GM’s EV plans are beginning to take into account the new Chevy screws at lower prices

DETROIT – The pivot of General Motors to become an electric vehicle company by 2035 is starting to take shape as the automaker prepares to launch two Chevrolet Bolt models this summer, ahead of an iconic $ 113,000 GMC Hummer EV pickup later in the year.

The all-electric screws – a redesigned hatchback and a new crossover – will both start at under $ 34,000. These are the beginning of what GM hopes will eventually be a full range of “affordable” electric vehicles, as the company builds scale to reduce the costs of its next-generation electric vehicles, such as the Hummer, with systems and platforms. new batteries.

“If you take a look at what the GMC Hummer EV is and what the Bolt EVs in the body can be,” said Jesse Ortega, chief engineer of GM battery-powered electric vehicle architectures, during a media briefing. “That really gives us the solid books we’re capable of.”

It is a two-way approach to the mass and luxury markets. The price difference between these “books” is largely reduced to vehicle battery technologies. The Bolt models are on the car manufacturer’s current EV platform and offer batteries that offer less autonomy than the GM’s next-generation Ultium platform and batteries, which will debut on the Hummer EV.

All three vehicles are part of the manufacturer’s plan to launch 30 new or redesigned electric vehicles by 2025 as part of a $ 27 billion investment plan in electric and autonomous vehicles.

“You can see the intentional strategy we have here,” said Tony Johnson, Chevrolet’s chief marketing officer. “The purpose of these two offerings is really to go down the main street and start spreading the adoption of electric vehicles everywhere. The other brands within the company obviously each have their role to complete our journey here.”

GM currently has no plans to move the screws to the next-generation platform, Ortega said.

GM CEO Mary Barra and President Mark Reuss said the company’s next-generation vehicles would be profitable, unlike the Bolt EV. Johnson and other GM officials declined to comment on whether the Bolt models that will be launched later this year will be profitable.

After being on the market for four years, GM’s team of engineers has achieved “phenomenal driving quality, consistency and driving costs in the system,” Johnson said. He said progress has led the company to lower the price of Bolt.

The new Bolt 2022 commercial vehicle will start at $ 33,995. This compares to the Bolt EV model, which will start at $ 31,995 – less than $ 5,000 less than the 2021 model.

Profitable or not, vehicles offer GM an EV at a lower price than other competitors, such as the $ 43,000 Ford Mustang Mach-E crossover (before a federal tax credit of up to $ 7,500 that GM and Tesla buyers are no longer eligible to receive it) and Tesla Model 3, which starts at about $ 37,000.

Bolt EV has a range of 259 miles on full charge, while Bolt EUV reaches 250 miles. This compares to GM vehicles with Ultium technology, which is expected to reach up to 450 miles per load.

GM has also added additional technology to Bolt models to make them more competitive. In particular, the Bolt EUV will be Chevrolet’s first equipped with GM’s hands-free Super Cruise semi-autonomous highway driving system, which uses facial recognition to identify if the driver is alert, so they don’t need to touch the steering wheel. . while the system is running.

Offering vehicles at lower prices is part of the company’s new marketing campaign “everyone from”, focused on the growing adoption of electric vehicles. By doing so, the company hopes to attract new buyers in the segment and retain them in the coming years. This includes the possibility of them being traded in a vehicle at lower prices for a next generation EV vehicle, as costs decrease.

“Our vision is that we want customers for life,” Ortega said. “So as their needs grow and their lifestyles change, we want to give them an EV for that.”

A key element in reducing costs is expected to be GM, which produces its own battery cells through a joint partnership with LG Chem of Ohio. The $ 2.3 billion facility is currently under construction. It is expected to be completed in 2022.