The New Chevrolet Bolt To Arrive By 2026 As A Crucial Player In GM’s EV Family

A new Chevrolet Bolt is on the way and is expected to arrive sometime in 2025 for the 2026 model-year as a crucial player in GM’s full-line of electric vehicles, according to AutomotiveNews. The outlet heard from General Motors President, Mark Reuess, at a press conference and investor meeting in Tennessee, who emphasized the Bolt’s importance to GM’s full family of electric vehicles and the company’s EV strategy in the coming years.

Chevy discontinued the Chevy Bolt EUV just last year, initially with no plans to succeed the model or any hints about a successor. Despite receiving positive press initially, such as MotorTrend’s Car of the Year award and the North American Car of the Year award in 2017, just to name a few, the Bolt did suffer some public relations woes. However, even with some issues, particularly with battery fires that led to a few recalls of the model, GM faced backlash from loyal fans and electric vehicle appreciators wanting a new Bolt.

The Bolt’s Return Is Confirmed, Will Be Priced Similarly To Previous Model

We already know that a new Bolt is on the way after GM’s CEO, Mary Barra, announced and confirmed its return, shortly after announcing the previous model’s discontinuation in April 2023. Upon the announcement of the Bolt’s discontinuation is when the backlash began, prompting Barra to immediately follow up with the announcement of its successor just a couple of months later.

The new Bolt is said to utilize GM’s current “Ultium” EV platform (which is slated to drop the “Ultium” name in the near future), and will succeed the previous model as a single “EUV” or electric utility vehicle offering. The previous Bolt initially sold as a subcompact five-door hatchback while a larger compact EUV crossover variant also sold side-by-side with the hatch variant.

Details do remain sparse, but Reuss confirmed to AutomotiveNews that the new model will be priced similarly to the old model with the goal of offering the same amount of value. The only other details floating around confirm the Bolt’s production at GM’s assembly plant in Fairfax, Kansas, which is also where they punch out the Cadillac XT4 and the current Chevy Malibu sedan. The Malibu is expected to end production later this year in November, with the new Bolt taking up the production availability. Previously, the Chevrolet assembled the Bolt at the company’s plant in Orion Township Michigan, which is in the process of being converted to produce the Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups by 2026.

“It will just be one member of a family on the Bolt, including an even lower-cost option,” Reuss said during the conference. “The 2026 Bolt will offer the same value as the original Bolt and much more, and it will be a moneymaker for us. It’s a direct result of the investment in the next-gen EV platform, and we don’t need to create a skunk works to create affordable electric vehicles. We know how to do this.”

The new Bolt will play a major role in GM’s EV strategy as the company seeks to pursue more affordable EV offerings and to bring down the prices of these models to make them easier to obtain for mainstream buyers. As of today, GM’s cheapest EV offering is the Chevy Equinox EV with its $34,995 MSRP.

Source: AutomotiveNews