General Motors is launching new direct-injection engines which will first appear in the 2010 Chevrolet Equinox crossover, set to hit the streets next summer.

The 2010 Equinox will be offered with a choice of a 180-hp, 2.4-liter four-cylinder or a 255-hp, 3.0-liter V6. GM says the 2.4-liter four will deliver an estimated 30 mpg on the highway. The EPA certification is pending.

The new-for-2010 Cadillac SRX and the 2010 Buick LaCrosse sedan also will have direct-injection engines. The Equinox, the SRX and the LaCrosse all will debut in January at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

"We first introduced direct injection in North America in the 2007 Saturn Sky Red Line and the Pontiac Solstice GXP," said Tom Stephens, executive vice president, powertrain. "We've been rolling out the technology across our portfolio as quickly as we can so that our customers will have additional fuel-savings options. Direct injection is a state-of-the art engineering solution because it enables improved fuel economy and lower emissions without sacrificing power."

In the 2009 model year, GM will offer six engines in 18 models globally with direct injection. That number will jump to 38 models in 2010. Twenty models in GM's 2009 lineup deliver EPA-rated highway fuel-economy numbers of 30 mpg or more--more than any other automaker, GM is always quick to remind us.