GM Defense Wins Contract to Build a Family of Vehicles, Based on the Colorado ZR2, for the U.S. Army

GM Defense has won a huge contract from the U.S. Army to create troop carriers. The unique trucks are based on the Colorado ZR2 midsize truck and use race car technology to make them lighter, faster and more agile on difficult terrain.

GM Defense says the U.S. Army has given it a contract to build several different vehicles based on its Infantry Squad Vehicle or ISV. GM Defense won the initial $214.3 million contract to develop the light and agile all-terrain troop carrier to transport a nine-soldier infantry squad and their equipment in June 2020. GM Defense has already delivered more than 300 of the vehicles and isn’t saying how many more will be built or how much its new defense contract will be worth.

“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,” said Steve duMont, GM Defense president. “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 Part Off-Road Truck and Part Race Car

The ISV is based on the award-winning Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 midsize truck and uses 90 percent commercial-off-the-shelf parts. The ISV also uses Chevrolet Performance race car parts making it lighter and faster while still being built for heavy duty endurance. The ISV weighs 5,000 pounds which 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 vehicle’s high percentage of commercial parts means that it is easier to find parts for and easier to fix in remote locations. Replacement parts don’t have to be specially fabricated or shipped in. General Motors has dealers and parts suppliers all over the globe.

“Our flexibility during the pursuit of the ISV helped us win the early stages of the contract award and has since played a pivotal role in delivering the best value solution to the U.S. Army,” said Rick Kewley, GM Defense vice president of Product Development and Advanced Engineering. “Not only did customer feedback make the ISV better at an accelerated pace, but it also helped us bring to bear the engineering and manufacturing expertise from our parent company, General Motors, to add new capabilities while fulfilling the Army’s design and performance requirements. We remain confident in our ability to meet higher production quantities in the future.”

New Family of Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 - Based Vehicles

GM Defense has expanded the ISV lineup by transforming the nine- passenger troop carrier into a family of vehicles. The GM Defense-produced ISV models offer vehicles that can be adapted for a broad range of uses, including fire support, command and control, electronic warfare, counter-unmanned aircraft systems, reconnaissance and logistics, and casualty evacuation.

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Mary Conway is a professional automotive journalist and has decades of experience specializing in automotive news analysis. She covered the Detroit Three for more than twenty years for the ABC affiliate, in Detroit. Her affection for the Motor City comes naturally. Her father ran a gas station while Mary was growing up, in Wisconsin.

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