The Hummer, former posterboy for gas guzzling SUVs, is to be relaunched this year with an all-electric battery powertrain producing 1,000hp and, get this, 11,500lb ft of torque. Yes, eleven thousand. Admittedly it seems this headline figure for the fourth-generation Hummer, which succeeds the H3 that went off sale in 2010, applies to the wheel (and not motor). But it means the heavyweight will be capable of sprinting from 0-60mph in three seconds dead. Hands up who saw that coming.
So far, we’ve only a 15-second preview video to go on, which does little more than confirm that the Hummer will be part of GMC’s ‘quiet revolution’ and the aforementioned stats. We’re also given a glimpse of the car’s front end, which is predictably butch and squared off, with what look to be active LEDs that join to form a light bar. The vertical slats, a clear nod to the old Hummer, separate letters that spell out the model’s name.
The car is set to make its official debut on May 20th before production begins at General Motors’ Detroit Hamtramck assembly plant. To promote the new Hummer, GMC has created a 30-second advert that’ll play during the Super Bowl – we’ll leave you to guess how much that slot cost – with NBA star Le Bron James included in the footage.
But while the news is likely to offend as many people as it excites (what with Hummers being famed for their big, thirsty engines), it does appear to be in line with other changes in the industry. Apparently by coincidence, fellow US car maker Lincoln has also revealed that it is going to produce an all-electric SUV in collaboration with Rivian, the American firm responsible for the 765hp R1S. It comes after Lincoln’s parent company, Ford, invested £386 million into the former start-up at the end of 2018.
So yes, it seems even the US is going electric. But rest assured big trucks are going nowhere.