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A Plethora Of GM Defense ISV Variants Very Much Possible

Back in 2019, General Motors’ military product division, GM Defense, was awarded a $214.3 million contract to build, field, and sustain a new Infantry Squad Vehicle for the U.S. Army. Since then, production of the new GM Defense ISV has begun, but now, it looks like further GM Defense ISV variants may be possible.

GM Authority Executive Editor Alex Luft recently spoke with GM Defense President Steve duMont about the future of the GM Defense ISV. During the interview, duMont outlined some of different variants currently possible, starting with the all-electric eISV. As GM Authority covered in May, the electrified GM Defense ISV swaps the standard 2.8L I4 LWN turbodiesel Duramax engine with a new electric powertrain, namely the same motor and battery combo as the Chevy Bolt EV and Bolt EUV. Although considered just a concept, duMont indicated that the all-electric GM Defense ISV concept will be up-armored to demonstrate the flexibility of the platform.

GM Defense will bring a new All-Electric Military Concept Vehicle to the upcoming Association of the United States Army (AUSA) event, and will feature an Ultralight R150 remote weapons system from EOS Defense, as well as a display screen  mounted on the second-row center seat.

What’s more, GM Defense is bringing a new concept animation that will display a multitude of GM Defense ISV variants, including:

  • Mobile communications center
  • Medical troop carrier
  • Tethered drones for reconnaissance

Another possibility is a GM Defense ISV two-seater configuration with a configurable payload capacity and plug-and-play capabilities for things like:

  • Tactical network shelter
  • Prime mover
  • Mortar carrier
  • Mobile counter-unmanned aerial systems platform
  • Electronic warfare payload

In total, GM Defense is considering “a family of ISVs that [it] can take to a broader audience that [it] can take both domestically and internationally,” according to duMont.

GM Defense spokesperson Sonia Taylor, added that “GM Defense is part of GM Innovation, so everything we do is very innovative and forward-thinking, and we want to show what’s possible and not just build to exact customer requirements, but to get our customers to think what the possibilities are, and this family of ISVs really does that.”

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Jonathan is an automotive journalist based out of Southern California. He loves anything and everything on four wheels.

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Comments

  1. Yes, cause it’s brilliant to turn a diesel….which doesn’t catch fire easily into essentially a phosphorus bomb…. Can’t make this @@@@ up how dump these wokies are.

    Reply
  2. Congrats ! Nailed it !

    ” Hey Sarge, our battery is running low on power… Well, Private, start looking for the nearest re-charging station. I’m sure there are many of them where we are deployed and the wait can’t be more than hours and hours “.

    Freaking stupid knee-jerk EV fan-boys have no real-life experience but gotta’ toe the Corporate line of “EV’s are fantastic” that GM CEO Mary Barra has decided….as her current little nightmares burn people’s homes to the ground.

    Reply
  3. What took GM so long? GM Defense has great potential, possibly more than Cruise. The government is a reliable customer that doesn’t shop incentives. And GM has the knowledge to build virtual any needed equipment.
    Just hope GM doesn’t spin off GM Defense. Would be good for shareholders but a great cash cow for GM during lean quarters/years.

    Reply
    1. @steve, not the sharpest tool in the shed are you when it comes to finances? Honda invested into Cruise at a $8B and again at $12B & 20B valuation, Walmart and Microsoft invested in Cruise at a $25B + valuation, but you know more than all of them? You see this little squad vehicle as more valuable? Let’s compare, say Osh Kosh, the undisputed king of these kind of vehicles for the government and military, trades at a $7B valuation, and have 100X more committed contracts with the government than GM. I think you might have to re-evaluate the market economics, and where value comes from?

      What is GM defense worth? it has very little longstanding business, and minimal profit.. Ya, spin that off straight to the garbage can. These are just prototypes, not production contracts, and this squad vehicle has a limited mission, nobody needs too many of them. GM defense calculates out to a ZERO valuation right now, hopefully someday with hard work GM defense will be worth something more than ZERO, but today, that would be the value.

      Reply
  4. Oshkosh Truck has the contract for the JLTV (Joint Light Tactical Vehicle) which uses basically the same Duramax as GM trucks, with Banks power added with an Allison auto transmission backing it up. Problem with these vehicles is all the electronics that are added…..one problem causes 10 malfunctions in a way. On board computer does little but maybe tell you the code(s) of said issue. Meanwhile Jonny soldierboy knows Jack squat about how to get his chariot back running again because maybe one of 30 relays tripped, or perhaps the battery cables melted behind the exhaust downpipe where you can’t see, or possibly a J1939 error. Sometimes too much technology is worse imo seeing first hand how the JLTV is put together.

