General Motors has set a new standard in the looming EV pickup competition, by giving the upcoming Silverado EV Work Truck (WT) an industry-topping maximum range.
On a full charge, the automaker’s new Silverado EV WT for fleet customers will have an EPA-estimated range of 450 miles, which is an increase from a prior estimate of 400 miles.
That would be a 100 mile increase over the maximum range of Rivian’s (RIVN) R1T pickup, as well as Ford’s F-150 Lightning with the extended battery pack.
In a roundtable with reporters, Rory Harvey, GM’s incoming president of North America, said, “We think that is a real winning proposition. We previously announced that it was going to be a 400-mile target, so the team did just an exceptional job in terms of being able to extend that up to 450 miles.”
The Work Truck series will not be sold to regular customers, at least initially, since it is intended for the company’s fleet customers. When it arrives this spring, the Silverado EV WT will offer the 450 mile version for $79,800, including shipping.
There will be a second Silverado WT model available with a 350 mile range available for $74,800, and a base version WT starting as low as $41,595 with delivery.
The first version available to consumers will will be the high-trim RST First Edition, arriving in the fall at a starting price of $106,695 including delivery.
The update on the status of the Silverado EV WT comes just after Tesla held its annual shareholder meeting, at which CEO Elon Musk revealed that the company will begin offering “production Cybertrucks” later this year.
When Tesla had announced the Cybertruck in 2019, it had noted a $39,900 base version would be made available, as well as a high-end tri-motor version which would cost $69,900. However more recently, Musk has said those prices are outdated, and inflation and “other issues’ will determine the new MSRP of the trucks.
The Silverado WT meanwhile will likely be priced lower, due to a lack of more luxurious features included in consumer models, such as larger touchscreens, air suspension, supercruise, and greater towing capability. GM believes a more barebones suite of features is exactly what commercial operators want.
Harvey said, “When you look at that range, particularly in respect to the work truck which is predominantly a fleet vehicle, we believe that gives us a competitive advantage in terms of those fleet customers.”
The Silverado EV will be only one of three big releases GM has slated for this year. Also on the way are the Chevrolet Blazer EV, and the Equinox EV, which GM has said will have a base price of around $30,000. Current company targets are for the production of 400,000 EVs by the middle of 2024, and for total capacity to increase to 1 million EVs by 2025.
Although Reuters recently released a report in conjunction with research firm AutoForecast Solutions, which predicted the staggered ramp up planned for GM’s three battery plants in North America will limit the automaker to only 60 percent of its estimates, GM has stood by its forecast.
Jim Cain, a GM spokesman, was quoted by Reuters as saying, “We have not changed our targets.”
