GM's Electric Vehicle Production Struggles

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【Summary】GM's Chief Financial Officer, Paul Jacobson, admitted that the company has faced challenges in scaling up EV production, particularly due to issues with a supplier and module creation technology. Despite positive customer reception and high demand for EVs, GM has struggled to produce them fast enough. The automaker aims to produce 100,000 electric vehicles for North America in the second half of 2023 and reach a cumulative total of 400,000 EVs in the region by mid-2024.

FutureCar Staff Aug 17, 2023 11:16 PM PT

GM's Electric Vehicle Production Struggles

During the J.P. Morgan Auto Conference, GM's Chief Financial Officer Paul Jacobson acknowledged the "startup challenges" the automaker faced in its EV production. When asked about the Hummer EV and Cadillac Lyriq, Jacobson explained that there were difficulties in scaling both vehicles due to a supplier issue and technology-related bottlenecks in the module creation process. However, he assured attendees that the problem had been identified and addressed.

In 2022, GM delivered 122 Lyriqs, but in July of this year, the number increased to over 1,000, although it fell short of the company's expectations. Jacobson mentioned that GM was working on increasing the volume. The Lyriq, Cadillac's first EV, sold out within ten minutes when reservations opened in September 2021. Interestingly, most buyers were from the younger generation, which is a departure from the typical Cadillac buyer profile of those in their mid-50s.

However, customers have experienced delays due to a slow start at the Ultium plant in Ohio, USA, caused by software issues with the vehicle. Jacobson acknowledged the slower-than-desired progress and compared it to the growing pains experienced by any startup. Nonetheless, customer reception has been positive, and Jacobson expressed confidence in the demand for GM's EVs. The main challenge lies in ramping up production to meet the demand.

GM's EV production has been a topic of concern and criticism for some time. Earlier this year, CEO Mary Barry attributed the slow start of GM's electric vehicles to a supplier issue. The company produced 50,000 EVs for North America in the first half of 2023 and aims to produce a total of 100,000 vehicles for the region in the second half of the year. GM's target for cumulative electric vehicles in North America by mid-2024 is 400,000.