The resurrection of the Hummer brand as GMC's high-end EV sub-brand appears to be a great business idea and, considering recent news, it seems to have surpassed all expectations.
Demand for both models - the GMC Hummer EV Pickup and the GMC Hummer EV SUV - is strong, which ppromptedthe company to close reservations after exceeding 90,000 (backed by $100 refundable deposits).
That's a big number, especially compared to the 783 units delivered so far (between December 2021 and September 2022).
Even considering a fast ramp-up, wait times must be pretty long for new orders. According to GM Authority, Buick and GMC Global Vice President Duncan Aldred said that the electric Hummers are "sold out for two years or more.”
That's actually more than we thought. Assuming that all reservations turn into orders, we are talking about 45,000 per year. It's hard to say whether GM is able to produce so many electric Hummers in 2023.
GM Authority reports that over roughly one year, the company produced 2,570 GMC Hummer EV pickup trucks.
The good news is that production is ramping up and in September reached a new record level of 750. If GM would be able to maintain such a rate, then it would be 9,000 annually. Not bad, but still not enough to satisfy demand, we guess.
However, in November/December, the GM Factory Zero plant in Michigan will pause production for several weeks to handle upgrades necessary for the upcoming Chevrolet Silverado EV production.
The production of lithium-ion batteries by Ultium Cells in Ohio already started earlier this year to support the launch of new EVs from GM, so at least this bottleneck should gradually fade.
By the way, the same source reports that the cumulative production of the Cadillac Lyriq (between March and September) amounted to 1,715. All of the EVs mentioned (GMC Hummer EVs, Chevrolet Silverado EV and Cadillac Lyriq) are based on GM's latest Ultium platform, which soon will be used also in many other models, including Chevrolet Equinox EV and Chevrolet Blazer EV.
