Carmakers seek more U.S. research funding

General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and DaimlerChrysler have asked the U.S. government for $500 million over five years to subsidize research into advanced batteries for cars and trucks.

Since 1991, the U.S. government has subsidized battery research at the rate of about $25 million a year. Bush administration officials, during a Nov. 14 meeting with the automakers, asked whether it was adequate, said Stephen Zimmer, an advanced engineering director at DaimlerChrysler’s Chrysler unit.

U.S.-based auto companies are in a race with rivals including Japan’s Toyota Motor Corp. to develop a lithium ion battery for use in hybrids and other vehicles.