LeBron James To Announce Hummer's Return At Super Bowl LIV

Jan. 12, 2020 7:10 AM ET by Aaron Brzozowski / 6 Comments

The militant SUV will be resurrected with a whole new attitude.

GM's legendary Hummer brand is coming back, baby, although not with the sort of blocky, militant SUV you might be expecting. Instead, the nameplate will adorn a battery-electric pickup truck that will be sold through North American GMC dealers alongside the GMC Sierra 1500 and the rest of the lineup, starting as soon as early 2022.

This is not the first we're hearing about a Hummer-branded electric GM pickup, of course; last year, a report suggested that the iconic "Hummer" name was under consideration for a battery-electric GM truck. But now, the prospect seems more certain than ever, with unnamed sources telling The Wall Street Journal that GM is even planning on advertising Hummer's return with LeBron James during this year's Super Bowl.

According to the Journal's sources, the GMC Hummer will most likely be sold in limited numbers as a rugged off-road truck model, but the Hummer name isn't expected to reestablish itself as a full-fledged sub-brand with a portfolio of products.

The irony of Hummer - a symbol of American gas-guzzling excess - coming back as an eco-friendly zero-emissions vehicle has been well noted, but more interesting is the idea that GM, like Ford with the Mustang Mach-E, is leaning so heavily on one of its most recognizable, iconic nameplates to sell EVs. But where many diehard Mustang fans cried foul over Ford's reappropriation of the Mustang name, we don't anticipate such backlash over the Hummer's resurrection.

Needless to say, the 2023 GMC Hummer will not be General Motors' direct competitor to Ford's forthcoming F-150 Electric; that will call for a more mainstream, less off-road-focused electric pickup. But the idea of a battery-electric off-roader is a sound one for multiple reasons, including packaging. Compared to internal combustion engines, electric drive motors are small and easy to stuff just about anywhere, giving engineers the flexibility to shorten overhangs and improve approach and departure angles.

The 2023 GMC Hummer is just one of numerous electric trucks expected in the mid-term future, with other models including the Ford F-150 Electric, Rivian R1T, Tesla Cybertruck, Bollinger B2, and LMC Endurance.

LeBron James To Announce Hummer's Return At Super Bowl LIV

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LeBron James To Announce Hummer's Return At Super Bowl LIV

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