GM has revealed that it will reinvigorate its most successful EV to date, the Bolt EV.
This time it will be based on GM’s new Ultium EV platform, which will deliver several improvements, including faster charging speeds and simplicity in manufacturing.
“Our customers love today’s Bolt,” CEO Mary Barrawith told the Detroit News.
“It has been delivering record sales and some of the highest customer satisfaction and loyalty scores in the industry. It’s also an important source of conquest sales for the company and for Chevrolet. We will keep the momentum going by delivering a new Bolt.”
Specifications of the new Bolt are yet to be released, but will include an upgraded battery, improved range and powertrain options.
Along with the newly announced upcoming Bolt, GM is also planning on launching six new EVs which it hopes will deliver on the company’s 100,000 EV target for the rest of the year. These include:
- Chevrolet Silverado EV
- Chevrolet Blazer EV
- Chevrolet Equinox EV
- Chevrolet Silverado EV RST First Edition
- Brighdrop Zevo 400
- Cadillac Celestiq
This comes just months after Barra, surprisingly stated that the Bolt production would be ceased later this year:
During Q1 2023, GM sold 19,700 of the Chevrolet Bolt EV & EUV while Q2 saw 13,959 of these with customers. This brings a total sales of 33,000 Chevy Bolt EV and EUVs.
In the US, the Chevrolet Bolt currently starts at $US27,495, so few EVs are coming close to that price point. It’s been previously powered by a 147 kW motor.
Paired with a 65 kWh battery pack, it can deliver up to 417 km of range on the EPA cycle. The EPA cycle delivers closer to real-world driving range than compared to the WLTP cycle figures used in Australia.
With the affordability that GM introduced back in 2017 with the first generation, it made more people get behind the wheel of an EV. Now with this reinvigoration of the Ultium-based Bolt, it would continue on that, making EVs and cleaner transport accessible for many more.
Riz is the founder of carloop based in Melbourne, specialising in Australian EV data, insight reports and trends. He is a mechanical engineer who spent the first 7 years of his career building transport infrastructure before starting carloop. He has a passion for cars, particularly EVs and wants to help reduce transport emissions in Australia. He currently drives a red Tesla Model 3.