Shakespeare can wax poetic about the inherent worth of a name, but in the world of automotive branding, the right name can make all the difference. To that end, GM has rolled out a variety of new brandnames as part of a longterm strategy to fully electrify its light duty vehicle lineup by 2035. Funny enough, one of those names, specifically the PowerShift charger, has ties to an absolutely disastrous Ford transmission.
For those that may be unaware, the GM PowerShift charger was first introduced with the 2025 Chevy Blazer EV, and offers customers Level 2 EV charging with built-in vehicle-to-home (V2H) capabilities. Essentially, the charger enables users to not only top off their EV with electrons, but also redirect that energy from the EV battery pack back to their home to power things like lights and appliances in the event of a blackout.
It’s a useful feature, and while the V2H functionality is great, the PowerShift brand name could be a bit more controversial due to the fact that Ford once used the same name for a notoriously flawed transmission system.
As reported by our sister publication, Ford Authority, Ford’s PowerShift dual-clutch automatic transmission is infamous for its persistent reliability issues. Found in models like the 2011 through 2016 Fiesta and 2012 and 2016 Focus, the PowerShift was marketed as offering the efficiency of a manual with the ease of an automatic. Instead, many owners reported jerky shifting, acceleration delays, and sometimes, outright failures. The fallout included class-action lawsuits, extended warranties, vehicle buy-backs, and legal challenges.
Naturally, some might question GM’s use of the PowerShift name, despite the fact that the EV charging system is completely different from the Ford transmission of the same name.
Nevertheless, the PowerShift charger is now listed as compatible with a growing number of GM EVs, including the 2025 Cadillac Lyriq and 2025 Chevy Equinox EV. Pricing is set at $1,699. Whether or not GM EV customers will draw a connection to Ford remains to be seen.
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“Whether or not GM EV customers will draw a connection to Ford remains to be seen”
The “PowerShift” name has been used in tractors and heavy equipment since at least the 1960’s. Only problem is if someone else i.e. Ford has it trademarked for automotive use,
Yup. I’ve operated many John Deere tractors with a 15 or 19 speed power shift transmission.
Maybe Ford should call theirs L87.
GM must change it to PowerFlow.
And do we care. No
I remember talking to our transmission guys about the Ford PowerShift transmission after reading about it in an SAE publication. The objective being to see if that type of transmission had any potential applications for our small cars at GM and I was aware our guys had looked at similar dry, dual clutch concepts. The PT guys said they researched design concepts and they didn’t believe it could meet our power delivery (drivability) and durability requirements at that time. I just figured either Ford figured it out somehow or we had higher standards. Turns out it was the latter.
Back then our transmission and EEC guys were among the very best in the business. I had a huge amount of respect for them.
Very fitting since all EV vehicles for GM have been a disaster for their sales.