General Motors writes down $6 billion as domestic EV sales plans change

American automakers who got overenthusiastic about electric vehicles continue to pay the price—literally. Yesterday, General Motors told investors that building and selling fewer EVs will cost the company $6 billion. Still, things could be worse—last month, rival Ford said it would write down $19.5 billion as a result of its failed EV bet. GM is not actually abandoning its EV portfolio, even as it reduces shifts at some plants and repurposes others—like the one in Orion, Michigan—into assembling combustion-powered pickups and SUVs instead of EVs. The electric crossovers, SUVs, and pickups from Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC will remain on sale, with the rebatteried Chevy Bolt joining their ranks this year. But GM says it expects to sell many fewer EVs than once planned. For one thing, the US government abolished the clean vehicle tax credit, which cut the price of an American-made EV by up to $7,500. That government has also told automakers it no longer cares if they sell plenty of inefficient vehicles. Add to that the extreme hostility shown by car dealers toward having to sell EVs in the first place and one can see why GM has decided to retreat, even if we might not sympathize. Back in October 2025 GM recorded a $1.6 billion charge due to the above and shut down BrightDrop, the brand that was building electric delivery vans for the likes of FedEx and Walmart. As for Q4 2025, GM says it must write down $6 billion, $4.2 billion of which will be payments and cancellation fees to suppliers for components the company no longer needs. The company even says it will feel the loss of emissions credits, which have previously helped cash flow.