Likewise, GM isn’t worried that Ford entered the market first, said Michael MacPhee, director of Chevy truck marketing.
“We don’t have any hubris as it relates to the competition available for buyers, and that’s why we’ve put so much emphasis and effort on making sure this is the absolute best truck for our buyers,” MacPhee said. “That’s why we did the ground-up, fresh, clean-sheet approach. And that’s why we put it with the Ultium technology. That’s what’s going to separate us from some of the more mainstream competition.”
Chevy was intentional about starting the Silverado EV from scratch, rather than adapting the gasoline-powered model, MacPhee said. The result is a GM-estimated 400 miles of range — vs., at most, 320 for the Lightning — while also offering 10,000 pounds of towing capability, four-wheel steering and a midgate that increases cargo capacity.
“At the essence of every Silverado EV reservation holder is a customer who wants the truck to do truck things,” MacPhee said. “And that’s important for us because no matter what we do, there’s Silverado hardworking DNA put into all of our full-size pickups.”
The Sierra EV will have similar range and capabilities as the Silverado EV when it debuts. In a statement, a GMC spokesman said, “We are confident that customers will be thrilled with GMC Sierra EV’s unique mix of distinct bold styling, purposeful technology, luxurious appointments and next-level truck capability.”
Chevy has more than 170,000 reservation holders for the Silverado EV, with more than half of them new to GM, MacPhee said. Fewer than 40 percent currently have a pickup, and they are more concentrated on the U.S. coasts, slightly younger and more affluent than today’s Silverado buyers.
“That’s going to be an opportunity for us to talk to a new customer versus our traditional truck buyer,” he said. “That’s really the big difference.”
