U.S. President Joe Biden has successfully pushed through his plan for U.S. infrastructure. It will sprinkle billions on a number of sectors, with the goal of repairing bridges, improving the rail network, investing in airport locations… and electrification of the transportation sector.
That last goal has of course been a longstanding one of the Democrat president.
What caught our attention this week, however, was the president's visit to General Motors’ Factory Zero plant in Detroit, which makes electric vehicles. He used the opportunity to argue that the $7.5 billion in new charger legislation will help the U.S. improve its balance sheet. Currently, the U.S. market share of plug-in electric model sales is one-third the size of the Chinese electric market.
“China got way ahead of us,” the president said bluntly.
Questions of politics aside, we were interested particularly to see the U.S. president, an avowed car-lover who owns a cherished 1967 Chevrolet Corvette, take a short spin in a GMC Hummer EV.
The president climbed into the vehicle with a Secret Service agent, then accelerated sharply, causing the wheels to spin. Stopping near the journalists and the delegation on hand for the photo op, he asked, “Anybody want to get in the back? On the roof?” He added, “It's three times as heavy as my Corvette, but three times as fast.”
“This sucker’s something else,” he concluded, providing a priceless bit of free advertising for GM.
Listening to the clip, we also hear the president talk about the turning radius. He alludes as well to the crab walk, a feature that allows the Hummer EV to move diagonally. In fact, you can see the rear directional wheels as it makes its U-turn.
The Hummer will be available commercially starting next year. It will certainly be interesting to see on the road, but given the high price tag attached to the SUV, how often it’s actually seen on the road is anyone’s guess.