General Motors has been planning to transform its Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly facility in Detroit, Michigan into a dedicated production area for electric vehicles. This is almost exactly two years ago.
This transformation cost $2.2B and was finalized on Wednesday by GM. President Joe Biden visited GM to celebrate the achievement.
GM stated that converting an existing plant for EV production was about a third less expensive than building a new one. Not everything had to be rebuilt. Around 80% of the production process is common for EVs and their internal-combustion-powered counterparts, GM said.
Factory Zero will employ approximately 2,200 workers when fully operational.
President Joe Biden and the 2022 GMC Hummer Evo
The last internal-combustion-powered vehicles built at the site were the Cadillac CT6 and Chevrolet Impala. In recent months, pre-production models of the 2022 GMC Hummer EV started rolling off the lines. The first customers examples are expected to be in production in the next few days. Deliveries will begin before the end of this year.
Factory Zero is confirmed to be building the GMC Hummer E-V SUV 2024 GMC Hummer starting in 2023. It also plans to produce an electric Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck and the Cruise Origin self driving shuttle. The plant will likely also produce an electric GMC Sierra pickup that is related to the electric Silverado.
All of the vehicles will use GM’s Ultium dedicated EV platforms. The Hummer EV’s platform can support 200 kilowatt hours of battery storage and has a three-motor powertrain capable of 1,000 horsepower and 1,000 lbft.
More sites are planned to produce Ultium-based cars. This platform also powers the 2023 Cadillac Lyriq. Production of the electric crossover will begin at GM Spring Hill Manufacturing Plant in Spring Hill Tennessee next year.
