BrightDrop is the name applied to GM’s new battery-electric-vehicle operation that will market to fleet operators such as delivery businesses. The first to arrive in late 2021 is the BrightDrop EV600, so named for its 600 cubic feet of storage. According to the automaker, the van’s Ultium-brand batteries (another General Motors offshoot) will give the E600 a range of 250 miles. With a DC fast charger, the batteries can be replenished at a rate of 170 miles of range per hour. Included in the EV600 is a host of active-safety technologies, including forward-collision alert, lane-departure warning and pedestrian alert. Also available will be an electric-powered pallet with a 200-pound payload capacity that’s designed to assist loading/unloading. The vans will be built in Canada at a plant that currently builds the Equinox utility vehicle.
FedEx is BrightDrop’s first customer with 500 EV600 vans ordered. Fleet-management company Merchants Fleet is the second customer, with an order for 12,600. PHOTO: GENERAL MOTORS