GM hopes all-electric Hummer "super truck" will sway electric vehicle critics: "Huge turning point"
The Hummer is back, and leaving its 10-mile-per-gallon legacy in the dust. The new 1,000-horsepower monster is all electric.
And as GM touts its new "super truck" as a potential turning point for the automotive industry, demand for the vehicle is surging — despite a price tag topping six figures.
The company already has 65,000 reservations for its electric Hummer, higher than initial expectations. Prices start at about $110,000 — but Ingo Hagemann, who lives in Texas, was one of the first to get the 2022 GMC Hummer EV anyway.
"I spent about $1,300-1,400 a month in gas, and it's just very high. It's a small mortgage payment," he said.
For Hagemann, who already has an old military Humvee, the electric version is "just the next step. You know it's the future."
The Gulf War made the Humvee a household name, and 30 years ago, Arnold Schwarzenegger used his star power to help turn it into an unapologetic SUV that could go just about anywhere. GM added the H2 and smaller H3 models before surging gas prices and the Great Recession halted production.
Duncan Aldred, global vice president for GM's Buick and GMC brands, said the Hummer EV "opens pretty much everybody's eyes" to electric vehicles, "including potential EV non-believers."
"It's a huge turning point and a huge signal to the wider market at large," he said.
That signal is an electric future. The Ford F-150, which has been the nation's best selling vehicle for decades, has an all-electric F-150 Lightning debuting this spring.
Last month, Cadillac began production of its first electric SUV, the Lyriq; the new Rivian mid-sized pickup won MotorTrend's 2022 truck of the year award; and dozens of other new EVs will hit the streets over the next few years.
"We're coming to the point soon where driving an electric car is the only financially sensible thing to do," CNET editor Brian Cooley said.
"The total cost of ownership of an electric car is close to eclipsing a combustion engine car and consumers love to vote with their wallets," he said.
As gas prices climb, online searches for EVs are surging — up 173% last month — with 55% of gas-powered car owners saying they are considering going electric, according to cars.com.
CBS News correspondent Kris Van Cleave took the Hummer for a test drive on a closed court outside Phoenix. He was joined by Hummer engineer Kirsten Hanson, who believes this is the EV to silence critics.
"Electricity is the future, and if they can't see how cool 1,000 horsepower and three electric motors are, then I can't help them," Hanson said.
Among those ordering the Hummer EV, 70% are new to electrics, including Hagemann. He is unapologetically plugging into a future free from guzzling gas.
"I don't see a reason to go back," he said.
