On Thursday, General Motors revealed its latest electric vehicle destined for market in two years, the 2024 GMC Sierra electric light-duty pickup.
GMC also opened the reservation bank for the pickup to the public. But days earlier, GMC offered owners of its luxury Denali trim-line vehicles an invitation to make the first reservations for the Sierra 1 Limited Edition, which starts at $107,000. The reservation fee is a refundable $100.
“On Hummer (EV), we got to 90,000 and basically closed the order bank,” said Duncan Aldred, vice president of global Buick and GMC. “We’re going to try a different tactic and invite Denali owners for a private pre-access to reserve (a Sierra EV) and then public reservations going up to a limited number. This is just trying to do different things and reward Denali owners and customers.”
Aldred, who made his comments to media at an event Oct. 13, stopped short of revealing the number of the Sierra 1 Limited Edition, saying it “won’t be in the tens of thousands” but there is expected demand for it despite the hefty price tag. Three years ago, when GMC was planning the 2022 GMC Hummer EV, there were few $100,000 vehicles out there, but that’s changed, Aldred said.
“There’s been a very rapid increase in average vehicle prices and an even quicker rise at the top end,” he said.
Challenging for leadership
The Sierra EV will offer more than 400 miles in range, and will have nearly 11 feet in total bed space when the back seats are down. It can charge 100 miles in 10 minutes on a fast charger and its 10.2 kilowatt battery pack can power a home for 21 days, Aldred said.
GMC will lower the entry price for the Denali edition of the truck that will follow the first edition and offer the Sierra EV in multiple configurations. Aldred expects sales of the Denali version “will be in the tens of thousands.”
GMC will later offer an Elevation and AT4 off-road version of the Sierra EV in 2025. As those other editions come to market, the starting price will come down to about $50,000 in 2025, Aldred said. He said GMC’s ability to offer the pickup in various configurations, including different range options, and the brand’s reputation for selling premium trucks, give him confidence that GMC will be a leader, “if not the leader,” of retail sales for EV pickups.
“We’ll be challenging on taking a leadership position in the retail market because we’ll offer everything from the heart of the market around $50,000 right up to the top end of the market,” Aldred said, noting that the average transaction price for a gasoline-powered Sierra is currently about $65,000.
Aldred said the heavy-duty Sierra pickups will be the last to go electric, “but we will see it in the next decade.”
Hummer’s draw
The Sierra EV, similar to its sister vehicle in Chevrolet − the 2024 Silverado EV − is important for GM because pickups and big SUVs yield fat profits. If GM is to meet its goal to transition to a full zero-emissions lineup across all its brands by 2035, having successful sales in electric pickups is critical to the bottom line.
Aldred views the Hummer as drawing in more customers to the Sierra. The Hummer, which is priced in the $80,000 to $120,000 range, is a specialty vehicle that targets a different buyer from the Sierra EV, Aldred said.
“Seventy-five percent of Hummer drivers are new to GMC,” Aldred said. “Hummer is a super truck, it does everything and goes anywhere. It’s attracting a whole new customer base to GMC. I think (Sierra) will be more the traditional truck buyer who wants the best truck.”
But Aldred said the Sierra EV will be able to “crab walk” like the Hummer pickup does. The Hummer’s CrabWalk Mode allows all four wheels to be turned in the same direction up to a 10-degree angle. When the driver steps on the throttle, the Hummer moves diagonally to shimmy out of tight spots.
GM builds the Hummer at Factory Zero in Detroit and Hamtramck. The Sierra will start off being built there and eventually also will be made at Orion Assembly in Orion Township.
Aldred said initial Hummer production has had a slow ramp-up, but “when we get to this vehicle (Sierra EV), our plan is to come out of the gate with more of a traditional launch volume type cadence.”
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Contact Jamie L. LaReau: jlareau@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @jlareauan.
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