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General Motors could make a Hummer EV-inspired military vehicle

Follow the GMC HUMMER EV on its testing and development journey as a team of engineers visits locations across the U.S. to tune the GMC HUMMER EV in the lead-up to its production debut this fall.

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General Motors could have plans to produce a military prototype vehicle based on the upcoming Hummer EV under its GMC brand. The Hummer EV-inspired military transport could come as soon as 2022, officials said.

GM Defense President Steve duMont said the automaker is in the early stages of the project, but it is working on arguably the most important portion of early development: commercializing GM’s EV business to include a Hummer-based “electric Light Reconnaissance Vehicle” that could be utilized by military branches, especially the Army.

“The Army’s very excited about the fact that we’re investing in this,” duMont said in an interview with CNBC. “The eLRV, that’s the first purpose-built from the ground, up. You saw it today, it’s our Hummer EV. Our Hummer EV is what we’re going to base that vehicle on.” duMont was visited by Kathleen Hicks, Deputy Secretary of Defense, just after the interview to discuss GM’s electrification plans and GM Defense’s Research and Development stages for the use of EVs as military vehicles.

(Credit: GMC)

It should not take much convincing, however. The Department of Defense is “very sold” on the idea of electric vehicles, Hicks said during a tour of GM’s facilities earlier this week. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has even tipped his cap toward EVs and has stated in the past that policies and procedures that could help combat climate change are supported.

GM and the military could work together to create more effective electric military vehicles. “However they want to do it, we can work with them on that journey because we’re doing that today,” duMont said of a potential partnership with the DoD. GM Defense said last year that it had up to $25 billion in potential business for these types of vehicles.

The vehicle that would be introduced to military members as a mode of sustainable transportation will be based off the Hummer EV, which GM plans to begin producing later this year. It will not be an identical twin of the electrified Hummer. Instead, there will be modified parts and components that will make the vehicle more likely to be effective in a military setting. The frame, motors, and Ultium batteries, which GM is putting major weight into for its push to EVs over the next 13 years, will all be modified to work effectively in wartime scenarios.

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As for the DoD’s fleet of military vehicles, the government may have plans to make them all-electric. However, it will not occur in the blink of an eye. “Electrifying the non-tactical fleet, that’s a no-brainer,” Hicks said to CNBC in an emailed statement. “With the tactical fleet, it’s about this issue of how we move forward, and the capabilities we gain.”

I’d love to hear from you! If you have any comments, concerns, or questions, please email me at joey@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Joey has been a journalist covering electric mobility at TESLARATI since August 2019. In his spare time, Joey is playing golf, watching MMA, or cheering on any of his favorite sports teams, including the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, Miami Heat, Washington Capitals, and Penn State Nittany Lions. You can get in touch with joey at joey@teslarati.com. He is also on X @KlenderJoey. If you're looking for great Tesla accessories, check out shop.teslarati.com

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SpaceX calls off Starship 10 flight attempt once again

SpaceX is calling off a potential launch of Starship this evening, marking the second consecutive night the tenth test flight of the massive rocket will be delayed.

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Credit: SpaceX

SpaceX is calling off a potential launch of Starship this evening, marking the second consecutive night the tenth test flight of the massive rocket will be delayed.

Originally planning to launch on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. local time in Starbase, Texas, SpaceX was forced to delay the tenth launch of Starship due to a hardware issue.

“Ground side liquid oxygen leak needs to be fixed. Aiming for another launch attempt tomorrow,” CEO Elon Musk posted on the social media platform X.

Starship Flight 10 rescheduled as SpaceX targets Monday launch

The launch was then pushed to Monday night, and the launch window was set to start at the same time as Sunday. However, SpaceX would push it back to 6:44 p.m. due to some weather issues.

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Eventually, Starship seemed like it was trending toward a launch, but weather continued to persist in the area, with thunder, rain, and lightning all threatening in the area.

At around 7:03 p.m., SpaceX decided to stand down once again, confirming weather was the culprit of yet another delay:

SpaceX will likely try again on Tuesday night, but the company has not yet confirmed if it will open another launch window.

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WATCH: SpaceX Starship Flight 10 launch

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Credit: SpaceX

SpaceX is set to launch its tenth test flight of the Starship program, with a launch window that will open at 6:44 p.m. local time, or 7:44 p.m. on the East Coast.

Starship’s tenth test flight was originally scheduled for launch yesterday with a one-hour window that opened at 7:30 p.m. ET, but it was called off 17 minutes before that window even had a chance to open.

Starship Flight 10 rescheduled as SpaceX targets Monday launch

SpaceX moved the flight to tonight. It was also originally scheduled to have a launch window at the same time as Sunday, but it was pushed back 14 minutes to around 6:30 p.m. ET. There are storms in the area, as well as clouds over Starbase, so there is the off chance for another launch delay.

There are several big objectives for this launch, including the expansion of the operating envelope for the Super Heavy booster. SpaceX says there are “multiple landing burn tests planned.”

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The booster will also be performing a few in-flight experiments to help with data collection. Specifically, real-world performance data on future flight profiles and off-nominal scenarios will be on the list of things SpaceX will be looking for.

Starship itself will have a few in-flight objectives that include the deployment of eight Starlink simulators that are similar in size to the next-gen satellites for the internet service. SpaceX was set to test this with Starship’s seventh test flight, which occurred in January 2025. However, the task was abandoned as the vehicle was destroyed before deployment could occur.

Liftoff conditions are currently looking favorable, and SpaceX will be eager to improve upon its Starship launch program as CEO Elon Musk has big plans for it in the coming years.

You can watch the launch below via SpaceX:

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Tesla looks to expand Robotaxi geofence once again with testing in new area

It looks as if Tesla is preparing for its next expansion of the geofence, potentially moving toward a much larger service area that could eclipse 150 square miles.

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Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer | X

Tesla looks to be preparing for the potential expansion of the Robotaxi geofence once again, as the company was spotted testing the suite in an area well outside of the Austin service area.

After it first launched the Robotaxi platform on June 22, Tesla has managed to expand its geofence twice, essentially doubling the travel area both times.

The most recent expansion took the size of the geofence from 42 square miles to about 80 square miles, bringing new neighborhoods and regions of the city into the realm of where the driverless vehicles could take passengers.

However, it looks as if Tesla is preparing for its next expansion of the geofence, potentially moving toward a much larger service area that could eclipse 150 square miles.

Over the weekend, one fan noticed a Robotaxi validation vehicle testing in Bee Cave, Texas, which is roughly 25 minutes from the edge of the current geofence:

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Tesla has been testing vehicles in the western suburbs of Austin for some time, and it seems the company is laying some groundwork to push its geofence expansion into Plaid Mode as competition with Waymo continues to be at the forefront of the conversation.

Waymo has been expanding with Tesla for some time, as the pace of expansion for the two companies has been relatively accelerated for the past couple of months.

Tesla’s expansions of the geofence sent a clear message to competitors and doubters, but it is still aiming to keep things safe and not push the envelope too quickly.

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The geofence expansion is impressive, but Tesla is also focusing on expanding its vehicle fleet in both Austin and the Bay Area, where it launched a ride-hailing service in July.

Tesla Bay Area autonomous fleet to grow to over 100 units: Elon Musk

Still, safety is the priority at the current time.

“We are being very cautious. We do not want to take any chances, so we are going to go cautiously. But the service areas and the number of vehicles in operation will increase at a hyper-exponential rate,” CEO Elon Musk said during the Q2 Earnings Call.

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