Normal Motors produces numerous nice concepts. Quite a lot of them do not attain manufacturing. A kind of concepts, reportedly, was a small and presumably inexpensive electrical pickup to tackle the Ford Maverick. Normal Motors reportedly canceled plans for that truck final yr whereas ratcheting again its EV plans. We do not know what an electrical Ford Maverick rival pickup would seem like from Chevrolet. It by no means reached the full-on idea/reveal stage. However judging from a design sketch revealed by the Normal Motors Design web page on Instagram, it may have been actually enjoyable.
This Appears Like a Small, Cool Electrical Pickup Chevy May Construct
GM Design printed its “blue-sky blue truck sketches” meant to discover “how development and supplies can form the way forward for truck design.” There isn’t any proof the sketch had something to do with the reportedly canceled electrical pickup. However it actually appears to be like like a small Chevy pickup, borrowing design clues from the Silverado and Colorado — because the aforementioned truck most likely would have. An extended wheelbase with quick overhangs and the dearth of a grille counsel GM was envisioning the “way forward for truck design” as electrical.
The ginormous tires and wheels within the drawing most likely would not have made it to manufacturing. The unnatural sizing is often a design flourish for artist renderings. And even with its giant off-road vans, GM sometimes avoids the tire-size extremes embraced by Ford and Jeep.
However It is Arduous to See Chevy Revisiting a Ford Maverick Rival Quickly
GM embraced the EV pivot more durable than its Large Three rivals, growing the Ultium platform and ambitiously promising to be all-electric by 2035. The reported axing of this pickup was a response to a scarcity of demand and the necessity to pivot the lineup towards plug-in hybrids. This was all earlier than the prognosis worsened dramatically for EVs in the course of the Trump administration. By no means say by no means. However it’s laborious to see GM having the latitude to revisit that call anytime quickly.
TopSpeed’s Take
A pint-sized, inexpensive Chevy electrical truck to tackle the Maverick can be far more enjoyable than a Chevy Equinox EV. However extra individuals are out there for a crossover just like the Equinox EV. Even beneath ultimate circumstances, Chevy most likely would have struggled to nail down the mix of functionality and value level consumers can be on the lookout for with this car.
It is value noting that GM wasn’t alone on this calculation. Nissan reportedly canceled the same thought for an electrical truck. Toyota’s superior EPU idea might arrive as a hybrid. And the Ram Rampage, confirmed by the UAW for 2027, will probably be a combustion pickup.