SAO CAETANO do SUL, Brazil The Cadillac and Hummer brands may be poised for an upcoming launch in Latin America, according to Jaime Ardila, president of GM do Brasil, in a recent live chat on GMnext.
"We are considering whether the best way to enhance our presence in Brazil is through a further development of our Chevrolet product line or the introduction of other global brands, such as Cadillac and Hummer," Ardila said. "In the end, to the extent Cadillac and Hummer are global brands, we will be present in Brazil and Mercosur with those brands at some point. It is a question of finding the right time and the right product line to introduce them and we are working on that right now."
Ardila also said an announcement will come "early next year" about GM's Project Viva, which is expected to spawn a family of vehicles. He was cautious not to reveal specifics about the car, which has been described by another GM executive in Latin America as "sporty."
"I can only say it is on target and we are currently working in parallel on getting the plants ready for production in Argentina and Brazil, while at the same time completing the product development," he said. "I cannot announce yet what this family of vehicles will be."
Finally, Ardila had some advice for Americans reeling from sticker shock at the pump. He noted that GM do Brasil produces 95 percent of its vehicles with flex-fuel engines, which allows the vehicles to run on ethanol. The ethanol produced in Brazil is from sugar cane, not corn. Ardila notes that the cost is about US $0.22 per liter, or the equivalent of US $0.90 per gallon.
"That makes it considerable [sic] cheaper than corn-based ethanol," he pointed out. "Therefore, the great challenge for the U.S. and other markets is to move to ethanol produced with cellulosic or other waste materials."
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