GM Delivers First Infantry Squad Vehicle to Army

GM Defense, a subsidiary of General Motors, made its first delivery of the Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV) to the U.S. Army.

As part of a $214.3 million contract awarded in June, the all-terrain troop carrier, based off the 2020 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2, is designed to transport a nine-soldier infantry squad and their equipment. 

 GM Defense Infantry Squad Vehicle (Photo Courtesy GM defense)

GM Defense will manufacture 649 ISVs in total, and will support the production of up to 2,065 vehicles with additional authorization over eight years.

The 5,000-pound ISV was engineered to fulfill military requirements and designed to provide rapid ground mobility. The expeditionary ISV is light enough to be sling loaded from a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter and compact enough to fit inside a CH-47 Chinook helicopter for air transportability.

The midsize truck architecture leverages 90 percent commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) parts, including Chevrolet Performance race components.

These commercial parts, combined with the ISV’s innovative Rollover Protection System, will provide agile transportability on the battlefield to support mission success.

 The GM Defense ISV is based off the award-winning 2020 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 midsize truck architecture, as shown here.

General Motors recently underwent multiple leadership transitions that will focus on rapidly scaling up vehicle electrification and autonomous technologies. Should this technology improve to a point it is commercially viable, more military contracts may be using electric COTS parts from GM Defense.

For now, this is the first major award and delivery the subsidiary since it was reestablished by its parent company in 2017.