WARREN – General Motors is going all-in on electric and zero-emission vehicles. Last week the Detroit automaker announced it would launch more than 20 e-vehicles by 2023, including two new vehicles based on the all-electric Chevrolet Bolt that will debut by 2019.
The Bolt – marketed as an electric car for everyone, not just early adopters and the tech-savvy – is the test mule driving the Detroit-based automaker’s electric vehicle development, Mark Reuss, GM vice president of global product development, purchasing and supply chain, said at GM’s technical center here. That vehicle is the key to achieving GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra’s goal for future that is free from vehicle emissions, crashes and traffic congestion.
“It’s a platform that provides a window into the future,” Reuss said. “From self-driving technology to car-sharing, it has become a test bed for all sorts of new ways to look at transportation. But it’s also a window into how General Motors will move humanity forward in the future with all-electric propulsion.”
The 20 vehicles planned for the next six years won’t all be new renditions of the Bolt. GM showed three concept vehicles Monday that showed some of the scope of the project. The company did not confirm that the concept models would become production models, but said it would focus on the immensely popular crossover and SUV segment.
The concept vehicles were an unnamed Cadillac crossover, an unnamed Buick SUV and a futuristic-looking Bolt EV concept that featured the bulging windows and cabin common in some future-looking autonomous vehicle designs.
GM also updated its progress on hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle development, described by corporate officials as part of a two-pronged approach to its zero-emission goal.
The company is currently testing its fuel cell powered Chevrolet Colorado ZH2 with the U.S. military. Freese also introduced the fuel cell-powered SURUS, which stands for the Silent Utility Rover Universal Superstructure.
