GM Wants to Build Thousands of Self-Driving Bolt EVs

The Chevrolet Bolt EV impressed our judges so much we crowned the electric hatchback the 2017 Motor Trend Car of the Year, now General Motors wants the EV to drive itself as part of a future ride-sharing service.

In cooperation with ride-sharing partner Lyft, GM is in plans to deploy thousands of self-driving EVs in tests fleets starting in 2018, two sources familiar with the automaker’s plans reported to Reuters. If carried out, this would be the largest test of self-driving vehicles by any major auto manufacturer before 2020.

Lyft will use the majority of the specially equipped Bolt EVs in ride-sharing fleets across several states for testing purposes, one source stated. As of now, there are no plans to sell the self-driving Bolt to the public.

GM has yet to announce these plans, however, within the past year, GM executives have stated in interviews that they intend to mass-produce autonomous vehicles for ride-sharing fleets. Details have yet to be revealed.

“We do not provide specific details on potential future products or technology rollout plans. We have said that our AV technology will appear in an on-demand ride-sharing network application sooner than you might think,” GM said in a statement on Friday. Lyft did not comment.

This should come as no surprise as Ford has already announced plans to deploy self-driving vehicles for ride-sharing fleets in 2021. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Waymo partnered up to convert several Chrysler Pacificas into autonomous minivans. Waymo, a subsidiary of Google/Alphabet, is currently testing 60 self-driving prototypes in four states. Uber and Volvo joined forces last year to test self-driving XC90 crossovers.

In December, GM’s CEO Mary Barra stated that GM would begin building an autonomous version of the Bolt EV in early 2017 and is currently testing about 40 self-driving Bolt EVs in California and Arizona and more recently in Michigan.

GM’s car sharing service, Maven, will likely work in cooperation with Lyft in developing a ride-sharing business using self-driving vehicles like the Bolt EV. GM paid $500 million for a minority stake in Lyft last year.

Source: Reuters

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