- GM Defense, a military-focused arm of GM, is developing a driverless vehicle based on the Chevrolet Silverado 3500HD.
- The autonomous vehicle would be built for silent logistics runs and evacuations and feature a dual-rear-wheel skateboard architecture.
- GM Defense expects to begin functional trials with the Silverado-based prototype sometime in 2027.
General Motors just revealed a driverless Silverado, but it’s not for civilian use. At the Association of the United States Army (AUSA)’s annual expo, GM Defense showed off an Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) based on the Chevrolet Silverado 3500HD.
The UGV’s front grille is unmistakably Silverado, but the rest is a bit more abstract, kind of like if Chevy chopped off the cab and swapped the traditional pickup bed with a flatbed. With no need for occupants inside the vehicle, it’s essentially stripped down to just an engine and a truck bed riding on chunky wheels.
The Silverado-based concept is built on dual-rear-wheel skateboard architecture, which GM says helps support silent movement. Rather than being built for combat, the UGV would be used for silent logistics runs and evacuations.
This isn’t the first time GM has worked for the U.S. government. GM Defense originated during World War I and has built vehicles and artillery since then, though GM briefly sold its defense business in 2003 before re-establishing it in 2017.
It’s also not the first time GM has transformed a pickup truck into a military vehicle. Most recently, GM won a bid in 2021 to produce a fleet of lightweight nine-passenger transporters based on the Chevy Colorado ZR2. The contract for the Colorado-based Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV) initially called for 649 vehicles, but that requirement has grown to nearly 12,000 units. GM Defense has since created a five-passenger version, which is expected to roll out across 39 brigades in the near future.
Further down the pipeline, GM Defense is hoping to win the bid to develop an ISV-Heavy variant, allegedly based on the Silverado. That vehicle is still in the prototyping phase and will get tested by the U.S. Army early next year.
The autonomous Silverado-based UGV is a completely new project for GM Defense, and it relies on drive-by-wire technology and Scout AI’s Gx Ground Agent system to get around, according to a report from Motor1. GM Defense is aiming to start functional trials with the UGV in 2027.
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Alayna Wilkening grew up reading motorsport magazines and following her grandpa around his Chevrolet dealership's showroom floor. In true Hoosier fashion, her first car was a hot pink custom cardboard "Fiero-vette" for her kindergarten Kindy 500 race. She now autocrosses a 1994 Miata with her dad, which she learned to drive the night before her first event. Alayna went to Indiana University and graduated with a degree in journalism and a minor in graphic design. As a testament to her great taste in cars, her first real one was a metallic orange 2007 Chevy HHR, which she lovingly called "The Dumptruck."