Tuesday, October 21, 2025
No menu items!
HomeAutomobileGM Drops BrightDrop Electric Van Due To 'Market Demand'

GM Drops BrightDrop Electric Van Due To ‘Market Demand’

GM Drops BrightDrop Electric Van Due To ‘Market Demand’





After an extended pause in production, General Motors has officially canceled the BrightDrop electric van, reports CBC News. The CAMI plant has been idle since April 14 due to limited demand for the BrightDrop, with only 274 vans sold in the first quarter of 2025 according to Reuters. GM Authority reports that production was supposed to resume on July 14, but was then pushed out to November 17 until today’s cancellation. This leaves the future uncertain for GM’s CAMI Assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ontario, which, not long ago, was supposed to be a key part of GM’s all-electric future. From GM Authority:

“The decision to end production of the BrightDrop electric delivery van is driven by market demand and in no way reflects the commitment and skill of our workforce at CAMI,” said Kristian Aquilina, GM Canada’s president and managing director, in a statement.
GM said hourly employees will receive six months’ salary along with possible lump-sum payments and other benefits, in line with provisions of the collective agreement with Unifor. The company will work with the union and both levels of government to “evaluate next steps for the future of CAMI.”

The market demand GM cites has been strongly driven by the end of the $7,500 EV tax credit and tariffs that have so far cost automakers $10 billion on cars imported from Canada and Mexico. GM was committed to going all-in on EVs as recently as last year, but the Trump Administration’s policies have caused a reversal of that plan. This comes just one week after Stellantis announced it was moving Jeep Compass production from Brampton, Ontario, to Belvidere, Illinois, due to tariffs. GM does not plan to move BrightDrop production anywhere, meaning it’s the end of the road for the electric van.

The BrightDrop extinguished before it could shine

The BrightDrop was the right idea in the wrong place at the wrong time. Based on GM’s Ultium platform, Chevy says it offers up to 303 miles of city range, almost twice as far as the Ford E-Transit. That’s usually enough to make a day of deliveries on one charge. A maximum charging rate of up to 160 miles in an hour means BrightDrop RV conversions can cover even more ground, making them finally make sense in the real world.

Unfortunately, it was built in the wrong place: Canada. That’s not a slight against our neighbors to the north, but against misguided tariffs destroying our long-standing trade relationship with Canada. They also hurt the American automakers they’re supposed to be protecting, because the Trump Administration doesn’t understand how the global economy works. This is also happening at the wrong time. According to InsideEVs, Amazon was considering buying BrightDrops to expand its EV fleet. Ultium-based models like the Cadillac Escalade IQ are pretty darn good these days, poised to push GM into its previously promised electric future, just as all incentives to do so have disappeared.

It’s okay, though. GM still has the Chevy Express / GMC Savana twins, which have been around since 1996 when dinosaurs roamed the Earth. They may not offer high-roof models like Ford Transit and Ram ProMaster, but they can be equipped with a 401-horsepower 6.6-liter V8, something these other vans don’t offer. That should appeal to the “pave the rainforest” types who seem to be making decisions today.



RELATED ARTICLES

Most Popular

Recent Comments