GMC Hummer EV SUVs Will Roll Off The Production Line Soon, But They Won't Be Cheap
GMC's enormous new Hummer EV finally has a scheduled release, and the automaker has also dropped fresh info about the upcoming electric truck, including an eyewatering price tag. Per Detroit News, the 2024 Hummer EV began production on January 30. GM intends for its new electric beast to roll off the assembly lines and onto American pavement by the end of March.
As of now, all the Hummer EVs slated for production have been claimed — 90,000 models have been reserved so far, comprising the entire projected 2023 and 2024 model runs. Detroit News quotes GM executive vice president Duncan Aldred: "I think this is the most sought-after vehicle in the world right now."
The Hummer EV is not without competition, however. The machine is available both as a classic Hummer SUV and as a pickup, directly challenging Tesla's Cybertruck and the F-150 Lightning from Ford. Per CNBC, the Hummer will even come with an Easter egg image of a Hummer crushing a Cybertruck. Can Hummer's new EV back up that kind of incendiary branding?
Challenging the competition
According to GM, a Hummer EV at the highest trim levels will be packing 830 horsepower in its SUV incarnation, with the pickup clocking in at a monstrous 1,000 even. Add that to the Hummer's purported 11,500 lb-ft of torque and GM may well be justified in claiming a 0 to 60 time of "approximately 3 seconds" for the pickup and 3.5 seconds for the SUV. Impressive stuff.
That said, its competitors aren't exactly sitting on their hands. The top-end three-motor Tesla Cybertruck actually edges out the Hummer off the line, with a 0 to 60 time of just 2.9 seconds. The Rivian R1T electric pickup matches the Hummer's three seconds, with Ford's F-150 Lightning lagging behind at four seconds. The Hummer and Rivian also have matching payload capacities at just less than 1,500 pounds. Here, the F-150 handily outperforms its rivals with 2,200 pounds capacity. In short, while the Hummer EV is a clear contender in its market segment, it doesn't spectacularly outperform them in any notable respect. That may be a problem.
Big iron, bigger money
One vital statistic about the Hummer EV stands out among the electric truck's peers: its high price tag. Per Detroit News, once GM has executed on its reservations and starts selling the Hummer EV on the open market, it intends to sell its bottom-range Hummer EV for $84,650. The top-end 3X variant will cost $104,650. That's serious money for an electric truck and makes some of the competition look a bit more appealing in comparison.
Even the top-range three-motor Cybertruck from Tesla — a company not exactly known for low-priced daily drivers — will only cost $69,900. Then there's the Rivian R1T, which will still undercut the Hummer EV with a starting price of $73,000 despite the loss of the cheaper entry-level variant in mid-2022. The F-150 Lightning is also substantially more affordable, coming in at just $55,974 for the base model and $97,000 for top-of-the-line with all the trimmings.