Gasgoo.com (Shanghai October 20) - Shanghai GM's first SUV will be coming to market next year, the Beijing Times reported today. According to an announcement from Shanghai GM's Buick dealer network, the new SUV will be the Buick Envision, which made its debut in concept form at this April's Auto Shanghai exhibition. "The concrete time should be around March," sources from the joint venture said.
Shanghai GM's decision to take the concept Envision (pictured) and make it into a production version in only one year is very bold. As the vice president of GM's global design says, the Envision's modern design and advanced technology is to be the new direction for Buick. The SUV will help promote a new generation of design language for the brand.
The Envision concept is a statement to Shanghai GM's commitment to energy saving and environmental protection, coming equipped with the PHEV plug-in hybrid system. The system is powered by a 2.0 L SIDI intelligent direct injection turbocharged engine paired to a pair of electric motors and driven by an 8-speed manual/automatic transmission. Additionally, a battery unit is stored in the luggage compartment, while the roof contains solar panels for another source of energy. What aspects will be carried over to the production version has yet to be known.
The Envision is predicted to be priced between 200,000 and 300,000 yuan ($31,357-$47,035) and expected to compete with the Honda CR-V.
