Tom Stephens

Last month General Motors announced it was expanding its in-house electric vehicle development capabilities by becoming the first major automaker in the U.S. to design and manufacture its own electric motors for future hybrid and plug-in hybrid models. The electric motors, which are 25 percent smaller and 20 percent more powerful than current designs, are to be used in the automaker’s next-generation rear-wheel drive Two-mode hybrid system. GM’s current Two-mode hybrid system is used exclusively in its full-size pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles but according to the...