[imagesource: Jim Frenak-FPI Studios / General Motors]

The Hummer EV doesn’t create smog by spewing exhaust into the environment.

It’s not a massive gas guzzler either, per se.

But that doesn’t mean it is actually that much better and more environmentally friendly when compared to the original Hummer.

In fact, when it comes to carbon emissions, the Hummer EV may be more like its predecessors than anyone thought, according to Robb Report.

A new study from non-profit organisation American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) has revealed that the Hummer EV still has a lot of ground to cover before it can become the eco-conscious bruiser that fans were hoping for:

Image: GMC

To drive this point home, the battery-powered vehicle produces more greenhouse gas emissions than a gas-powered sedan:

Battery-powered vehicles like GMC’s supertruck get their power from the electric grid and, in the US, 60 percent of electricity is produced by burning fossil fuel, according to ACEEE. Because of this, EVs will still be responsible for “upstream emissions” until the grid is completely carbon free.

Despite this, the emissions generated by a traditionally sized electric car are still far lower than those generated by their gas-powered counterparts.

The new Hummer, because of how ginormous it is in both size and weight – tipping the scales at 4 110 kilograms, 5,4 metres long, and 1,96 metres tall – requires immense energy to move.

Typical Hummer problems.

Image: GMC

Taking up that kind of space is never good for the environment, per Input Mag:

The gas-guzzling Chevy Malibu, for example, produces about 320 grams of carbon dioxide per mile driven. The new Hummer EV, which weighs in at just over 9,000 pounds, emits approximately 341 grams of CO2 per mile driven [which is less than half the 889 grams per miles produced by the original Hummer], based on average global power grid consumption.

A combination of general inefficiency and vehicle size essentially renders GMC’s Hummer worse for climate change than your typical sedan.

Peter Huether, ACEEE’s senior research analyst for transportation, reckons that “reducing weight, enhancing aerodynamics, improving electric motors, and reducing battery size will each increase EV efficiency”.

While the Hummer EV’s ability to hit 96 kilometres per hour in less than three seconds and drive 529 kilometres on a single charge is astonishing, it really ought to be more green.

Sure, the Hummer EV uses less than half the CO2 of a traditional Hummer, but perhaps the world could actually just do without any Hummers at all.

[source:robbreport]