Chevrolet plans to deliver more plug-in crossovers and pickups to retail consumers in 2024, as the brand takes a big step forward on its electric vehicle transition.
General Motors’ mass-market brand is preparing to increase production of three EVs in three major segments — the first retail-oriented trim of its Silverado EV full-size pickup and electric versions of the Blazer and Equinox crossovers. GM executives have said the vehicles are a key part of the company’s electric ambitions as it caters to more customers at more price points.
GM CEO Mary Barra has said the automaker intends to resolve manufacturing constraints that held back EV production in 2023 and adjust to shifting consumer demand that prompted it to delay building electric pickups at a second Detroit-area plant. Yet GM has not slowed its plans to introduce more electric nameplates.
In 2024, Chevrolet leaders said they expect greater EV availability as more trim levels of the Silverado and Blazer go into production and the Equinox arrives. At the same time, the brand’s top-selling EV, the Bolt, will go on hiatus before returning on GM’s Ultium battery platform in 2025.
“Having production in all three of these segments and having some consistency and flow to dealers is [the] No. 1 priority at this point,” Scott Bell, vice president of global Chevrolet, told Automotive News. “We’re making a lot of headway there.”
The Blazer EV is Chevy’s first Ultium entry for retail consumers. Customer deliveries of the Silverado EV began in 2023 with a fleet-oriented version.
The Blazer EV launched in the third quarter with an all-wheel-drive RS trim that starts at $60,215 with shipping. An awd 2LT will follow at $56,715 including shipping before the base model — a front-wheel-drive 2LT — arrives later in the year at a price not yet disclosed.
“We’re anticipating to get as many variants as we can by the end of the ’24 calendar year. That’s our plan,” Bell said.
In late December, Chevrolet issued a stop-sale on the 2024 Blazer EV to fix a software quality problem that it said was not safety-related and affected “a limited number” of the midsize crossovers. The brand said engineers were working on a fix for the glitches, which include sporadic problems with screens inside the vehicle and during charging attempts at some public DC fast chargers.
Chevy sent the first Blazer EVs to dealerships that have invested to become EV-ready, Bell said, for demonstrations. The brand said more than 2,000 of its dealerships have met requirements that include having chargers installed, adding service equipment and tooling, and training employees.
Marketing efforts are expected to increase in 2024 as Blazer EV availability rises, Bell said. Chevy is running advertising online and on social media, as well as email campaigns targeting current customers.
“I wouldn’t say every dealer has seen one yet,” Bell said. “But a lot of dealers are starting to get their hands on them.”
As of mid-December, dealer Andy Guelcher had sold two Blazer EVs at Mohawk Chevrolet in Ballston Spa, N.Y. As more Chevy EVs go on sale, he said, price will be an important consideration for mass-market buyers who are not early adopters.
Chevrolet, like other GM brands, is launching electric nameplates with feature-packed trims. Bell said that presents the best of what EVs can offer while challenging the automaker to build the most complex combinations right away.
“The less complicated or the less contented, the simpler they will be,” he said, “so we can figure out how to do the tough ones first and it’ll put us in a good place for the rest.”
The first Equinox EVs to arrive in 2024 will be priced at almost $50,000 with shipping. The base trim, which costs nearly $35,000 before a $7,500 federal tax credit, will come later in the year. If it qualifies for all available incentives, the Equinox EV should meet a price point that can help consumers consider the vehicle, said Guelcher, chairman of the Chevrolet National Dealer Council.
What also should help, he said, is Chevy’s EVs being similar to gasoline-powered vehicles that consumers already know. The brand plans to maintain much of its internal combustion engine lineup while introducing more EVs and has not given a timeline to go all-electric, while sibling brands Cadillac and Buick work toward 2030 targets.
“They’re used to the styling and the interior architecture and the setups of these vehicles in the ICE model, and I think that makes it a lot more digestible to the customer,” Guelcher said. “Having that ICE counterpart, I don’t think that can be understated.”
Justin Salmon, a senior Chevrolet designer, said the Blazer EV’s design will be a unique selling point to the vehicle’s target buyer.
“It’s going to enable a certain kind of lifestyle for someone that’s looking for an EV,” Salmon told Automotive News during a media drive event near San Diego, noting the vehicle’s performance, driving dynamics, spacious interior and cargo capacity. “It really excels in a lot of the key things that our customers are after in this segment.”
Marcus Amick contributed to this report.