DETROIT MOTOR SHOW: More tech and range for GM's next Volt

General Motors says its second-generation Volt plug-in hybrid will be quicker, quieter and able to travel further on electric power.

The new Volt will make its world debut at the Detroit motor show in January, before going on sale in the US in the second half of next year.

However, it has not been confirmed for Australia, where Holden has sold just 47 examples so far this year – 50 per cent less than the same period last year – and only 228 since its release here in August 2012.

The revamped Volt will come with a larger 1.5-litre petrol engine and a new T-shaped battery pack with increased storage and 100 fewer cells.

GM has not quoted an all-electric driving range figure, saying only that the revamped model will be a "significant leap forward" from the current model, which offers 61km of zero-emissions motoring and a total range of up to 600km.

It says that in combination with weight savings of up to 45kg the Volt's new battery pack could see range improvements of between five and 12 per cent, bringing a fuel consumption reduction of up to 0.4L/100km.

The larger petrol engine is also tipped to provide faster charging, and acceleration improvements of up to 20 per cent.

GM has promised that up to 70 per cent of the new Volt's components will be made in the US and says it will not hold back when it comes to improving sales.

"I want it understood that the day of GM being a polite competitor is over," said GM CEO, Mary Barra. "We will be tough, unrelenting competitors."

And it will need to be. GM has sold fewer than 70,000 Volts since the model's launch in 2010 and, by Barra's own admission, the car could do better.

"The scorecard on the first-generation Volt is good, but not everything we wanted," she added. "We have learned so much, including that breakthrough technology doesn't always advance in a straight line."