GM is moving to fully electrify its passenger vehicle and light-duty vehicle lines by 2035, with 30 new all-electric models set to launch globally by 2025. Now, a report indicates that GM is considering the development of a new small electric pickup truck.
Per Automotive News, GM already has renderings in-hand that show a small two-door pickup with a 4- to 4.5-foot bed and low roofline. According to the report, marketing images show the pickup being used for outdoor activities like surfing, and would be priced under $30,000.
At present, GM doesn’t have a name, brand, or production timeline in place for the hypothetical small EV pickup. According to the director of Chevrolet affordable EV and crossover design, the concept is primarily to gauge if such a vehicle makes sense as something to pursue further.
“We’re creating these to get a reaction and then to try to modify it or move on,” Pevovar told Automotive News. “What does work? What doesn’t work? What’s expected?”
At present, there’s no real competition for a small, two-door, all-electric pickup truck as described. That said, small four-door pickups like the Ford Maverick and Hyundai Santa Fe have seen success in the U.S. To note, both of these models feature a gasoline-fueled internal-combustion engine.
Chevy Montana
“The input may come back that it’s just too small, and that’s ok,” Pevovar said. “Maybe [it won’t be] right for what this architecture can provide, but does it have legs for different architecture where it might need to be a little bigger.”
Although GM currently does not offer a small all-electric pickup truck, The General did recently unveil the all-new 2024 Chevy Montana early last month. Offered as a compact unibody pickup, the new Chevy Montana is equipped as standard with a turbocharged 1.2L engine rated at 133 horsepower and 155 pound-feet of torque. Critically, the small ICE-based pickup is only available in Latin America and other foreign markets, and is not sold in the U.S. or Canada.
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Comments
This maybe great for Cities or densely populated Urban areas .
A small pickup is needed weather its EV or ICE there is a market, GM would be smart to pursue and be first to market.
I remember when the first Trax came in 2013 ( Canada) maybe readers and journalists said it would never work , now the subcompact CUV segment is one of the fastest growing markets in NA.
A small pickup ICE or EV would find an instant market just like the Maverick has.
I don’t see this as a real compact pickup per se – more like the El Camino, something more of a lifestyle vehicle. If indeed I’m correct, I don’t see them selling this in great numbers. (Ford sold over 70,000 Mavericks last year). I would LOVE to see a new El Camino – that would be awesome. But from a bean counter take, I don’t see a real business case for this – if it’s 2-door low roof
Be smart and make a hybrid. Would sell twice as many.
As I stated on another thread about GM Benchmarking the Maverick this is exactly what GM needs to do.
Leapfrog the Competition. They will sell these like hotcakes.
GM currently doesn’t have hybrid tech or a platform that can compete with the Maverick. It would likely cost them billions in R&D, engineering, and production to get one to the market and by the time they do, Ford will have a Maverick EV to market.
Why not skip all of that, use the existing highly modular EV platform as the basis for your truck and bring something unique to the market before Ford does? It would be cheaper and faster going the EV route.
I believe that is what Momolos means, “leapfrog” as in skip the hybrid and go straight to EV.
I don’t think GM have forgotten how to build the Voltec powertrain which went into the Chevrolet Volt. That would do quite nicely in a small pickup with updated Ultium batteries.
You realize the Corvette E-Ray is a hybrid, right?
Gm needs a meverick fighter.
The Chevrolet Montana looks very much like the Hyundai Santa Cruz and they’re both ugly vehicles.
Stop trying to copy them and get some real designers moving on great vehicle ideas before Chevrolet follows Pontiac into the grave.
ICE only!
Agree with GM needing something to go against the Maverick. Not sure a 2 door is a good thing. I miss the old days where trucks were just that: Trucks. However, I’m not their market for this and it would need to be a 4 door. I can see a small EV or PHEV trucklet selling very well. Not everyone needs a half ton pickup to run errands and drive to work.
Agreed. As described it’s a new El Camino — 2-door low roof. If so I don’t see it going head to head again the Maverick.
Create a Ultium replacement for the Bolt and make a small SUV, SUT and maybe a small van and a small car/hatchback. Give the truck an extended cab version with a longer bed while a 4 foot version gets the shorter bed. Both could be same length.
Maybe fwd and awd. Maybe also make a RWD version to see what’s most popular.
Get the starting price as close to $20k as possible and top out no higher than $30k. Something to fit under the Equinox.
Another pickup ? what about looking back a little and bring some concept which was cool in 1998 to market now ?
Because an EV seems easy for everyone now, but the Styling above the platform is the point, and would like hybrid
GM like Tesla…
They are probably going to make another version of the there Avalanche EV but more Rubbish! And smaller if was GM I would make a hybrid truck And make it come out for the 2025 Model year and call it the S10, but apparently GM wants to make A Tesla small truck and probably Call it the Chevrolet “Silverado” EV model S Witch is complete rubbish there going to see what happens when there EVs Die on the road or Short circuit!
Reading that just gave me a stroke.
A mini SSR would be cool.
A mini SSR and HHR would be even cooler.