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  5. You forgot Soft Bank’s investment. You should make an effort at being more well read.
    Cruise has great technology but with too many investors will eventually be spun off. Soft Bank and Microsoft haven’t made these investments for the purpose of giving GM and Honda an eternal head start on rivals. Financial institutions are always a dealbreaker because they are looking for a relatively quick return and have no need for the intellectual property. This is why Silicon Valley has so many IPOs.

    A spin off will be great for investors, GM will be a large shareholder, but be like anyone else required to pay licensing fees. General Moters will earn dividends much like Yahoo did with the Alibaba investment but technology rivals will emerge, stock price will fluctuate and activist investors will urge Barra to sell shares for a one time special dividend. I don’t need a crystal ball to predict this. Just read FT or WSJ for a few years because variations on this scenario happen every day.

    Cruise should already be spun off considering it has over four major investors with GM and Honda being the financially weakest. Automakers, once mature, have never been growth stocks and won’t be despite the technical revolution. As I said GM Defense will be a reliable cash cow. You really aren’t the sharpest tool when it comes to finances.

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    1. GM still owns roughly 80% of Cruise, and has said they will not spin it off as Cruise represents the largest growth opportunity for GM, and together with GM manufacturing the vehicles and Cruise deploying them, it’s a game changing opportunity and redefines cash cow long term. More investors today buy GM stock for Access to Cruise than anything else. I have seen several on CNBC talking about it, they mention EV’s and cruise, the rest of GM has limited value.

      Reply
  6. General Motors as a car manufacturer is damaged goods in too many global markets. GM’s over dependence on favorable Sino-American relations for it’s joint ventures could prove disastrous and the intellectual property theft is problematic even though The General retains the so-called “Golden Share”. Strip away Asia and GM is an Americans company.
    Everything looks great on paper until another David Einhorn comes along looking to increase shareholder value particularly if a firm like Greenlight Capital buys stock at both GM and another Cruise investor taking shareholder activism to a whole new level.
    I just remember before the Great Recession a cash strapped GM swearing it would never spin off Delphi until it did. Same with GMAC. Would the same happen if Taiwan was invaded and the only way to raise capital was a Cruise spinoff?
    I hope you’re right regarding both Cruise’s lead on rivals and GM’s ability to transform itself into a true technology company capable of assuming a leadership position. In such case would be great to make old GM a division of Cruise. On the flip I’m sure Soft Bank and Microsoft would rather Cruise technology be sold to various automakers so we will have to wait and see what happens.

    Reply
    1. You just don’t get it with Cruise… It’s a ride hailing service play, more than a selling technology play, and yes, they are close to making it technically work, and are giving rides in San francisco in driverless Chevy Bolts every day. They not just need to refine it, and then make it cheaper and more scalable. Its a “when”, not an “if”…

      GM said last week they will offer level 4 autonomous cars to customers, but that is likely the late 2020’s and beyond. They have a lot of work to do to cut system cost first. But it will be nice when the cars generate revenue while refining the system, which GM said last week will start in early next year and ramp up in 2023 with the Cruise Origin.

      What does Taiwan have to do with anything? You bring up 2008, and GM cutting Delphi, have you looked at GM financials from back then? They were hemorrhaging 10’s of billions of dollars every quarter, the company now is much leaner and meaner. Even last year with a Pandemic they had no trouble staying profitable, and the quarter they were shut down they only lost half a billion dollars.

      Reply
  7. I’m familiar with Cruise Origin, San Francisco giving the green light, and how American municipalities are looking into drafting laws for autonomous vehicles. Just because GM has the lead does not mean it will win the race. Within a decade similar technology will be sold by start ups as well as established firms like Sieman’s & Bosch. The other major automakers will not sit back, watch & hand GM the brass ring. I’m not as excited about GM’s lead because corporate history is littered with unsuccessful early adapters who’s R&D nonetheless changed the world.

    As you must have read China is growing more aggressive with it’s threats to take Taiwan; as a result, the US and the Japanese have Marines on the island. If, probably more like when, conflict starts that’s a problem for Shanghai GM. The US will defend the First Island Chain meaning at least limited military hostilities with China. Conflict will at a minimum harm sales or cause the J/Vs to dissolve. I can’t believe most of Wall Street ignores this! We are making the Asia Pivot because the guarenteed peace, open shipping lanes and predictably we take for granted is over and there is nothing alarmist about that.

    War would create worse financials than 2008 and do greater harm to GM than any other automaker due to the company’s limited geographic scope compared to VW, Toyota, even Stellantis. In such situation GM would have no choice but spin off divisions of value or go bust. Cruise might actually be more valuable free than tethered to just two automakers.

    Reply

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