You won’t find GM’s most unique new production truck in showrooms.
The Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV) built by GM Defense is a high-performance off-road troop carrier based on the Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 pickup.
GM Defense won a $214.3 million contract from the U.S. Army to build an initial run of 649 of the vehicles, but the Army has now given it full-rate production status and could acquire 2,593 over the next eight years.
The trucks are built at a facility in Concord, North Carolina, and use frames provided by the NASCAR racing team Hendrick Motorsports.
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The 5,000-pound vehicles are constructed with 90% off-the-shelf parts, a strategy that helped reduce manufacturing costs.
“I’m proud of the GM Defense team for reaching this important milestone in the Infantry Squad Vehicle program and am thankful for the close relationship we maintain with our trusted U.S. Army program office customer,” GM Defense president Steve duMont said.
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“Achieving the ISV full-rate production decision strengthens our credibility and amplifies the success of our manufacturing processes. By working in close collaboration with our customer, we have delivered more than 300 vehicles to our U.S. Army customer with many already fielded to the Army’s 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions.”
The ISV is a nine-passenger vehicle with an open-body and retractable rollover protection system that allows it to fit inside the CH-47 Chinook helicopter, be slung from a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter, or air dropped from a cargo plane by parachute.
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It’s powered by a 2.8-liter turbodiesel engine, but GM Defense has built a fully-electric version for evaluation.