GMC Hummer EV 2021: Price, interior, crab walk and more

The GMC Hummer EV Edition1 is reinventing one of the most controversial, and unique-looking, vehicles to have hit the road in the past 25 years. The original gasoline-powered Hummer split opinions, with some seeing it as a symbol of excess and an environmental nightmare, while others saw it as an incredible off-roader that would make Mad Max proud.

But that car was killed off in 2010, and the Hummer has experienced an all-electric rebirth. The Hummer EV Edition1 hit the roads last year, and comes with all the bells and whistles GMC could come up with. It's also a symbol of excess, and the size means it's possibly the least efficient EV around. But we still have great on- and off-road capabilities, a giant battery, and more tech than you can shake a stick at.

Here's everything you need to know about the GMC Hummer EV1, and the rest of the Hummer EVs set to arrive over the next couple of years.

GMC Hummer EV availability and price

Reservations for the top-of-the-line $105,595 Hummer EV Edition1 quickly sold out, and so far Hummer has no intention of selling any more. Those started rolling off the production line in December 2021 for anyone lucky (and wealthy) enough to have got their orders in early.

However, you can still reserve one of the subsequent models coming with a $100 deposit. 

Next is the EV3X for just under $100,000. It's slated to come out in the fall of 2022, will have a 350 mile range and about 800 hp. That will be followed by the EV2X for just under $90,000, and the EV2 for just under $80,000. Both come with 2 motors, have 625 hp, and a range of 300 miles. 

However, you'll have to be patient. The EV2X won't appear until 2023 and the EV2 arrives in 2024 — provided you opt for the Pickup model. The EV3x and EV2X SUV models won't arrive until Spring 2023, and both pack in 300 miles of range. The SUV EV2 arrives Spring 2024, and has just 250 miles of range.

GMC Hummer EV: Design and colors

Reservations for the top-of-the-line $105,595 Hummer EV Edition1 quickly sold out, and so far Hummer has no intention of selling any more. Those started rolling off the production line in December 2021 for anyone lucky (and wealthy) enough to have got their orders in early.

Next is the EV3X for just under $100,000. It's slated to come out in the early 2023, will have a 350 mile range and about 800 hp. That will be followed by the EV2X for just under $90,000, and the EV2 for just under $80,000. Both come with 2 motors, have 625 hp, and a range of 300 miles. 

However, you'll have to be patient. The EV2X won't appear until later 2023 and the EV2 arrives in 2024 — provided you opt for the Pickup model. The EV3x and EV2X SUV models won't arrive until Spring 2023, and both pack in 300 miles of range. The SUV EV2 arrives Spring 2024, and has just 250 miles of range. 

However those delivery estimates are based on you already having a reservation, since GMC has stopped taking new orders/

The black-and-white interior looks comfortable and has some interesting design touches, such as a driver's footrest in the shape of Neil Armstrong's spacesuit boot. Why? Because apparently the designers considered the Hummer EV a moonshot, get it?

Those with heavy duty hauling needs should note that the Hummer EV's truck bed is a bit small at about 5 feet in length.

A full-length pickup bed is usually about 6 and a half feet long, but you'll probably be able to get to a couple of e-bikes in the back of the EV Edition1.

To help you do so, the Hummer includes a fold-down, multi-step tailgate that makes it a lot easier to get gear in and out of the rear.

To help you do so, the Hummer includes a fold-down, multi-step tailgate that makes it a lot easier to get gear in and out of the rear.

All this sits on wagon wheel-sized standard 35-inch tires should you want to haul stuff across the plains.

And to give you that open country feeling, the Hummer EV's roof glass panels can be removed for open-air riding and then stashed in the front trunk or frunk. How cool is that?

GMC Hummer EV: Self-driving features and interior

When you're on the highway, the new Hummer will include what is the closest tech you'll get to a self-driving vehicle today — GM's Super Cruise hands-off feature, the only automaker to offer such technology.

You have to keep your eyes on the road with Super Cruise, but it works on over 200,000 miles of highways in the U.S. and Canada and can definitely reduce driver fatigue on long trips. (Tesla's Autopilot, in case you were wondering, is only supposed to be used with a least one hand resting on the wheel. The same goes for designs from the likes of Volvo and BMW.)

There's also room for Super Cruise to graduate to a 'Level 3' autonomous driving system. That means drivers would be able to take their attention of the road in some instances, though it's still a long way off being capable of getting around without any driver interaction. There's no timeline on when this might happen though.

To keep you informed of what's happening inside and out — and what's left of the truck's impressive 350-mile range — there's a 13.4-inch center touchscreen and a 12.3-inch gauge cluster.

The vehicle delivers nearly endless details on the state of the suspension system, power train, and other parts of the pickup on the big screens. Should you want more, it also works with Android Auto and Apple Carplay.

GMC Hummer EV: Range, performance and torque

The first version, the EV Edition1, will use three electric motors (one up front, two in the rear) that will generate 1,000 horsepower. It’s initially rated to deliver 11,500 lb-ft of torque but hasn’t talked about towing capacity. GMC is equipping the truck with a sports-car-like launch control mode that will catapult this beast from 0 to 60 mph in 3.0 seconds. Compare that to the popular internal combustion engine Ford F150 that takes 6.2 seconds to get there.

The automaker is also promising the huge Hummer will get a maximum range of 350 miles on a single charge. That's an impressive number considering the size of the vehicle. Even more impressive is the claim it will charge up to 100 miles of range in 10 minutes. However, that assumes you're using a super fast 800-volt charging station. We should note, however, that 350 kW charging stations are not available for the home and are very rare indeed on the road as of this writing. (For more on charging, see TK and TK.)

One of the hallmarks of this Hummer is its off-roading capabilities. Toward that end, there's a terrain driving mode that raises the vehicle an additional 2 inches on top of its standard 10-inch clearance. You will also be able to put the truck into Extract (as in, get me out of here) mode, which will raise the body 6 inches. How high is that? GMC says it means you could drive through 2 feet of water, no problem.

Among its myriad driving features, the Hummer EV Edition1 will also include a "crab walking" driving mode we can't wait to test out. It lets you drive the Hummer in a diagonal direction, thanks to torque vectoring and rear wheel steering. It's intended to get you out of (or into) tight spots. Look for this feature to come in handy when you're trying to squeeze this hulking vehicle into a tiny parking space.

There's also a launch mode called 'WTF Mode, which transfers the brunt of the truck's 1,000 horsepower to the wheels. WTF stands for 'Watts to Freedom' and is essentially Hummer's take on the Launch mode feature you'll find in a large number of sports cars. 

Hummer has also revealed WTF mode would allow the Hummer to pop a wheelie, though engineers tweaked the front wheels' torque to ensure this doesn't happen. For "practical safety reasons", which is definitely the right call.

Plus, to make sure you get the most out of your adventures, the Hummer EV will also come with transparent 'sky panels' that form something Hummer is calling an Infinity Roof. Those panels are also removable if you want to experience your surroundings without any barriers.

GMC Hummer EV: Outlook

While a lot of other EV pickup trucks seem to be in the prototype stage and not ready for production, GMC's Hummer looks like the real deal. And the automaker is no startup. The company has proven technology on the road, from Super Cruise in Cadillacs to its heavy duty Sierra pickup trucks. It even has experience in the EV arena with the Chevy Bolt — recent battery issues aside.

While other companies are promising much less expensive electric pickups — both Tesla and Rivian models are $30,000 less — we're willing to bet there are enough buyers with enough cash to keep the Hummer EV Edition1 sold out for some time to come.