After having won with monetary satisfaction, given the 214 million dollars of the order, the tender launched by the US Army for the supply of 649 units of the Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV) GM Defense now focuses on an 'electric' extension of the program .
Taking advantage of the importance of the investments made in terms of electric models, including the brand new Hummer, General Motors has in fact given a mandate to the subsidiary GM Defense - which four years ago marked the return of the Detroit giant in the military sector - to aim for another of the objectives indicated as priorities by the Pentagon, the transition to electric vehicles in gray-green.
According to Steve duMont, president of GM Defense, the company could also exploit for this second program the value of that "speed in deliveries that we are already providing and it is a fundamental and instrumental part of the value we bring to Defense and the Government", referring evidently due to the fact that the delivery of the first ISVs to the army took place within 120 days from the award of the contract.
In addition, parent company General Motors has pledged to invest $ 35 billion by 2025 in electric and autonomous vehicles, including the construction of two new battery plants, a financial and engineering commitment that few defense companies would be able to make. .
After starting the first trials in the autumn of 2020 with an ISV specimen - in which the Duramax turbodiesel engine was replaced with an electric Crate unit, i.e. the series intended for racing vehicle manufacturers - GM Defense will take the chassis of the All-electric Hummer, in the variant intended for commercial vehicles that will be unveiled next year, and will completely redesign it to meet the needs of the army.
Among the elements of the Pentagon's specifications - it must be reiterated - there is not only the reduction of CO2 emissions, as the Biden administration aims to do, but there are also important tactical advantages, first of all silence and reduced emissions. of heat to limit the possibility of sighting the vehicle through infrared viewers. "Most pointing systems still use infrared tracking devices - explained demons - We are starting to see a lot of attention on the tactical advantages of electrification".
