By Andrew Liszewski
A few months ago I wrote about the Opel Flextreme concept vehicle which was built on GM’s E-Flex platform. Well since Opel (GM’S European brand) and Saturn share a lot of design traits, it was not that surprising when the company announced the Saturn Flextreme Plug-in concept at this year’s NAIAS.
The Flextreme uses an electric motor powered by a lithium-ion battery to propel it up to 34 miles using only electricity. For most daily commuters that’s more than enough range, but if you have a particular long drive out to the ‘burbs, an onboard 1.3L turbo-diesel engine will generate additional power to replenish the battery while you’re driving.
Of course the feature on this concept vehicle that probably appeals most to the gadget community is the integrated storage for a couple of Segways. The specially modified personal transporters are stowed below the cargo floor in the back, and when docked will even charge alongside the vehicle’s own lithium-ion battery whenever the car is plugged into an electrical outlet.
More photos after the jump.
The coolest part was that a couple of representatives from Segway were actually on hand at the GM booth. Yours truly and a fellow blogger from Life Goggles were lucky enough to give them a try. I’m almost ashamed to admit it was my first time riding on a Segway, but the experience was one to remember. There are a couple of rare photos of me actually on the Segway, but I’m afraid there’s no chance I’m going to post them here.