Final quarter, the Chevrolet Bolt was America’s third-best-selling electrical automobile (EV). However Basic Motors introduced final 12 months that the mannequin received’t make it to 2024.

Unsurprisingly, it received’t be gone from the marketplace for lengthy. In the course of the firm’s quarterly earnings name this week, GM CEO Mary Barra instructed reporters Chevy is engaged on one other era of its most profitable EV so far.

“Our prospects love in the present day’s Bolt. It has been delivering file gross sales and a number of the highest buyer satisfaction and loyalty scores within the trade,” mentioned Barra. “It’s additionally an necessary supply of conquest gross sales for the corporate and for Chevrolet.”

“Conquests are prospects going instantly from a competing model, whether or not they commerce in, promote an older automobile, or maintain it,” in line with Sam Abuelsamid of Guidehouse Insights.

As we speak’s Bolt(s)

As we speak’s Chevy Bolt on dealership heaps is a subcompact hatchback supplied in two sizes. The Bolt EV begins at $26,500. The considerably bigger Bolt EUV – basically a stretched Bolt with a lot of the added area given to rear passengers – begins at $27,800.

Each qualify for a $7,500 federal EV tax rebate in 2023. That makes them the least costly technique to go electrical in the meanwhile.

So why would GM finish the third-best-selling and least costly EV? As a result of the Bolt brothers use battery know-how discovered on no different present GM EV. The corporate is retiring the know-how.

Doubtless To Share Elements With Different GM EVs

Barra had virtually no particulars to supply on the subsequent Bolt.

She may solely say that GM will “execute it extra rapidly in comparison with an all-new program” and can use “Ultium and Ultifi applied sciences.”

However these particulars inform us a lot of what to anticipate.

As we speak’s EVs are constructed on skateboard platforms – nearly-flat combos of batteries, electrical motors, steering, and suspension elements that may be scaled up or right down to make autos for various wants. GM calls its skateboard Ultium.

Ultium underlies most present and deliberate GM EVs, from the roughly-$30,000 Equinox EV to the $300,000-plus Cadillac Celestiq ultra-luxury automobile.

Chevrolet will, we assume, scale the platform right down to subcompact measurement for the subsequent Bolt.

Ultifi is a software program platform that controls GM automobiles’ person interfaces, leisure, and data applied sciences. GM controversially introduced plans to section out the favored Apple CarPlay and Android Auto cellphone projection techniques in future software program variations.