• The Chevrolet Bolt will be back, on the Ultium platform.
During today's quarterly earnings call, General Motors President and CEO Mary Barra confirmed the return of the Chevrolet Bolt.
Recall that just this past April, GM announced the end of production of the current model, to the surprise of some. Sales of the product have risen sharply this year, making it the most affordable electric vehicle on the market.
And Bolt owners are full of praise for their ride. Said CEO Barra, “They love their Bolt.”
The reason GM gave for withdrawing the current Bolt is that it is based on an older electric architecture, this as the company prepares to launch all its new products on its new, more-efficient Ultium platform. However, there is a way to migrate the model to the new structure.
Mary Barra is enthusiastic about the Bolt, which has played a crucial role in attracting new customers to Chevrolet.
As a result, GM intends to bring the new Bolt to market quickly and more cost-effectively, taking advantage of the technological advances of the Ultium platform. It's not yet clear when the company will introduce the new generation; the current model debuted for 2022.
Next year, Chevrolet will debut three new electric models: the Silverado EV pickup, and the Equinox EV and Blazer EV SUVs. We can expect the Bolt to follow, perhaps as early as 2025.
Recall that the Bolt made its debut in 2017 as the first mass-market vehicle offering a longer range (nearly 400 km). The Tesla Model 3 followed and, although more expensive, it became the most popular. Nevertheless, the Bolt has made good progress over the last six years, particularly since the arrival of the second generation, which has been accompanied by substantial price reductions.
We'll be keeping a close eye on this, especially given that affordable electric vehicles are still a rarity on the market.
