Aussies have a huge appetite for performance cars and as far as General Motors is concerned, we won’t be going hungry anytime soon.
But exactly how that performance will be delivered – whether it be plug-in hybrid or full-electric – over the coming years remains unclear.
Chevrolet has just launched its first ever petrol-electric hybrid supercar, the Corvette E-Ray, an incredibly powerful machine that combines a 6.2-litre petrol V8 with a front-mounted electric motor and tiny battery pack.
But that semi-green offering is sold alongside a pair of petrol V8-powered supercars, in the Stingray and flagship Z06. There’s also the hi-po Corvette ZR1 sold overseas, which looks unlikely to be offered in Oz.
What’s more, the brand’s big V8-powered LandCruiser-fighting GMC Yukon Denali is on the horizon (due Q1 2025) and Aussies’ love affair with full-size pick-up trucks like the Silverado and RAM remains strong.
That means GM could be facing hefty fines when looming fuel efficiency standards are enforced from mid-2025.
A saving grace could come in the re-entrance of the Cadillac brand Down Under, which is on the cusp of re-launching as an EV-only brand, starting with the LYRIQ SUV.
But even without an EV sub-brand, managing director of General Motors Australia Jess Bala says the car-maker is focused on delivering the “cars customers want”.
“Our focus is still going to be bringing in vehicles that customers want. Clearly there is a demand for the vehicles we’re bringing in and that includes Yukon we’re about to launch,” said Bala.
“We very much welcome an emissions standard. We needed to do one as a country; but we also know that it’s not going to be a shift to 100 per cent EVs that’s going to happen overnight. It needs to be a process because there’s more things involved, not just on the customer side but the infrastructure side, support for the technology, things like that.”
“It’s definitely not a sprint, it’s a marathon.”
Even despite slowing sales of battery electric vehicles as well as increasing competition, Bala says launching an EV-only brand in Australia right now is exciting.
“Not scary, I think it’s exciting for us,” said Bala.
“We’re bringing in a niche luxury brand, not a mainstream brand and that was always the plan and remains to be our plan. We want Cadillac to be a brand that’s sought-after, not something you see everywhere.
“You don’t get that luxury, exclusivity if you see a tonne of them out and around.”
Quizzed on the future of the Corvette, the senior executive, who spent a decade in Detroit with General Motors, ensured the iconic nameplate won’t be going anywhere.
“I’m not privy to all of the future plans for Corvette; not surprisingly GM keeps future plans for Corvette pretty close to their chest,” said Bala.
“I don’t see any changes in that space coming. There’s clearly a demand for a performance sports car; I’m sure that GM, at a leadership level, are exploring what the future would hold but still maintaining the Corvette because it is such a rich part of our history and it’s such an incredible sub-brand.”
“I don’t see it going anywhere, anytime soon.”
