Corvette Transmissions, Volts & More

Larry Nitz is the Executive Director, Global Transmissions and Electrification at GM Powertrain. He holds 41 U.S. patents and has received four GM Boss Kettering Awards for Engineering Innovation. He attained a BS in electrical engineering from Kettering University and an MS in the same from Stanford.

All of which is to say that he is a very smart guy who knows his stuff when it comes not only to vehicle electrification—he was involved with everything from the GM EV-1 to the Volt to the Spark EV—but transmissions (automatic, manual, dual-clutch, and event continuously variable).

And on this edition of “Autoline After Hours,” Stephanie Brinley, an analyst with IHS Automotive, Gary Witzenberg, a freelance journalist and former GM engineer, and I talk with Nitz about a variety of subjects ranging from the newly developed eight-speed transmission (that will be used in applications from the 2015 Corvette to the full-size Silverado and Sierra pickups) to the forthcoming 2015 Volt.

Spark EV drive unit

In addition to which, after Nitz leaves the set we discuss subjects including the production expansion in Mexico, the Chinese and Indian burgeoning anti-trust charges against Western OEMs and suppliers, the new Acura TLX, and more.

And you can see it all here: