The Fast Lane Truck: I Bought a $115000 GMC Hummer EV and It IMMEDIATELY Left Me Stranded!

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The drivetrain in an ICE vehicle contains 2,000+ moving parts typically, whereas the drivetrain in an EV contains around 20. A TESLA actualy has 17 moving parts.

Just FYI.
A 5HP B&S in a junior dragster won’t leave you stranded like that 115k GM EV did.

I think by complexity he meant electronic nannies and the total reliance on software programming. Anybody who’s ever written code for extremely complex applications will tell you that the code may appear flawless in lab testing, only to have it fail as soon as it’s “in the wild”. Not the kind of chance I want to take on today’s highways!!
 
Hidden is the same as non existent
Really? The information was in the online manual which was fairly easy to find once Tommy looked for it. Perhaps, before starting on a trip in a brand new vehicle, especially one that is unfamiliar to the operator, a few minutes going through the manual before driving off would have been a good idea.

I agree that the vehicle is (seemingly overly) complicated, and perhaps should be more intuitively designed, but that doesn't absolve the operator of all responsibility. How many times has a question been asked on this forum about the operation or requirements of a vehicle and the response was to read the manual? I will admit that the placement of the fronk release is poorly placed and difficult to find. I see no reason why it couldn't be placed in a more obvious position.
 
A 5HP B&S in a junior dragster won’t leave you stranded like that 115k GM EV did.

I think by complexity he meant electronic nannies and the total reliance on software programming. Anybody who’s ever written code for extremely complex applications will tell you that the code may appear flawless in lab testing, only to have it fail as soon as it’s “in the wild”. Not the kind of chance I want to take on today’s highways!!
Yes, that is exactly what I meant. Software "features" not fully tested and sent out for the first users to debug. Not uncommon, but if I'm sitting at my desk not nearly the problem as if I'm sitting on a four lane with traffic whizzing all around me.

Just like a "smart" refrigerator, or a "smart" drink cooler at CVS. If either one doesn't work, most likely I'm not going to get hit by another car or cause an accident. In a lot of states that have contributory clauses, if there had been an indirect accident involving this Hummer, the Hummer owner could also be charged with the accident.

IMO, the rush to add "features" and rush out vehicles to try to capture market share, must be tempered by the proper testing in real world circumstance. Don't forget the original problem on the Hummer was a steering issue with a new vehicle. The problems started when the customer attempted to "reboot" the whiz bang electronics and then things went wrong from there.

If the car was more functional and less "featured", this might have been avoided and we would not be discussing this.
 
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I lived in Phoenix when the Chevy Vega was introduced. Had off e at a place next GM testing guys. They were saying that every time they drove it on the interstate it would overheat when they got off. That was one of go's finest goofs and was Motor trends car of the year!
 
Really? The information was in the online manual which was fairly easy to find once Tommy looked for it.

Emergency functions such as a hood release should never require any thought

What if fire and emergency need to access the hood area?

Gotta wonder if the thing has impossible to access emergency disconnects (which all other EVs have to prevent a fire after a crash)

Also being able to shift to neutral in an emergency I thought was a legal requirement, I’ve seen fire and emergency push a flaming vehicle with theirs away from buildings before.

This is beyond unacceptable and I’m an EV early adopter having owned one long before there was a Tesla or any other mass produced modern EV.


And less important but god I hate a Television for a dash, let alone 2 televisions for a dash, looks like a hillbilly design that the first kids tantrum or minor accident destroys ripping the pod off the dash. Might as well suction an iPad there, at least that would be less expensive to replace and less buggy.
 
Did anyone else notice that for $115,000 they can't even attach the cable to the bracket so that when you pull the cable it doesn't get ripped out from under the dash? What a piece of junk.
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That whole hood thing is a head scratcher. Why even bury the emergency disconnect or try to hide it in the first place. Just have the pull release that is used by millions of vehicles.

Then the battery is covered by a shield that requires a toolset to access. They could have made that removable by hand.
 
Emergency functions such as a hood release should never require any thought

What if fire and emergency need to access the hood area?

Gotta wonder if the thing has impossible to access emergency disconnects (which all other EVs have to prevent a fire after a crash)

Also being able to shift to neutral in an emergency I thought was a legal requirement, I’ve seen fire and emergency push a flaming vehicle with theirs away from buildings before.

