General Motors announces intent to be all-electric by 2035
The new, all-electric Hummer is part of GM’s effort to decarbonize its car fleet, and will be available sometime within the next 12 months. Photo courtesy: GMC.
General Motors Goes All-Electric
It’s difficult not to be cynical about major automakers announcing transitions to cleaner models and policies. For all of the good will involved in decarbonizing the commute, there’s a sense that brands are making their own decisions before they’re forced to at a national level.
And it’s tough to blame them. Electric vehicles aren’t totally cool — at least not yet. But they’re starting to be, which means that it may well be best to move with the times before they get left behind.
General Motors seems to have embraced that attitude, declaring that it won’t sell any gas powered or hybrid vehicles by 2035 — and will be zero-emissions only by that time.
It’s a bold statement for a company that specializes in gas-guzzling pickup trucks and SUVs. It’s also a natural response, not-so-coincidentally announced right after President Joe Biden signed an executive order focused on a more clean environment.
That Biden is more green-focused than his predecessor hasn’t come as a surprise to automakers; they've been preparing for that actuality for a few months.
“When Joe Biden gets elected, your world will turn upside down. You’ve got to be at the table or else this thing gets jammed down your throat,” Representative Debbie Dingell said to automakers in 2020.
The future of American cars
This declaration, then, is of little surprise. But it could well shake up American cars going forward. The advantage GM might have is its corner on the pickup truck market. Aside from the Ford F-150 — which has an electric version arriving sometime in 2023 — Chevy and GMC trucks both made the top 10 best selling cars in the U.S. in 2019.
Funnily enough, both of those automakers have electric models coming at some point in the near future. GMC is reviving its Hummer brand for an eye-wateringly expensive, but admittedly cool, all-electric truck. An electric Chevy is due within the next two years, and will use the same battery as the Hummer, but presumably for a few cents cheaper. Whether they pan out remains to be seen, but it’s clear that GM has seen an opportunity to exploit.
Meanwhile, numerous reports suggest that there are at least 12 new EVs coming from the mass automaker by 2023 — representing a serious commitment to the decarbonization process.
The reviews aren’t in yet, but one thing is becoming clear: times are changing in the EV world.
By: Tom Hindle
Borrow is an electric vehicle subscription company with one goal: to make driving an EV as simple and accessible as possible. Borrow is the only electric vehicle subscription service of its kind with a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and decarbonizing the everyday drive.