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GMC Hummer EV First Drive Review | True supertruck, for better and for worse

Right from the start, the 2022 GMC Hummer EV has been advertised with superlatives, mostly in reference to its specifications. GMC has even called it a "supertruck" in its own materials. And while we've received a taste of the truck before, only now have we finally got our hands on the production-spec model, and had the opportunity to drive it both off-road and on the street. What we've found is that the Hummer EV is undoubtedly a supertruck, much the same way that a Ferrari or a Lamborghini is a supercar. It totally delivers on its incredible capabilities, but there are compromises. And they're worth being aware of before plunking down the more than $100,000 a first-year Hummer will run you. That six-figure truck is the version we tested, the Edition 1, which actually rings in at $112,595. It's the only version in production for now, with lower trims coming in the next couple years. It's sold out, but many of the features will be available on the next highest trim level, the EV 3X. Among those features are the three motors, torque vectoring, “Watts To Freedom” launch mode, four-wheel steering, removable glass roof panels, 35-inch tires, Super Cruise, power rear window and MultiPro tailgate. In other words, although you can literally no longer order an Edition 1, you can still order a Hummer EV with nearly the same specification. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. We'll start where most owners probably will: mashing the throttle. No one can resist seeing what 1,000 horsepower and 1,200 pound-feet of torque will feel like. It's even a tad more torque in Watts To Freedom mode, which preemptively runs the cooling system to enable the additional twist. That mode allows the Hummer to hit 60 mph in 3 seconds, and the drama is dialed up with visual, audible and haptic cues. But even without engaging launch mode, the Hummer EV impresses and delights with its acceleration. In addition to pinning you to the seat, the entire truck squats in an exaggerated fashion. It's absurd, especially considering the truck's curb weight that surpasses a truly astounding 9,000 pounds. ThatÂ’s several hundred pounds more than the heaviest GMC Sierra HD 3500 diesel dually. Of course, that weight, as well as the nature of electric motors, means the party starts to calm down as the speed increases. The weight is noticeable in other areas, too.

GM to sink over $900M into 4 plants, mostly for a new V8

FLINT, Mich. — General Motors says it will spend more than $900 million to update four factories, with the bulk going to an engine plant in Flint, Michigan, to build the next-generation V8 for big pickup trucks and SUVs. Factories in Rochester, New York; Defiance, Ohio; and Bay City, Michigan, also will see investments, some to make V8 engine components as well as parts for future electric vehicles, the company said Friday. The investments won't create any new jobs, but they will preserve about 2,400 hourly and salaried positions positions at the four sites, the company said. The investments “provide job security at these plants for years to come,” Gerald Johnson, GM's manufacturing chief, said in a statement. Much of the money, $579 million, will go to Flint Engine Operations for equipment to build the sixth-generation small-block V8 that will go into the next round of big pickup trucks and SUVs. The plant now employs about 700 people who also will keep making their current product, a diesel engine used in light trucks. GM, like other automakers, is facing stricter government fuel economy standards and pollution limits starting in the 2024 model year. New vehicles sold in the U.S. will have to average at least 40 miles per gallon of gasoline in 2026, up from about 28 mpg, under new Biden administration rules that undo a rollback of standards enacted under former President Donald Trump. That means the new V8 will have to get better mileage and pollute less than the current versions. Although GM wouldn't release details on the new engine, Johnson said during a news conference at the Flint plant that it would be more efficient than the current version. GM has a goal of selling only electric passenger vehicles by 2035, but Johnson said that's a dozen years out, a period when many customers will still want gas engines. “We know that has a horizon,” he said. “Between here and there, there are a lot of internal combustion customers that we don't want to lose,” he said. In addition to Flint, GM's engine components plant in Bay City, Michigan, will get $216 million to build camshafts and connecting rods, and to machine engine blocks and heads for the new V8 being built in Flint. The plant now employs about 425. The Defiance, Ohio, foundry will get $55 million to build a variety of block castings for the new V8. Included is $8 million for castings to support future electric vehicles, the company said. The plant has about 530 employees.

Huge, pricey trucks haul jobs and profits for the Detroit Three

DECATUR, Texas — Mickey McMaster is on his 12th pickup truck. The 61-year old farm equipment dealer in Decatur, Texas, two weeks ago treated himself to a 2019 GMC Denali for around $69,000 — a reward for long hours at work. "For me this is the Cadillac of trucks, it's a real luxury vehicle," McMaster said. "I've worked my way up to afford a truck like this and it shows that I've earned it." McMaster is the kind of customer General Motors Co is banking on as it plans to add 1,000 jobs at a plant in Flint, Michigan that will build a new generation of its largest pickups. Demand from Texas and other heartland states for big pick-ups is providing a lifeline to many workers the No. 1 U.S. automaker is laying off at plants elsewhere. The Detroit Three automakers and thousands of their U.S. workers are counting on customers like McMaster to keep buying bigger and more luxurious pickup trucks even if overall U.S. vehicle demand weakens this year, as most analysts predict. At Flint, GM will build a new generation of its heavy-duty Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierras, including luxury models that are some of the most profitable vehicles on the planet. GM, Ford Motor Co and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV's Ram division own the segment and are each doubling down with new or redesigned models launching this year. Sales of heavy-duty pickups in the United States have grown to more than 600,000 vehicles a year, up more than 20 percent since 2013, according to industry data. Prices for luxury models can easily top $70,000. GM on Tuesday celebrated the launch of a new generation of heavy-duty GMC and Chevrolet pickups at the assembly plant in Flint, Michigan, that is now building all such trucks for the company. At the same time that GM is laying off thousands of U.S. workers and planning to shutter five North American factories, Flint is hiring. The plant runs on three daily shifts, six days a week. As the new model's assembly system ramps up, the plant's capacity will increase by more than 25 percent, plant manager Mike Perez told Reuters. The Flint plant plans to add 1,000 workers, more than half of the 1,500 factory workers who have asked to transfer from plants GM has targeted for shutdown as part of CEO Mary Barra's restructuring plan. "We're bringing in 50 to 100 people every week," said Perez. Workers last week were still finishing the job of retooling the Flint factory to build the new heavy-duty trucks as part of a $1.5 billion investment project.