GM has signed NBA star LeBron James to appear in a new commercial during the event on February 2, sources, who asked not to be identified because the plans aren’t yet public, told CNBC. The plans to revive Hammer as an EV sold under the automaker’s GMC brand instead of a standalone brand, as it was before, were first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
A GM spokesman declined to comment on the company’s plans. Shares of the automaker closed Friday at $34.65, down 1.2%.
The new Hummer model is expected to go on sale by late 2021 or early 2022 as part of the automaker’s pivot to all-electric vehicles, including at least 20 new vehicles globally by 2023.
Karl Brauer, executive publisher of Cox Automotive, told CNBC that turning Hummer into an all-electric vehicle under the GMC brand could be the “perfect marriage.”
“What automaker on the planet wouldn’t love to have the Hummer brand in its portfolio right now,” said Brauer, citing the significant increase in sales for pickups and SUVs in the last decade. “There’s no indication they shouldn’t do this and every indication they should.”
GM’s previous Hummer brand included an SUV and a short-lived pickup variant with a design based on the military vehicle known as the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle. Despite popularity during the 2000s, the Hummer was discontinued as part of GM’s bankruptcy in 2009 amid stalling sales, high gas prices and a sour reputation for polluting the planet.
The Hummer pickup is expected to be part of a surge of new all-electric pickups to enter the US market in the coming years. GM’s rivals - Ford Motor, Tesla and Amazon-backed EV start-up Rivian - are expected to release all-electric pickups through next year.