GM’s New Electric Motors Will Provide the Hummer EV With 1,000 HP
Get ready for GM’s new electric line.
General Motors unveiled three new electric motors which will be used to power its new generation of electric vehicles (EVs), including the upcoming Hummer EV, a press statement reveals.
The series of new motors form part of its Ultium series, which sees it push out its latest EVs using updated technologies to keep up with the fast-moving sector. The company recently had to recall every electric Chevy Bolt ever built, as a defect in the vehicle was found that could cause it to spontaneously catch fire. It will hope that its new motors will regain consumer trust after that debacle.
The new series is made up of a 180-kilowatt front-drive motor, a 255-kW rear- and front-drive motor, and a 62-kW all-wheel drive-assist motor. “All three motors were calibrated in-house to ensure the highest level of performance in Ultium-based EVs,” GM explained in its release.
GM’s new motors will hit the road with the Hummer EV this year
GM points out that the 180-kW and 255-kW motors are permanent magnet motors, designed in order to reduce the company’s reliance on rare earth materials, whose mining is typically detrimental to the environment. The 62-kW motor, meanwhile, is an induction motor — which also likely means it doesn’t have to rely on rare earth metals as it is magnet-free. GM says that up to three electric motors can be used in one EV in different configurations. The Hummer EV, for example, will have three 255-kW motors, giving it 1,000 horsepower. GM revealed little in the way of torque and power density specifications regarding its new motors, though it says they will deliver “excellent” performance, “enabling a wide spectrum of vehicle types, from performance cars to work trucks.”
GM also revealed its new Ultium Drive motor controller, thanks to 11,000 GM product development team members that are working in software development, the company said. It sees these software developers as “a critical pillar of GM’s vision of an all-electric future,” and it projects that the team will continue to grow as GM transitions to electric vehicles. The new motor control system is “key to serving the propulsion needs of various vehicle types with a minimal set of components,” the company explained in its statement. GM recently bolstered its plans to go electric by striking a deal to develop one of the U.S.’s first lithium mines. The company said the first of its new all-electric motors EV motors will be fitted in the Hummer EV, which will be released later this year.
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