New models offer peek into GM's electric future

General Motors continues to draw back the curtains on its electric vehicle plans, flashing glimpses of a Hummer SUV and Chevrolet pickup.

At a Barclays conference this month, CEO Mary Barra, Doug Parks, global product development, purchasing and supply chain chief, and Travis Hester, chief EV officer, sat in front of the Hummer SUV, a Chevy pickup and the Cadillac Lyriq, which was unveiled in August.

The Hummer SUV and Chevy pickup are expected to be built starting in 2023 or 2024, but those schedules likely will be accelerated. GM has moved up the start of production for a GMC Hummer pickup, three other GMC EVs, four Chevrolet EVs and four Cadillacs. Lyriq production was pulled ahead nine months to early 2022.

The Hummer pickup, which GM revealed last month, was developed in only 26 months, and GM intends to apply that swift timeline across its lineup.

GM has said that the Hummer SUV will be an off-road-capable version of the Hummer pickup that's slated to launch late next year. The utility version will be built at Factory Zero, formerly Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly, in 2023 or 2024, forecasters have said.

The Chevy pickup also is expected to be built at the plant, starting in 2023. The Cruise Origin and a large Cadillac SUV also are slated for the plant in the next few years.

The pickup appears to be sleeker and less rugged than the Chevy Silverado. It features a softer front fascia, deep wheel wells and a simpler grille than the Silverado, with slim headlamps.

GM said in a 2019 Sustainability Report that the pickup will reach 400 miles of range when fully charged. That range has likely increased. GM said this month that the batteries can now reach 450 miles on a single charge.

GM teased the EVs as it announced a $27 billion electric and autonomous vehicle budget — up 35 percent from previous investment plans — through 2025.

GM plans to introduce at least 30 EVs globally through 2025, two-thirds of which will be available in North America.