General Motors will bring the Hummer name back to market with an electric vehicle, ending a 10-year hiatus with the introduction of a low-volume 4×4 pickup to go on sale in 2022 as part of the GMC lineup.
The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that GM is working on an offering similar to Jeep’s Gladiator pickup, and at least initially, the paper says, the “Hummer” name revival will not extend beyond that model.
The choice to revive Hummer as GMC gives GM flexibility in selling what it projects to be a low-volume model without having to support an entire brand, which would require dealer and service network support, which could potentially prove to be both costly and even legally challenging, as holders of existing franchises would likely want a piece of the action.
GM’s choice to shutter the brand in the wake of bankruptcy and restructuring back in 2010 was met with resistance from franchise holders. At the time, Hummer’s image of gas-guzzling excess ran afoul of GM’s goals to produce affordable hybrid and electric vehicles for the masses.
GM wanted the Chevrolet Volt to be the public face of its future, rather than a V8-powered SUV.
Unconfirmed rumors of Hummer’s return have been circulating for quite some time. In June of last year, rumblings of an all-electric revival made headlines when GM president Mark Reuss professed his love for the discontinued brand.
While this report is far from official, we won’t have to wait long for hard confirmation, as Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James has been lined up to front the nameplate’s return in a Super Bowl commercial spot.