It’ll debut with a 200 day supply…
Going fully Electric will be the downfall of GM and they will be asking taxpayers for another bailout. Hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles make much more sense with a small ICE (turbo engine) for longer trips. Ford and Toyota have the right plan. GM and VW and BMW will fail.
if knew GM would be like that today, sincere preferred GM would be today non-existent !
VW and BMW fail …. disagree, see how they do well at DAX.
Well it’s GM/Tesla, VM, Vivian, Lucid and BMW will fail
A smart leader and Board would hedge their All-Electric bet with hybrid models. The world is still just on the cusp of an all-electric future. Not enough charging stations, not enough power plants to send electricity to the charging stations, not enough lithium building blocks in-country to hedge against economic blackmail from overseas countries.
The dingbats at GM have had 3 plus years to answer the Ford Maverick gas and hybrid models and have done nothing to counter it. Meanwhile, Ford has every Maverick answered for with order books closed for the year after just one week being opened. All GM can do is float stories like this to the press, sit back and see what happens. Which is what this current bunch running GM is great at doing: Sit back, watch the competition…..and see what happens.
I clearly remember back in 1974 writing a High School English Class paper on electric vehicles titled “Just around the corner”… I guess I didn’t realize just how long that corner really was !
Yup, and it’s probably another 15-20yrs. away, -providing they start preparing the infrastructure, and installing the charging stations today.
I think we are missing something here.
Note they want full EV under $39k.
Also they are looking at a 2 door that would have a larger usable bed vs the Maverick. Who would show great interest in this? Company Fleets.
This combination would be perfect for company fleets. This would sell in great numbers to where it will help lower cost for a real deal for families.
Also it is a way to get these on the roads to prove that they are able to do the job of 90% of most drivers.
Spot on. My brother would love a maverick for his pool business, but the bed is just too small. If they made a regular cab or even extended cab with a 5.5-6 ft bed would be perfect. He is 98% all city driving, he drives about 60 miles a day and around 300 a week, an EV would work just fine (though a hybrid or plug in hybrid would be great as well). Parts trucks, pool guys, lawn operators, pest control, etc. that tow a small single axle trailer, all would benefit from either electric or hybrid small vehicles. Full size trucks have gotten too big and expensive, bed heights suck he said getting tools in and out. His old ranger was fantastic as he would easily reach over and in the whole bed, can’t do that with his silverado. Finding a smaller truck with 1k+ payload and 3kish trailering that is super efficient (EV or PHEV or Hybrid) and in the 20-30k tops price point would do well with the market that has been ignored (small business).
I hope something like that comes to fruition, with a midsize being crew cab only and short bed and the regular cab full size trucks starting at nearly 40k after taxes and not being efficient at all, it would be great to see something like that from GM.
I had three Chevy equinox. I enjoyed them and as a landlord could usually fit my tools in the back for most repair jobs. However I longed for a pickup that could fit my needs better and make good gas mileage. The Ford Maverick is perfect. Fortunately mine is in transit as I write this. Never thought I would leave Chevy for Ford but never say never. I’m as excited to get it as I was for my first car 57 years ago.
…and believe me when I tell you that you will love that Maverick even more than you imagine.
I’ve had mine for about six months…2.0L turbo, AWD, 4K tow pkg.
It’s surprisingly spacious inside, quick and handles like a go-cart….five different ‘Drive Settings’ available.
I especially get a kick out of the SPORT setting, it even changes the sound that the engine makes LOL.
Have been averaging around 26-28 mpg, exclusively comprised of in-town trips of 15-miles or so. Have had it on the highway a few times though. And it is stable as well as quiet.
Took me almost 9-mos to get it, but VERY much worth the wait.
bUt EvS aRe JuSt A fAd!
call it the luv and the hipster would eat it up
This would be a nice option if it had an Ultium version of the Voltec platform. Being a Volt owner I can say that it would be the best of both worlds. All electric in town (most of the time) and sipping fuel on long highway hauls. I would definitely consider something like that as a daily driver and a shop truck.
Agreed Johnny V – the VOLT was a marvel of efficiency – especially in gasoline mode during the winter time… The GEN 2 versions (2016-2019) would have even been superior except GM took the dopey advice to make the heater operate electrically FIRST and then only utilize engine JACKET heat when it was about to discard the heat entirely via thermostat opening.
But the GEN 1 Volts (2011-2015 models), as well as the Caddy ELR (2014, 2016) were marvels of efficiency during the winter – if driven intelligently.
Way to go Wyoming
Too much too soon maybe Hybrid first
I would like to see this concept.
I will never automatically be against a regular cab, short bed, RWD pick-up.
If they’re trying to gauge interest in the concept, where are they showing it?
Inefficient, yet, stored solar is the cheapest energy on earth. And electricity is 10% the cost of gasoline.
Low loss lines to the cold north from the southwest is still cheaper than fossil or nuclear.
Will the dash (of this or ANY other electric vehicle) have real buttons, instead of an over-reliance on touch screens? For some reason, the automakers seem to believe that a vehicle with an electric drive train should be one without real buttons that drivers can easily use without taking their eyes from the road.
If GM can put a truck like this in us market, ev, awd, affordable, it will sell as fast as they can produce it.