).
Franz

CNG is priced in Europe by the kilogram, so you need to multiply the kg price by 2.567 to get the price per GGE. I was in Germany at Christmas and CNG was €1.02 per kg. at the two stations I saw. That works out to about $3.40 per GGE. Gasoline was €1.03 per liter (cheapest grade) which works out to $5.06 / gallon at today's exchange rate. The dollar has gained a few pennies since Christmas. Still a lot cheaper than gasoline.

CNG is legislatively priced cheaper than gasoline until 2018.

[Franz]

Re: GM now pursuing cng in Australia . . . arrghh!!

Hmm, CNG has increased in price since I was in Germany. Still, its the price difference that will push the use of alt fuels. As long as there is a close price gap, there will be little interest.

Franz