Eons appear to have passed since General Motors was first rumored to develop an electric Corvette. During the 2021 Consumer Electronics Show, the biggest automaker of the Big Three in Detroit more or less confirmed that the inevitable will happen. Michael Simcoe, the vice president of global design at the Detroit-based automaker, is featured in the main pic in front of many electric vehicles, including a Corvette-like sport utility vehicle located between the GMC Hummer EV SUV and Cadillac Lyriq.
Subsequent rumors pointed at a Corvette-inspired sedan with all-electric propulsion due by 2025, with the Corvette-styled utility vehicle to follow suit. Closer to the present, back in September 2022, a sound development engineer confirmed that GM is currently developing brand-specific sounds for upcoming electric vehicles, including a yet-to-be-detailed electric ‘Vette.
Autoline Network, citing AutoForecast Solutions, adds fuel to the fire. “The Corvette EV will go into production in May 2026, less than four years from now.” The Grand River plant in Lansing, not the Bowling Green plant in Kentucky, will reportedly handle production. The cited publication also understands that General Motors will build an electric Buick SUV and an electric Cadillac sedan there, which seems feasible. Lansing Grand River is currently making the Chevrolet Camaro, Cadillac CT4, and CT5 on the Alpha platform. All three and the Alpha are due to be discontinued soon.
“We fully expect the electric ‘Vette to be an SUV in a move to expand the brand,” said Autoline Daily host Sean McElroy. He does have a point, given that a utility vehicle is more desirable and more profitable than a sedan. He also has a point, given the Buick-branded electric SUV that is reportedly joining the Chevrolet Corvette SUV at the Grand River plant in Lansing.
Most likely based on the Ultium-branded BEV3 vehicle architecture of the Cadillac Celestiq, the electric Corvette SUV is likely to produce more than 600 horsepower, considering the Corvette’s performance-oriented image. It remains to be seen if GM will use a two-motor setup like on the Celestiq or a three-motor layout like on the Hummer EV, which cranks out 1,000 hp.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?
Google News