General Motors developed the GMC Hummer EV in just two years, as opposed to the normal development time of an all-new vehicle of four years or more.
This record-setting development pace was made possible by virtual product design and testing, hardware-in-the-loop tests mixing computers and machines, as well as other computer-powered procedures.
As you probably know if you watched reviews of the GMC Hummer EV, the electric off-road pickup is not a vehicle without faults, though. If you're curious to learn what can go wrong with the Hummer EV truck after just 800 miles (1,287 kilometers) of ownership, this video from owner Frank Baltierrez offers a good starting point.
After the first rain that the vehicle was exposed to, the Chicago-based owner discovered that the four removable Sky Panels are not waterproof. As he shows in the video, water leaks into the cabin from the middle section of the panels, with drops of water visible both on the front and rear seats.
That's obviously not something you would expect from a truck that costs almost $113,000—this particular vehicle is the fully-loaded Edition 1 launch model.
Obviously, the owner is not thrilled about that, but he says GM told him it has a fix for that. As part of a Customer Satisfaction Program, the dealership will replace the front and rear I-Bars with redesigned ones featuring different seals and no water channels. All the owner has to do is bring in the vehicle for this issue. Now, it's worth noting that newer builds have this problem sorted out from the factory.
So what else does this owner have to say about his Hummer EV? He obviously likes the fact that the Sky Panels can be individually removed—or all at once—effectively turning the electric truck into a convertible. In addition, the wild acceleration enabled by the tri-motor battery-electric powertrain is another thing that he loves about the Hummer EV.
Check out the video above for more impressions, including about the optional features offered by GMC. This particular owner only selected the lighting package, explaining why the other options didn't work for him.
