Honda Patents Reconfigurable Midgate Like Chevrolet Silverado EV

Honda has patented its own version of the midgate, revived in the Chevrolet Silverado EV and GMC Sierra EV pickup trucks.

Honda's patent application, first discovered by Car and Driver and published by the USPTO on June 27, details what the automaker calls an "adjustable cargo compartment divider."

However, it closely resembles a midgate, albeit with some differences from previous production vehicles.

Rather than folding completely down to create an uninterrupted space between the cargo bed and the driver's seat, as in General Motors' midgate design, Honda's version consists of a divider that can be moved back and forth to change the length of the cargo bed. Honda also suggests that the roof can be extended when the divider is in its rearmost position

to increase passenger space in the cab.

GM pioneered the midgate in the early 2000s with the Chevrolet Avalanche and Cadillac Escalade EXT, offering then full-size SUV-like cab space and pickup-like cargo space in one package. However, these midgates left open space in the cab when in use.

Midgate is making a comeback with the Silverado EV and Sierra EV, unibody electric pickups based on GM's Ultium architecture. However, production ramp-up for both trucks has been delayed, and GM recently confirmed that large-scale production of both trucks at the Michigan plant that once built the Chevrolet Volt EV will be delayed until mid-2026.

Honda is not the only automaker considering Midgate. Ford has filed two midgate pass-through patents, one published by the USPTO earlier this year and the other surfacing in 2023, showing a midgate combined with folding seats.