Hummer EV Production Is Slow, It Takes Dozens Of Years To Fulfill All Orders

Hummer EV production is very slow due to the scarcity of batteries. (photo: twitter @GMC)

JAKARTA - Months after General Motors began shipping its first Hummer EV, The Wall Street Journal reports that the company reportedly only produces about 12 large electric trucks a day.

This is certainly a very slow pace of production, even compared to how many electric trucks other automakers make. According to the WSJ, Ford even produces around 150 F-150 Lightings model trucks per day. Rivian's Q1 production figures show that they make trucks between 30 and 40 EVs per day.

Recently, GM announced that it was raising the price of the Hummer EV by $6,250, citing "higher prices for parts, technology, and logistics," according to CNBC.

According to Chad Lyons, a spokesman for GM, currently, about 77.500 people have signed up to be on GM's Hummer EV waiting list. If the company continues to produce 12 trucks a day, it will take about 17 and a half years to meet the demands of everyone on the waiting list.

Unsurprisingly, it wants to take its toll, Lyons told The Verge, that GM plans to "drastically increase" its production levels later this year. The WSJ also mentions this thanks to the fact that the company's battery factory in Ohio is going online. Currently, GM also has another battery factory in the works. The implication was that production of the Hummer was slow because GM had to get batteries from LG, which worked with them to make the factory.

While GM would benefit from vertical integration, LG doesn't have a reputation for being sloppy when it comes to supplying batteries. This is the same company that produced and paid for tens of thousands of new battery packs during the Chevy Bolt recall.

To be fair, the Hummer EV's battery pack, which is heavier than the overall weight of the Honda Civic, is believed to have far more cells than the Bolt.

Manufacturing vehicles has been very difficult for everyone in recent years, with chip shortages causing delays, production slowdowns, and even vehicles being shipped out of factories with missing features.

However, it's a little worrisome to hear that GM is moving so slowly when it comes to producing the Hummer EV. The company announced a plethora of EVs to come, including another truck, the Silverado EV, two SUVs, and an entirely new electric car brand. It also works on electric delivery vans. Some of these projects rely on the same Ultium battery pack design as the Hummer.