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 The compact Bolt, shown as a concept vehicle at the Detroit auto
show last month, is designed to have a range of 200 miles, and will
cost about $30,000 apiece after tax breaks.
GM's announcement confirms a report last week by Reuters that the
Bolt would be produced at the under-used Orion assembly plant in
Michigan.
The only electric car currently available with a 200-mile range is
the Tesla Model S, which starts at $71,070 before tax credits for
electric vehicles (EVs).
With a target price near $30,000, the Bolt would compete with
electric cars such as the Nissan Motor Co Leaf, which has a range of
less than 100 miles, and the similarly priced Tesla Inc Model
3, planned to debut in 2017.
“The message from consumers about the Bolt EV concept was clear and
unequivocal: Build it,” GM North America President Alan Batey said
in prepared remarks at the Chicago auto show.
Supplier sources told Reuters that Bolt production will start in
October 2016 and sales would likely begin in early 2017.
Batey did not specify when production or sales would start but said:
“We are moving quickly because of its potential to completely shake
up the status quo for electric vehicles.”
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Batey said GM would invest $160 million for new tooling and
equipment in the Orion assembly plant and $40 million for dies in
the Pontiac Metal Center to build the Bolt.
The Orion plant currently builds the Chevrolet Sonic and Buick
Verano and is operating well below capacity as small-car sales
dwindle.
(Reporting by Rick Popely in Chicago; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
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