It's about friggin' time

GM building plug-in Saturn

General Motors Corp. will introduce new hybrid gasoline-electric autos next year to take sales from Toyota Motor Corp., the leader in the fuel-saving technology.

GM plans three hybrid-electric versions of its Saturn Vue sport-utility vehicle, including one that plugs into an outlet, as part of a new focus on "electrically driven" autos, GM Chief Executive Officer Rick Wagoner said in a speech today. Plug-in hybrids recharge when the vehicle isn't in use and switch to gasoline when the batteries are drained.

Wagoner is working to counter Toyota's 9-year head start in hybrid-electric vehicles. Hybrids use less fuel and produce less pollution by using a battery and electric motor to supplement a gasoline engine. They are gaining sales as governments crack down on pollution and buyers shift to fuel-sipping vehicles.

"For every automaker it's now critical to have hybrid models," said Eric Noble, president of consulting firm Car Lab in Orange, California. "People are demanding it now. Having hybrids is the cost of doing business." Wagoner, speaking at the Los Angeles auto show, said vehicles that run on a mixture of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline also are part of the Detroit automaker's plan to reduce U.S. reliance on imported oil. Within three years, all versions of Hummer SUVs will offer an engine powered by so- called biofuels, Wagoner said today.