GM Files Trademark Application For PowerBase System On Silverado EV

It will be well over a year before buyers can sample the 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV for themselves. When that finally happens, the available PowerBase system will likely be a feature of considerable interest to buyers. And it should still be called PowerBase, since General Motors has now filed an official trademark application for the name.

The US Patent and Trademark Office lists the application as filed by General Motors on January 3, described simply as a power inverter for use in a motor vehicle on land. This one is a bit odd, as we usually see trademark applications long before the trademark enters use, if ever. Two days after this filing, the Chevrolet Silverado EV debuted to the world and the PowerBase charging system featured prominently in the automaker’s pitch. Presumably, there must have been some confidence with the top brass that the name would be official.

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It’s a big deal for the Silverado EV, too. Aside from promoting 400 miles of available range for the lower-priced WT model, the 10.2kW PowerBase system brings all kinds of mobile power solutions to Silverado EV owners. 10 outlets allow for a multitude of items to be plugged in, from basic power tools to entire homes should the power go out. The system can also charge other electric vehicles, and if this all sounds a bit familiar, Ford has prominently mentioned the same functionality for its F-150 Lightning since the electric truck’s debut earlier in 2021. It certainly seems like Chevy is keen to steal some of Ford’s thunder.

That could well happen in the near term, but it will be interesting to see what Chevrolet does to keep the Silverado EV in the minds of potential buyers as the Lightning goes on sale. Ford will beat Chevy to the electric truck market by nearly a year, with Lightning sales expected to start in the summer of 2022. Barring unforeseen delays, the first Silverado EVs will reach dealerships in the spring of 2023.