General Motors Planning EV Product Onslaught In China Between Now And 2025

Over 40 percent of new General Motors vehicle launches in China over the next five years will be EVs, the automaker announced during its Tech Day media event in Shanghai this week.

According to Reuters, GM China boss Julian Blisset said the new EV programs and the expansion of the Super Cruise hands-free driving system will both help spearhead the automaker’s efforts to increase its sales in the country. GM sales in China have been slowly slipping each year since they hit their peak at four million units back in 2017.

GM CEO Mary Barra echoed Blisset’s statement, saying adding more EVs and expanding the presence of Super Cruise in its vehicles will help it achieve its vision for “zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion.”

“China will play a crucial role in making our vision a reality,” Barra said.

Chevrolet Menlo EV

GM said previously that it would sideline $20 billion in order to develop and produce new electric and autonomous vehicles between now and 2025. While it’s not clear how much of that investment is for China, at least some of the automaker’s upcoming EVs will be sold in both China and North America. The Cadillac Lyriq crossover, for example, will launch in China first before going on sale in North America shortly after.

China is the world’s largest automotive market and also the largest market for EVs. In 2019, electric vehicles account for 4.7 percent of all new cars, trucks and SUVs sold in the country – equivalent to roughly 1.2 million vehicles. GM already has a number of EVs for sale in China, including the Chevrolet Menlo EV, Buick Velte 6 Plus and the new Baojun E300 EV, among more.

GM has not said how many new EVs it plans to launch in China over the next five years. The automaker said previously that it would launch 20 new EVs globally before 2023, though some of these vehicles will be exclusive to North America, whereas others may be exclusive to China.

Subscribe to GM Authority for more General Motors China news, General Motors electric vehicle news and around-the-clock General Motors news coverage.

Sam loves to write and has a passion for auto racing, karting and performance driving of all types.

Sam McEachern

Sam loves to write and has a passion for auto racing, karting and performance driving of all types.

View Comments

      • Trump was not incompetent . The issue is that the raw materials to make the protective equipment and many medicines have been pushed to China thus quick ramp up was not possible . He is spending heavily to make sure this never happens again .

        New York State left hundreds of respirators and thousands of protective gear that Trump sent them in warehouses for weeks during the heart off the pandemic

  • Well of course GM is. China and Europe unlike us have already passed Legislation mandating EV's in a couple of years.
    GM nor any other Auto Maker has a Choice.

  • Achtung! You vill go electric und you vill like it! Ve vill solve the range, power grid und other details in due course.

  • Well the market for EV is stronger in China.

    But also GM has been introducing models in China first as they can trouble shoot them better their with with less negative media. They get the first year bugs out of some model there as in China people are just happy to get a car and they are used to issues there.

    • China also has different regulations do to government ownership.

      In China, GM does NOT screw over the customer it is NOT allowed !

      I will bet the super cruise will be mandated free, just like the wifi data over there!

      People in the US would be happy like in China if in the US, GM was made to fix the " Known Faulty " issues !

      How many class actions over there ?

      ZERO, WHY, China mandates GM have a good customer support system !

      • No the Government screws over the citizens.

        The people in China are just happy no have a car and not be in jail if they are not a government official.

        • Here you go again C8.R, with your mansplaining !

          I quit my automation/ programming job, when I was required to go to China to help set up manufacturing processes there.
          So why don't you again tell me how things work over there !
          They had 4 to 5 as many people making the same part as we had making one !
          The raw material over there was way, way better yet the end product we still deviated to accept at times !
          You are right as far as who drives a vehicle in China, yet when you get right down to the nitty gritty, it is no different than here, as far as ownership goes.
          You work over there ( really for the government as they own a large % ) and the government makes sure that the government is not getting screwed by the corporation. AGAIN the government removes the GREED ! The money that does NOTHING ! The Chinese government simply will not tolerate greed ! Sure you move as a citizen up and down as you produce in your life but the difference is:
          In China, the government WANTS the most talented people, NOT the ones with family in the business, of someone who knows somebody, or the ones with the most money , to work there !
          Talent !
          WE do not have to argue this FACT !
          China is winning this in every way, every way !
          By 2025 China will be the world leader on EVERY front ! and might be already !
          And the ONLY way we will stop it now is an American provoked war, as normal !
          This is why China is posturing their military, it has nothing to do with them starting a war, is is to prevent us from doing it !
          We gave them the ability to do all of this because of our greed, if you are a Bible believer it is the love of money, yet it is still the leaders in the USA that allowed this. It is the stockholders, and CEO's that needed the money, money, money, money, and went there for the cheapness of product for profit !

          There is NO way to reverse this now, China DOES NOT NEED THE USA FOR ANYTHING !
          Sure China would love to keep selling us cheap junk and taking 49% of the profit, but they do no longer NEED to. They have made their deals elsewhere !
          Now its a value of Currency war.
          Or just an outright war.
          But the GOP in their last two administrations have sure printed ALOT of money to try to offset this !
          We need the money in the USA to start going to the people who MAKE the difference !

          You keep telling me how things are, as we keep watching how thing really are !

      • Dear LifelongGMowner, Thanks for your incites! Very interesting. However, I think war is out of the question, as they are a nuclear power.