Last year when GM first introduced a prototype two-person vehicle called Puma, which is based on the two-wheeled Segway platform, I was intensely skeptical. It was designed for cities, supposedly, but it looked like it would get squashed like a grape by massive taxis on the streets of Manhattan. After I took a test spin, I was partly won over--it was responsive, fun to drive and, since it could turn in place, easily maneuverable. But it still seemed like a doomed idea.

Now that GM's taken an updated version to China, however, I think I get it. This week it's been showing off an updated version of the vehicle, called the EN-V, at the World Expo in Shanghai, a city where the vehicle makes perfect sense. Drivers there are already used to dodging scads of bicycles and scooters and wandering pedestrians. Commuters there show no fear of squashing--outside of subway stations they jump on the back of motorcycle "taxis," which tear off recklessly through crowds, the passenger wearing no helmet. As people can afford it, they're switching from bikes to cars to get out of the rain and smog, and that's making traffic jams ever worse. The EN-V would be a perfect alternative, one that would ease congestion and smog alike.

And the new versions of the vehicle being demonstrated there look a lot more solid, spacious, and stylish than the first prototypes. I can imagine people wanting to buy them and be seen in them.

Sometimes it doesn't take much to improve fuel economy. As part of the run-up to the launch of its Chevy Cruze in the United States, GM is highlighting some of its features. One is a piece of pretty unimpressive technology. It's not an advanced battery chemistries or radical engine design, just a set of shutters that open and close depending on temperature and vehicle speed. (GM is calling this "shape changing" although the changes happen behind a grill and can't be seen easily.) At high speeds, the flaps close to reduce drag. At low speeds or high temperatures, they open to improve cooling of the engine. But, although the tech isn't impressive, the result is significant--an added half mile per gallon.

The flaps couldn't have cost much to add, and they probably could have been included with GM cars years or decades ago. No doubt, provided the right motivation, GM could incorporate other simple measures across its fleet that could improve fuel economy.

General Motors is getting into the extremely fuel-efficient delivery van business with an investment in the startup Bright Automotive, it announced today. It's buying a minority stake in the start-up, which is developing a plug-in hybrid van aimed at fleet customers. The van can travel 38 miles on battery power alone, or it can act as a hybrid, combining gas and electric power to get 36 miles per gallon.

The vehicle seems to be a challenge to Ford's successful Transit Connect, a conventional gas or diesel powered delivery van that will be offered as an electric vehicle later this year. GM says that the Bright van has the advantage of having a longer range than the Ford electric vehicle, which can only go 80 miles on a charge. The Bright van has a range of about 400 miles when using both electric and gas power.

The Bright van also has an unusual hybrid arrangement. The front wheels will be powered by a gas engine (the engine and transmission will come from GM) and the rear wheels will be powered by an electric motor. Bright has developed control systems that coordinated between them.