2022 GMC Hummer EV dimensions, clearances and off-road features explained

There are two things that almost everyone immediately thinks of when they hear the word "Hummer." And they are size and off-road capability. Looking at the numbers on the 2022 GMC Hummer EV, it seems the electric pickup has literal truck loads of each.

One of the most prodigious numbers is the truck's width. See those clearance marker lights on the roof? They aren't just there for style, they're required by law due its width. At 86.7 inches, it's just a bit wider than a Ford F-150 Raptor, which is itself 6.4 inches wider than a comparable F-150. The Hummer is also 5.5 inches wider than a GMC Sierra.

Length is more reasonable at 216.8 inches, which is much less than a full-size crew cab pickup (a Sierra 1500 is 231.7 inches with its 5-foot-8-inch box or 241.2 with the 6-foot-6 one). It's even 3 inches less than the Raptor SuperCab and only 4.4 inches longer than a GMC Canyon with the standard 5-foot-2-inch box. In other words, the Hummer EV is roughly as long as a midsize pickup but is wider than a heavy-duty one. 

What does that mean for the cabin? With 38.9 inches of rear legroom, it falls well short of a Sierra Crew Cab's 43.4, but it's important to remember that crew cab pickups have an overkill amount of limo-like legroom. The Hummer's amount is still 3.7 inches longer than a Sierra Double Cab and 3.1 inches longer than a Canyon Crew Cab. Headroom, which was rather pathetic in the old Hummer H2, is 38.6 inches in the back seat – less than both its GMC truck siblings, but not by much. In other words, there should be plenty of space back there.

Note that GMC didn't indicate bed length, frunk volume, or importantly, curb weight. We will update this should we find out answers to any of those. 

Although it's big, the Hummer has plenty of features to make it nimble off road, both traditional and high-tech. One of the primary features is the height-adjustable air suspension, which offers 13 inches of travel and automatically adjusts damping for driving conditions. It has three main levels, a lowered setting for Aero Mode that helps with improving highway energy use, a default height for the normal driving modes, and a higher setting for the off-road Terrain Mode. There's also going to be an Extract Mode added with a later software update that can raise the truck an additional 6 inches for particularly tall or deep obstacles, though it will likely be speed limited since that height would leave the drive axles at extreme angles and the suspension very stiff to maintain the height. This also means that ground clearance and other clearances vary, so we've listed them below in normal, Terrain and Extract modes. Also worth noting is that these numbers only apply to Hummer EVs with air suspension. Base models will have a fixed steel suspension.

• Ground Clearance (inches)
  • Normal: 10.1
  • Terrain: 11.9
  • Extract: 15.9

• Approach Angle (degrees)
  • Normal: 41.5
  • Terrain: 44.3
  • Extract: 49.7

• Breakover Angle (degrees)
  • Normal: 22.3
  • Terrain: 25.4
  • Extract: 32.2

• Departure Angle (degrees)
  • Normal: 31.6
  • Terrain: 33.7
  • Extract: 38.4

• Water Fording (inches)
  • Normal: 26
  • Terrain: 28
  • Extract: 32

Another boon to not just off roading, but general driving, is the four-wheel steering system, which is included on all but the base trim. You've likely already seen the Crab Mode system that turns the wheels parallel up to 10 degrees to move diagonally. It can be handy for moving away from a close obstacle like a body-bending rock. But it also has features seen previously with Quadrasteer on mid-2000s GMC Sierra Denalis. At low speeds, the rear wheels can turn opposite the front ones for a turning circle of 37.1 feet as opposed to 44.3. This is great both for tight trails and parking lots. At highway speeds, the rear wheels add small amounts of parallel turning for stability.

For traction, the Hummer EV features front and rear lockers. On the two-motor models, each end gets a mechanical locking differential that's electronically activated by the driver. On the three-motor models, the single front motor gets the electronically activated locking differential. But since the dual rear motors each control a single wheel, speed differences are managed by the motors rather than a differential. This means they can synchronize to be effectively locked, or they can apply different amounts of torque to each wheel (torque vectoring).

Besides torque vectoring, there are some other nifty powertrain tricks. To avoid breaking axles as the result of abundant torque being applied at sharp angles from steering and suspension articulation, the Hummer will adjust the maximum amount of torque applied based on those axle angles. As with GM's other electrified cars, strong regenerative braking is available with multiple levels. There's also a special calibration for Terrain Mode, which allows for low-speed one-pedal driving.

Finally, the Hummer EV has plenty of accommodations for monitoring, controlling and even upgrading the truck. The infotainment system can display roll and pitch angles, tire pressure, torque application, and even multiple exterior camera angles including under the truck for navigating obstacles. Sometimes you'll want to lower tire pressure off road for improved traction, and to assist with that, you can tell the truck what pressure you want, and then you can step out of the truck, start releasing tire pressure, and the truck will audibly alert you to when you've reached the pressure. The infotainment system has the ability to control aftermarket accessories with virtual toggle switches, and while the Hummer comes standard with 35-inch tires, there's room to add bigger 37-inch tires. GMC also says that there will be more than 200 accessories available for the truck direct from GM, such as beadlock-capable wheels.

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By Joel Stocksdale