Electric Hummers, Sierras and Escalades May Be Built In Hamtramck

In the opaque world of predicting what automakers will be building in the future, a forecasting company called LMC Automotive thinks it has figured something out about what General Motors will make at its Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant. And those things are both big and electric.

After speaking with unnamed sources, LMC analyst Jeff Schuster told The Detroit News that he believes that electric versions of the Hummer, GMC Sierra and Cadillac Escalade are going to be built in Detroit in the coming years. First, apparently, will be new electric Hummer pick-ups and SUVs, coming in late 2021. That same year, an unnamed and unknown van will be built there. Then, in 2023, plug-in Sierras and Escalades will start rolling off the line. There have been rumors about these EVs – other than the van – for the past few years, which gives credence to Schuster’s sources

A GM spokesperson told me the company can’t comment on speculation about any future product. But, at the end of October, the company did announce a $7.7-billion investment in its U.S. manufacturing operations, including the “opportunity” to bring an all-new electric pickup truck Hamtramck and creating the “potential for future new products to be built in the city of Detroit.” $3 billion of the $7.7-million investment will go to Hamtramck to get ready upcoming EV work. The money and new product will also create 2,225 jobs, according to The Detroit News.

Alongside building around four million fossil-fuel vehicles since opening the plant in 1985, GM has built some of its plug-in vehicles in Hamtramck, including the Chevy Volt and Cadillac ELR. A year ago, it seemed like Hamtramck might have reached the end of its life. In November 2018, GM announced that the Hamtramck plant would be one of three that would be “unallocated” – i.e., potentially shut down, pending discussions. Those discussions ended up keeping the plant open and building the Cadillac CT6 and Chevrolet Impala there for now and through early 2020, with the EV stuff just hinted at. Hamtramck’s future was negotiated during a long strike by the UAW, leading to the October announcement.

That agreement also included GM saying it was, “moving forward with opportunities for future investments and job growth in Mahoning Valley in Ohio.”