GM breaks EV range record with elaborate 2026 Silverado EV drive test
To address that concern and to amuse its engineers, General Motors put its electric truck to the test last week and smashed a distance record in the process.
Under meticulous parameters — including restricting the use of air conditioning in the July heat — the 2026 Chevrolet Silverado EV Work Truck set a new world record for electric vehicle range, traveling 1,059.2 miles on a single charge, more than double the truck's EPA-estimated range of 493 miles.
Lucid Motors held the previous record for electric vehicle range, with 749 miles earlier this summer.
GM and other automakers are limited to what they can advertise about their vehicles' ranges outside of the EPA test cycle conducted at the National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory in Ann Arbor. Stephanie Brinley, associate director of Auto Intelligence at S&P Global Mobility, said those tests are meant to create a level playing field among automakers to compare how vehicle ranges perform under the same set of conditions.
'It's very rarely precise on what you get in the real world, but automakers are only able to advertise what number comes out of that test cycle,' Brinley said. The Silverado EV test allowed GM to demonstrate in a one-off case that there's more potential in the battery pack than a consumer may expect.
The Silverado EV reached the record after months of preparation and planning.
First, the vehicle was optimized, but only in a way that customers could replicate at home, according to GM spokeswoman Catherine Scales.
According to the company those optimizations included:
Maintaining an average speed of 20-25 mph when safe to do so and avoiding hard braking or quick acceleration.
Conducting most of the test with the driver alone in the vehicle.
The windshield wiper blades were set to the 'lowest acceptable' position to reduce drag.
The Silverado's tires were inflated to their highest acceptable pressure for lower rolling resistance except for the spare, which was removed to lighten the load.
The wheel alignment 'was optimized.'
An accessory tonneau cover was added to streamline airflow around the truck bed.
Climate control was off.
Another factor that helped the vehicle's battery life was performing the test in summer, which GM said provided the 'optimum ambient temperature for battery efficiency.'
The test was conducted over the course of one week on public roads near GM's Milford Proving Ground and on Belle Isle. Forty GM engineers volunteered to drive the vehicle.
GM sold 5,439 Silverado EVs in the first six months of 2025, up 67% over last year but still falling drastically short of its gasoline-powered predecessor. GM sold 289,251 across all Silverado types, including medium and light-duty versions.
Jackie Charniga covers General Motors for the Free Press. Reach her at jcharniga@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: GM breaks EV range record with elaborate 2026 Silverado EV drive test
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