See The GMC Hummer EV In Action At GM’s Kapuskasing Proving Grounds: Video
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General Motors has released a video showcasing the GMC Hummer EV being put through its paces in frigid temperatures at its Kapuskasing Proving Grounds in northern Ontario.
The four-minute and 30-second long video begins with Josh Walton, operations manager at GM Kapuskasing, explaining why GM decided to open a proving ground 800 kilometers north of Toronto. This area has some of the coldest temperatures in all of North America during the winter months, Walton explains, making it the perfect place to test a vehicle’s cold weather capability.
While cold weather performance and reliability has always been important in the auto industry, it has become an even more important test center for GM amid the automaker’s ongoing EV transition. As many readers already know, EVs may experience reduced motor performance and battery range in extremely cold temperatures, so Kapuskasing presents an opportunity for GM to address these potential shortcomings with its battery-electric products before they hit the market.
Cold weather capability is particularly important for the GMC Hummer EV Pickup, as this vehicle is being marketed as a rugged, go-anywhere EV that will be used as a daily driver by the vast majority of buyers – many of which will be located in northern states with cold winter weather or in Canada. These buyers simply will not tolerate a reduction in performance or range in cold weather, especially considering the vehicle’s rather steep MSRP, making Kapuskasing hugely important to the Hummer EV’s development process.
GM implements accelerated testing schedules at Kapuskasing when temps dip below freezing, Walton explains in the video, allowing it to mimic two years of cold weather driving in just one winter season.
“This facility we operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week during our winter test season,” Walton explains. “We cram 12 weeks of testing for each of our durability vehicles, which represents two years of customer usage in the winter.”
Check out the video embedded below to learn more about the GM Kapuskasing Proving Grounds in northern Ontario and how it’s playing an important role in GM’s EV development processes.
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Hell yeah, it looks like a big angry polar bear. I want one of these so bad.
you and 65000 other people, or so I saw in an article today. Reservations have been climbing and have hit 65K.
This isn’t me. I wish there was a way to change my password or for some type of admin to do something.
I’ve been calling the fake h4cksaw account out for over a week now. Someone stole shockandawe name today to. I said just the other day when the fake account using your name said something I asked when did you become such a huge ev fan the person never responded.
It’s whatever this is just an agenda drive blog site… Not the end of the world. I think fake h4cksaw has a blank space at the end.
I know who the person doing it is. It’s the guy who uses the why are trump names. If you look at the way he writes his sentences and look at the response times it’s him. He is using the name ken also and several others, including tigger name today also. You would think they would ban him for that but idk.
Write to the gma staff and Alex Luft and explain what’s going on. They need to ban this pricks email. I publicly asked them in a previous thread why they allow this to happen. Alex seems like a good dude I’m sure he will do something about it,
You wanna use my name as well bozo? What a clown. I would say yea they are responding several comments have been removed so far.
Don’t call yourself a clown, Andy.
Most people on here know who you are. You make a bunch of comments within 5 minutes of each other around the same time every day which shows up around 3:15am pacific time. It’s not a group of people doing this it’s one person and that one person is you, Ken, all the trump names, the fake h4cksaw, the fake tigger you tried to use yesterday the fake Shockandawe now Andy you have tried to use all these names. You reply to yourself and change the name with minutes of each other.
Calm down, other Andy.
You won’t be around much longer if I was a betting man. You wanna hate gas powered vehicles fine you wanna hate ev fine you don’t like trump fine you don’t like Biden fine all those things are your decisions. The problem is you are trying to use peoples names on here to act like them and change what they say. Here’s a good example Peter G everyone knows where he stands politically but he gets to the point he doesn’t need to use someone else’s name to say things and people don’t use his. Like I said before the GMA staff and Alex Luft are pretty good about this stuff judging from the comments they have already removed in less then 24 hours I’d say yea they are definitely doing something about it.
I like both ICE and EVs, what about you?
You can say less bro. People know what’s going on. I’ll say it again the fact GMA admins or Alex Luft have started removing the comments says exactly what they think of it. Go ahead keep using my name I’m not worried about it, I said all I need to say the rest is on them.
I really appreciate you saying I can keep using this name.
Unfortunately I think GMA likes “drama” because it increases engagement. If they really wanted to deal with trolls, they’d require a sign in to comment like most sites.
Russians.
I really hope the dealers don’t start treating these customers like a lot of ford dealers did to the bronco customers. It’s a sad day when you have to have a lawyer show up with you to make sure you get it for msrp. Dealers need to be straight up from the get go about what they plan on doing. So many bronco customers have been screwed because once the customer places the reservation for the vehicle and picks that dealership then once it comes in they jack the price up, like those people said that dealership wouldn’t even have the vehicle if that customer didn’t choose them for the reservation.
Hmmm….noticed there is a complete lack of information how the advertised “range” of this thing decreased when the test drivers were running the heater wide open trying to stay warm. Another “convenient” omission !
I went to the dealership to ask about the Bolts cold weather range, back before they had the recall for spontaneous combustion. The sales staff there had no answers about range in winter temps, they acted like it was a ridiculous question and told me I should look it up on forums. Lol, such an unprofessional response to a legitimate question, I knew at that moment BEVs wouldn’t be for me for a long while yet.
I thought you loved EVs?
They need a bumpy, rough, frozen road with lots of pot holes. All the drive surfaces shown are smooth and flat. Also the vehicles should be water sprayed to put a coating of ice on exterior surfaces and undercarriage. Extreme cold and extreme heat – Death Valley, are the extremes for components. Looks like a super extreme cold weather test area.
Thanks for the interesting clip. Success and best wishes in your cold weather testing. Make some deep street potholes like Cleveland, Buffalo, Detroit, Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, Minneapolis have in the winter. Test front end suspension mechanicals, and black box durability.
They have all that at the Milford proving grounds
It’s the size of Milford times 4 and a lot colder. Cheaper too
They need a bumpy, rough, frozen road with lots of pot holes. All the drive surfaces shown are smooth and flat. Also the vehicles should be water sprayed to put a coating of ice on exterior surfaces and undercarriage. Extreme cold and extreme heat – Death Valley, are the extremes for components. Looks like a super extreme cold weather test area. The lady needs to wear a pair of mittens. Her digits must have been hurting.
Thanks for the interesting clip. Success and best wishes in your cold weather testing.
How come no mention of charging? I can’t charge my hand tools batteries below 32*F becaus the batteries are frozen. Is the EV Hummer using solid state batteries? Or the lithion-ion which has liquid core?
Josh Walton is the only polar bear GM found to head that freezer facility. The rest of the plant workers are chained to their station so they don’t try running away!
The Kapuskasing facility is over 40 years old was a cold weather test centre for all brands of cars for many years. Most of its customers were Asian and European brands as well as North America Truck brands. GM bought the facility not too long ago.
Drove my son from southern Ontario to Thunder Bay to attend Lakehead University in the mid 2000s. Stopped in Kapuskasing at the McDonalds for breakfast. Walked into the place and the entire breakfast menu was written in French!!! As soon as I began to order in English the girl behind the counter gave me the Stink Eye! I swear my Egg McMuffin had a big goober in it! The weather ain’t the only thing that’s frigid in this place!!