What, Exactly, Is the Electric Hummer’s “Crab Mode” Setting?

GMC also set a date for the Hummer EV debut in a new teaser

GMC electric Hummer EV SUV using the off-road Crab Mode next to an actual crab
Yes, the new GMC Hummer EV can do the crab walk.
GMC

These days, we all need something to look forward to, no matter how small or inconsequential, to give us the energy to get out of bed every morning. For Hummer fans, the new electric version of that iconic combat-zone-to-culdesac SUV is that ray of hope — and it’s coming sooner than you might think.

GMC announced this week that the Hummer EV will be unveiled to the public on October 20. While specific details about how the automaker will debut the highly anticipated, revamped vehicle in the middle of a pandemic have not been released — Zoom? YouTube? LeBron dunking over the Hummer on Twitch? — chances are it’ll look a lot like the reveal of the new Ford Bronco, an event which was reconfigured after COVID-19 squashed the in-person festivities.

While we’re all waiting, GMC did offer up a little taste of the electrified Hummer’s performance with a 30-second teaser video of something called “Crab Mode.” It’s part of a larger, and honestly annoyingly transparent, trend among automakers that’s been amplified by the pandemic: treating car releases like movies, releasing teaser trailers and snippets of info for diehard fans over months, if not years, of build-up. 

But in this case, Crab Mode actually has our attention. Check it out:

“The supertruck’s industry-leading Crab Mode feature is enabled by the GMC HUMMER EV’s four-wheel steering capability, allowing it to move in a diagonal direction – functionality that is tailor-made for off-roading customers,” the automaker wrote in a press release.

In other words, those days of white-knuckling the steering wheel of your H1 or H2 trying to parallel park are over. Whether you’re daydreaming about buying a new Hummer EV as an off-roader or a grocery getter, it looks like GMC’s aiming to capture the entire spectrum of Hummer-friendly buyers.

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