Things are about to start moving temporarily in General Motors (GM) on the electrification front. He doesn’t spend a week in those days without news or at least a new rumor.
This week, the story is the possible introduction of an electric Cadillac SUV, made in the form of the Escalade but built on the structure of the future all-electric GMC Hummer.
If we look back to the beginning of 2019, on the eve of the Detroit Auto Show, we see Cadillac previewing its first electric vehicle, an unnamed three-row crossover. At the time, the company said that it would be “the first of GM’s new-generation electric vehicles”.
Today, GM unveiled some of its plans for these electric vehicles, confirming in particular the progression of a new Cadillac vehicle of approximate dimensions of the Escalade, but which would use the long-haul GMC Hummer electric vehicle platform. Cadillac revealed nothing more than that in the next model, but had more to say about the Hummer EV Platform.
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In components, we are informed that an essential component of the design is GM’s new Ultium batteries. Depending on the car manufacturer, these can be stacked vertically or horizontally within the battery, allowing designers to optimize the design and garage of the model. GM says its trucks will receive 800 volt batteries with a fast charging capacity of 350 kW, with two hundred kW batteries that provide a diversity of 400 miles or 644 km. The new Ultium batteries are designed for fast point 2 charging as well as a RAPper DC operation.
When GM announced the Hummer’s return, they said the product would have the ability to reach 96 km/h in just 3 seconds thanks to an output of 1,000 hp (745 kW) and 11,500 lb-ft of torque. GM also said it will use internally designed engines that support front-wheel, rear-wheel and all-wheel drive and accommodate more performance-oriented configurations.
General Motors will assemble the new GMC Hummer at its Detroit-Hamtramck plant. Interestingly, rumours circulated late last year that the firm would build the electrified Hummer alongside an electric pickup truck and the electrified version of the Escalade. It wouldn’t be an stretch to deduce that the latter model is the one and the same Escalade-sized electric Cadillac destined to be built on the new Hummer EV platform.
This is just the beginning of GM’s electrification strategy, which promises to be ambitious and attention-grabbing in the coming months. The Cadillac Lyriq, the division’s first all-electric SUV, will make its debut next month, and in May, we’ll meet the GMC Hummer. That will be followed by a new version of the Bolt later in the year, as well as a Bolt EUV (SUV) variant in the summer of 2021.