autoevolution
 

Did General Motors Really Just Leak One of Its Next Electric Crossovers?

General Motors CEO Mary Barra held a presentation yesterday at the Barclays Global Automotive Conference in which she focused on her company's plans for battery-powered vehicles.
GM electric CUV 1 photo
Photo: GM
As we've already said, these include two electric crossovers by 2020 and 18 various other models by 2023. Having the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt platform at their disposal, a small SUV was the next logical step considering all the other brands are either starting their electric ranges with one (see Mercedes-Benz) or are getting ready to release one soon (Tesla, Nissan).

The SUV/crossover market has been brimming with activity lately, and it looks like having their diesel or gasoline engines (or hybrid systems) replaced with electric motors does nothing to curb their appeal to the public, which justifies the manufacturers' decision to pursue this path.

Exterior design isn't necessarily Bolt's strongest point, but its long list of qualities managed to make the hatchback a success. A crossover with the same powertrain and features would probably sell much better, provided General Motors is serious about it and builds more than 30,000 of them a year.

The document which included details from Mary Barra's presentation casually includes the picture of a crossover wearing no badges and bearing no other explanation. Could GM be this careless and leak the design already? Is this a new form of a teaser where they show you the entire car but they don't say whether we're looking at the real thing or not?

Well, we think it might be, and the reason for that is the recent admittance that one of these two CUVs coming over the next two years is going to be launched under the Buick brand. Looking at the picture, it would definitely suit the design better than the bowtie logo. At the same time, we wouldn't be surprised if the same car were sold with slightly different front and rear as a Chevrolet as well, thus fulfilling the two models by 2020 prophecy in one go.

It will be interesting to see whether General Motors manages to keep the same range in their crossover as in the Bolt - 238 miles or 383 kilometers - considering it'll be larger, heavier, and less aerodynamic but use the same 60 kWh battery pack. Whatever the case, GM has a good platform to build upon, and now we see it might have a much better-looking design in store for us as well.
If you liked the article, please follow us:  Google News icon Google News Youtube Instagram X (Twitter)
About the author: Vlad Mitrache
Vlad Mitrache profile photo

"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie)
Full profile

 

Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?

You will only receive our top stories