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Safety group pans GM’s new Marketplace in-dash shopping

When it comes to our cars, is the Internet of Things a godsend? Or a hidden menace that will create more problems than it will solve? On the same day General Motors announced it will equip newer-model cars with its in-dash Marketplace e-commerce app, a prominent safety group was shooting it down. National Safety Council President Deborah Hersman tells Bloomberg the technology will only contribute to distracted driving and hurt efforts to stem the tide of rising auto fatalities, which grew 5.6 percent to more than 37,000 in the U.S. in 2016. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says distracted driving was responsible for 3,477 fatalities and 391,000 injuries in 2015, the most recent year for which it has data. "There's nothing about this that's safe," Hersman told Bloomberg. "If this is why they want WiFi in the car, we're going to see fatality numbers go up even higher than they are now." Marketplace, developed with IBM, will allow drivers — or more often, one hopes, their passengers — to order coffee or food, find gas stations and reserve hotel rooms from their dashboard screens. The technology is set to be uploaded automatically to nearly 1.9 million GM vehicles model-year 2017 and later that are equipped with WiFi hotspots and compatible systems. By the end of 2018, about 4 million Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac vehicles will be equipped with Marketplace. The app will debut with a limited number of participating retailers, including TGI Fridays, Shell, Exxon Mobil and Starbucks, with more likely to join later. Online retail giant Amazon is also partnering with automakers such as Ford to bring e-commerce capabilities inside the car through its Alexa personal assistant. While convenience is nice, one other thing is becoming clear as the IoT wedges its way into our cars: It's taking aim at some decidedly first-world problems.Related Video: Image Credit: GM Buick Cadillac Chevrolet GM GMC Technology Infotainment in-car entertainment marketplace e-commerce

Base GMC Hummer EV2 reportedly dead for the planned 2025 launch year

Remember October 2021? That's when GMC divulged trims and pricing for the Hummer EV pickup range. It started with the Edition 1, asking around $110,000 before it sold out. Then would come the EV3X in fall 2022 for $99,995, followed by the  EV2X in the spring of 2023, asking $89,995. And for this year, shoppers were meant to get the option of a 'bargain' entry, the EV2-without-the-X that kept the dual motors but swapped for a less zippy 400-volt electric architecture and a smaller battery pack able to power a 250-mile estimated range. At the time, we were told the EV2 would open the MSRP bidding at $79,995. Spring is officially here, the EV2 isn't, and GM Authority cites unnamed sources when writing "there will be no 2 model for the 2025 model year" outside the 2X. Normally, automakers kill the low-hanging fruit after putting it on sale; the Hummer EV has, again, upended expectations. Therefore, your 2024 GMC Hummer EV pickup lineup after the $2,295 destination charge costs: EV2X Pickup: $98,845  EV3X Pickup: $106,945 EV3X Omega Edition Pickup: $150,295 On the SUV side, the MSRPs are almost carbon copies:   EV2X SUV: $98,845  EV3X SUV: $106,945 EV3X Omega Edition SUV: $130,300 For both body styles, keep in mind that Interstellar White is the only freebie exterior hue. Void black adds $495 to the price, five other colors cost $625, Afterburner Tintcoat orange runs $1,225.  The limited-edition Omega variant builds on the 3X trim with exclusive Neptune Blue Matte paint, the $9,995 Extreme Off-Road Package, exclusive 18-inch wheels, unique interior carpeting, a transparent roof and the MultiPro tailgate with a Kicker audio system on the pickup. Both trucks also get 35-inch mud-terrain tires, underbody skid plates and additional off-road camera views. The price disparity is partly because the Omega Edition pickup is packs a 24-module battery, the SUV gets a 20-module battery. This trim is only available to existing order holders. Speaking of which, the otherworldly EV is still going to be a few years' wait for some, but more reservation holders are already enjoying deliveries this year as GM continues to open the factory taps. GMC sold two examples of the Hummer EV in the first quarter of last year, around the time it has 65,000 potential buyers on the reservation list, and 3,260 units for all of 2023. In the first three months of this year, GMC sold 1,668 trucks.  Related video:

U.S. Army purchases GMC Hummer EV for Light Recon Vehicle testing

The military has been analyzing alternative powertrains for a while, and working with GM vehicular products in that field for at least seven years. In 2016, we got a look at a rebodied Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 with a hydrogen fuel cell powertrain developed by GM and the US Army Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Center. In 2017, the automaker created its GM Defense division, winning two contracts for conventionally powered trucks in 2020 and 2021. The Detroit Free Press reports that alt-energy is heavy in the frame, the Army having opened a bid for an electric Light Reconnaissance Vehicle (eLRV). Ten companies showed up with product for a demo last year, at least two of which were electric. The U.S. military's largest branch already purchased a single Canoo EV for testing, now it's also bought a new GMC Hummer EV. It's possible that the specific capabilities of an EV are responsible for the Army's quest. The branch canceled its previous LRV program in 2016 that intended to replace the Scout HMMWVs, which were purpose-built versions of the ubiquitous old Hummer. Military.com wrote that the parameters for that search were a rig that could "carry six soldiers, with a total payload 2,100 pounds. The vehicle must not exceed 11,669 pounds so it can be carried internally or sling-loaded by a CH-47 Chinook helicopter. The vehicle must be capable of mounting a weapon system, such as a 30mm cannon, which can engage targets accurately at a range of at least 1,000 meters." Last November, CNBC reported GM Defense was working on a Hummer EV-based military vehicle. Hummer being Hummer, it's likely GM began exploring the martial route once it greenlit the return of the brand. Last year, Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks told CNBC, "Electrifying the non-tactical fleet, that’s a no-brainer," but the search for an eLRV signals an eye on something more intense than shuttling troops. Breaking Defense reported in 2020 that the Army was "working with a non-profit consortium of more than 200 companies and universities developing clean transportation technologies, CALSTART." Task and Purpose said the Army's brief for eLRV missions was, "'enhanced mobility, lethality, protection, mission load capacity, and onboard power' for six soldiers to conduct both mounted and dismounted reconnaissance and surveillance missions for Infantry Brigade Combat Teams." That's not necessarily frontline service, but it's not necessarily a garrison shuttle, either.