GM invests $ 800 million to produce new BrightDrop electric vans in Canada

GM recently launched its new BrightDrop electric van to electrify delivery vehicles, and now the automaker has announced it is investing $ 800 million to produce new electric vans in Canada.

GM’s BrightDrop electric vans

Last week, General Motors announced BrightDrop, a new division and brand, which will deliver a “first-to-last-mile electrical product ecosystem” for logistics companies.

The flagship of the new brand is the BrightDrop EV600 electric van.

GM lists the features of the EV600 electric van:

• Powered by the Ultium battery system, the EV600 is designed to have an estimated range of up to 250 miles on a full charge ¹.
• Maximum charge rate of up to 170km of EV range per hour via 120kW DC fast charge.
• Over 600 cubic feet of cargo space.
• Available at a GVWR of less than 10,000 pounds.
• Main safety features of the segment
  • Standard safety features2 include: Front and Rear Park Assist, Automatic Emergency Braking, Forward Collision Warning, Tracking Distance Indicator, Front Pedestrian Braking, Hold Assist lane departure warning system, IntelliBeam automatic high beams and HD rear vision camera.
  • Other available safety and driver assistance functions include: rear cross traffic braking, dead zone steering assist, reverse automatic braking, HD panoramic vision, alert rear pedestrian, improved automatic emergency braking, among others.
• Cargo area security system with motion sensors to help keep cargo safe
• A 13.4-inch diagonal color infotainment screen.
• Front sliding sliding doors, wide cab gangways and a large auto-opening cargo partition door all help to optimize operator efficiency.

GM invests in electric vehicle production in Canada

Today, GM announced that it is investing C $ 1 billion (~ US $ 800 million) to convert its CAMI manufacturing facility in Ingersoll, Ontario, to electric vehicle production for its new BrightDrop division.

The company announced in a press release:

“The investment of nearly $ 800 million (C $ 1 billion) will support GM’s timing to deliver the BrightDrop EV600 at the end of 2021. This investment will allow GM to convert CAMI into a first vehicle manufacturing plant. large-scale electrical delivery in Canada.

GM is currently using the plant to produce the Chevrolet Equinox SUV.

He plans to act quickly to start producing the new electric van by the end of the year and to begin deliveries to BrightDrop’s first customer, FedEx.

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