Buick is committed to offering a fully electric lineup by 2030 and will launch its first electric vehicle in 2024. That EV will carry the Electra name, and it may just be the first in a whole family of Electra-branded models.

A search of the United States Patent and Trademark Office database reveals nine trademarks filed by GM in October for “Electra E1” through to “Electra E9.” The trademarks were filed under the section for "motor land vehicles," and join previous trademarks filed by GM for “Electra” and “Electra GS.”

The Electra name was a fixture in Buick's lineup for decades. It first appeared for the 1959 model year and lasted until 1990. GM revived it in 2020 for an Electra crossover concept, and then used it again in June for an Electra-X crossover concept.

Buick Electra-X concept

Buick Electra-X concept

Buick said those concepts specifically preview electric vehicles bound for China, though some aspects may also preview elements on Buick's EVs destined for sale in the U.S. Buick in June also rolled out the Wildcat EV coupe concept, which also previews the design for Buick's upcoming production EVs.

Buick has confirmed two EVs for the U.S. market, both of them SUVs based on GM's Ultium platform. One will have conventional proportions, while the other will have a more coupe-like profile. It's possible the U.S.-bound EVs will be called the Electra and Electra GS, while the Electra alphanumeric combos are reserved for the Chinese market, where Buick's lineup is bigger and more diverse than the one in the U.S.

Of course, automakers often trademark names they have no immediate plans to use, sometimes as a way to maintain control of names with special significance, and that could simply be the case here.