This is beyond unacceptable and I’m an EV early adopter having owned one long before there was a Tesla or any other mass produced modern EV.


And less important but god I hate a Television for a dash, let alone 2 televisions for a dash, looks like a hillbilly design that the first kids tantrum or minor accident destroys ripping the pod off the dash. Might as well suction an iPad there, at least that would be less expensive to replace and less buggy.


The firemen will haul out their gas powered rotary saw and cut that hood off lickety split.
 
That whole hood thing is a head scratcher. Why even bury the emergency disconnect or try to hide it in the first place. Just have the pull release that is used by millions of vehicles.

Then the battery is covered by a shield that requires a toolset to access. They could have made that removable by hand.

It doesn’t look buried to me. The owner’s manual clearly shows its access and how to open it. Might take 5 seconds to find the first time, but the general location and operation is the same as any car I’ve ever seen.

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The battery cover is removable by hand. You can see him remove it by hand. Watch at 14:48. The owners manual also shows they’re 3/4 turn fasteners for use by-hand.

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Under the “Towing a Disabled Vehicle” section in the Owners’s Manual they talk about using the “Car Wash Mode” procedure to get it into Neutral. They never mentioned doing this. If it’s still stuck, this is why tow trucks have tire skates/dollies with them. Not too big of a deal for a tow truck driver.

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Under the “Towing a Disabled Vehicle” section in the Owners’s Manual they talk about using the “Car Wash Mode” procedure to get it into Neutral. They never mentioned doing this. If it’s still stuck, this is why tow trucks have tire skates/dollies with them. Not too big of a deal for a tow truck driver.

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E365,

A couple thoughts on your reply.

Like them or not- The Fast Lane are professional auto bloggers. They could not figure out how to address the catastrophic failure in a quick manner, and neither could the tow truck driver. If one thing the video shows, is a electronics owners manual is not always a efficient reference tool when a vehicle suffers a breakdown in traffic.

The hood release, access to the battery were not intuitive to car guys and a tow truck driver. That is reality, it was all caught on film. How about the average American that is not a car guy......

The only thing that really bothered me on the entire incident was ONSTAR. Having to go through 14 levels of help desk support to get to someone that understands the problem, while the truck is stuck in the middle of traffic. Not a fair comparison, but I don't think a pilot at Delta has to go through 14 levels of help desk to get support for a aircraft having a technical issue in flight.

The 14 levels of ONSTAR help desk support tells me GM had not thought the product support through and/or truly doesn't care about its user.
 
E365,

A couple thoughts on your reply.

Like them or not- The Fast Lane are professional auto bloggers. They could not figure out how to address the catastrophic failure in a quick manner, and neither could the tow truck driver. If one thing the video shows, is a electronics owners manual is not always a efficient reference tool when a vehicle suffers a breakdown in traffic.

The hood release, access to the battery were not intuitive to car guys and a tow truck driver. That is reality, it was all caught on film. How about the average American that is not a car guy......


The only thing that really bothered me on the entire incident was ONSTAR. Having to go through 14 levels of help desk support to get to someone that understands the problem, while the truck is stuck in the middle of traffic. Not a fair comparison, but I don't think a pilot at Delta has to go through 14 levels of help desk to get support for a aircraft having a technical issue in flight.

The 14 levels of ONSTAR help desk support tells me GM had not thought the product support through and/or truly doesn't care about its user.
I agree with you, however, I believe they should have reviewed the manual before taking off to test the vehicle.
 
I agree with you, however, I believe they should have reviewed the manual before taking off to test the vehicle.
In a perfect world, I would agree. How many people really read the manual of anything before they attempt to use it. Computers don't even come with manuals anymore.

Heck, I bet most people don't even know how to use a pressure washer properly - most pressure washers will overheat and burn up the pump if you don't keep letting the nozzle flow. If you just let it idle with no flow, most will burn up in a very short time. Says so right in the manual, but oh well.



Begins around 2:00 mark.
 
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I agree with you, however, I believe they should have reviewed the manual before taking off to test the vehicle.
But who really does that? Is your typical buyer going to do that...probably not. I didn't go over my manual until a week after I bought my new 4runner back in '04 (05 model)....and I'm probably the exception as most will never will.

Also, a lot of vehicles don't come with 'paper' manuals anymore...it is 'online' or embedded in their infotainment unit. What happens if you lose power or the unit craps out?
 
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