GMC announces HUMMER EV electric bike with all-wheel-drive to complement electric supertruck

The massively excessive GMC HUMMER EV is known as a “supertruck,” and now the automaker is announcing a “super e-bike” to go with it. The newly unveiled GMC HUMMER EV ALL-WHEEL DRIVE EBIKE will serve as a companion vehicle for the massive electric truck.

The new GMC HUMMER EV e-bike is a hardtail fat tire electric bike that features a pair of Bafang hub motors to provide all-wheel drive.

Each motor is rated at 750W continuous and 1,200W peak, meaning the bike puts out 2.4 kW of power at full tilt. That allows it to reach speeds of up to 28 mph (45 km/h).

Fortunately, the bike also includes a pair of four-piston hydraulic disc brakes to bring it back down to reasonable speeds.

A maximum of 1 kWh of battery will supply those power-hungry motors, and the battery is removable for charging off the e-bike.

For those keeping score at home, that means the GMC HUMMER EV will have a 200x larger battery than the GMC HUMMER EV ALL-WHEEL DRIVE EBIKE.

Priced at around $113,000, the four-wheeled version is also around 28x more expensive than its $3,999 two-wheeled companion.

GMC will have the e-bikes available at its dealerships but will also offer the e-bike direct-to-consumer for online ordering.

Despite the throttle and pedal-assist e-bike offering all-wheel drive, there are actually three drive modes that let riders shut off one of the motors.

Cruise mode engages only the rear motor. Traction mode engages only the front motor (and must be named ironically based on how quickly you’ll start spinning that front tire in loose terrain). Adrenaline mode kicks in both motors at once for true all-wheel drive operation.

As you might have guessed, the bike wasn’t actually developed by GMC. Instead, the company partnered with an e-bike brand known as Recon Power Bikes.

As GMC’s marketing director Rich Latek explained:

GMC is excited to collaborate with Recon as they develop the GMC HUMMER EV AWD Ebike. With design cues and inspiration taken directly from the GMC HUMMER EV Supertruck, this Ebike further expands customer’s ability to explore different off-road trails – whether in the vehicle or out on the bike.

Recon’s president, Jeff Fuze, added:

The Recon Team is thrilled to be the officially licensed partner producing the GMC HUMMER EV AWD Ebike. We are honored to partner with GMC on this unique world-class AWD Ebike that parallels HUMMER EV’s unrivaled reputation as the leader in EV off-road adventure.

Pre-order reservations are now open for anyone who missed the chance to get an early electric HUMMER but who doesn’t want to make the same mistake on the e-bike version.

Electrek’s Take

Oh boy.

Here’s the thing: I love electric vehicles, but I hate everything there is to the HUMMER EV. It’s an abomination. The egregious waste of resources alone is an affront to humanity, let alone the questionable ethics of putting that much power in a 9,000-pound (4,100-kg) bulldozer that could literally crush pedestrians without the driver even knowing it.

The GMC HUMMER EV ALL-WHEEL DRIVE EBIKE, on the other hand, feels like a step in the right direction. It’s still excessive but at a level that is at least reasonable. And the rider is sure as hell going to know if he or she hit someone.

I’m sure it’d be a fun off-roader and would even handle a city commute as well, though that’s not what it’s built for.

I half wonder if the bike was a response to some of the outrage directed at the GMC HUMMER EV from much of the pro-not-getting-crushed-by-cars community. It would have been pretty easy. It’s not like GMC had to do much work here. The magic of licensing agreements meant that some money changed hands and a GMC sticker went on a Recon e-bike.

Whether or not this e-bike is worth $4,000 when you could find other similarly capable e-bikes for less is something I’ll leave up to my educated readers.

And let’s all hope that GM’s second attempt at an electric bike goes more smoothly than its first.