Yesterday, announced that (previewed by the above teaser image) will debut later this year, set to go on sale around the world starting in early 2012. Now, Inside Line reports that company spokespeople have said that there are no immediate plans to sell the new TrailBlazer SUV here in the United States.
The new TrailBlazer, confirmed as a 2013 model, will be a traditional body-on-frame SUV based on the new mid-size pickup truck. General Motors has confirmed that the new Colorado will be sold here in the U.S.
Even so, we won’t be shocked if GM does decide to bring the TrailBlazer to the U.S. in a few years. For now, however, the new SUV will be built and sold in South America and Asia, with Thailand slated to get the first vehicles.
Details about the deal announced this morning between the and United Auto Workers union have surfaced, and it’s apparent that the smaller, less financially stable automaker has given away the least compared to already struck with the UAW by cross-town rivals General Motors and .
First up is money. Automotive News reports that each of Chrysler’s hourly workers will receive at least $5,750 in bonuses and other payments under the new agreement, which still requires ratification by the union’s rank and file. That includes a signing bonus of $3,500, which is markedly less than the $5,000 bonus offered by GM and $6,000 by Ford. AN also reports that the signing bonus will be paid out in two parts, one now and another when Chrysler “achieves financial stability.” Other available bonuses include a yearly performance bonus of $500 and another $500 if quality targets are met, as well as a $1,000 bonus for hitting “world class manufacturing metrics.”
Wages for entry-level workers will also rise, with the base rate of $14 an hour increasing to $15.78 immediately and then steadily increasing to $19.28 an hour by the end of the four-year contract. Better benefits, tuition assistance and a more generous profit-sharing plan are also part of the deal.
Finally, Chrysler has agreed to billions of dollars of new investment in its U.S. manufacturing base and expects the new deal will create 2,100 additional jobs. The biggest investment of $1.3 billion will be made in Chrysler’s transmission plants in Kokomo, Indiana, which are slated to build the company’s next-generation eight- and nine-speed automatic transmissions. Other big winners include the assembly plant in Belvidere, Indiana that currently makes the , and and is scheduled to receive a new small vehicle in the future; it would receive a $600 million investment. Chrysler’s plant in Sterling Heights, Michigan that makes the , and would also get an $850 million investment.
General Motors announced today that it would be overhauling its smallest engines, replacing three engine families with a new, modular Ecotec design. Production of new three- and four-cylinder powerplants should begin mid-decade, ramping up to over two million engines a year by 2020.
While GM didn’t indicate which models might benefit from the redesigned mills, with displacements ranging from just 1.0 to 1.5 liters, these new Ecotecs are more likely to find homes outside of North America. GM did state that the U.S. is “not in initial market plans” for the three-cylinder. The company expects to use the engines throughout its global vehicle programs, with multiple manufacturing locations. The engines were co-developed with Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. (SAIC), Shanghai General Motors (SGM) and the Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center (PATAC).
As for details on the new design, GM said in a statement, “They will feature lightweight design and advanced technologies such as direct injection, turbocharging and alternative fuel compatibility” as well as being “designed to reduce noise, vibration and harshness.”
Open-wheel racing is returning to the Motor City next summer. The Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix will be held June 1-3, the first of a three-year sponsorship deal between General Motors, Penske Corporation and the IndyCar series. The weekend of racing will feature not only an IndyCar race, but the first Grand-Am event ever held on Detroit’s island course.
The new Detroit race will take the place of another IndyCar event on the schedule, though officials did not say which one. IndyCar officials expect starting grids to have 25-28 cars next season. Other support races for the Detroit weekend include a V-Series Challenge and an Indy Light race.
Race organizers said they plan to spend $6 million to rehab the racing facility, which last saw action in 2008. Detroit has a long and tumultuous history of hosting open wheel racing events on city streets, dating back to 1982, when Formula 1 ran on a course through downtown. In 1989 the Detroit Grand Prix moved to the current location at Belle Isle, a public park in the Detroit River, where several races under different sanctioning bodies have been held intermittently over the years. for GM’s official release.
Maybe it was the Detroit Tigers decisive win in game three of the American League Championship Series, but something put the United Auto Workers and negotiators in the mood to compromise last night. The Detroit News is reporting that the union announced a deal just before 7:00 AM today.
Chrysler is the last of Detroit’s traditional “Big Three” automakers to come to terms with the UAW, as negotiations had been rockier than those with the other car companies. Last month Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne accused UAW President Bob King of playing favorites with General Motors, and putting his own political agenda ahead of the interests of union members. The UAW then to negotiate with , last week.
What effect this gamesmanship had on the contract remains to be seen, however, The Detroit News says that the agreement with Chrysler is expected to resemble those reached with GM and Ford. Those contracts call for replacing wage increases with a revamped profit-sharing system. But the Chrysler deal might have some substantial differences due to Chrysler’s weaker financial health, says the report.
Chrysler has 26,000 hourly employees in the U.S., but that number should go up under the new deal. The UAW says the agreement would add 2,100 new jobs by the end of 2015. Other sources told the newspaper that new workers are likely to be paid more, as well, with one of the key provisions of the contract being a raise for second-tier employees, to $19.28 an hour.
Looks like there was a good reason that dropped the “” tagline for its . That anti-EV phrase , and the reason why was announced this morning in Detroit. General Motors has revealed that in addition to selling its global Chevy Spark mini car in the U.S. next year, an all-electric version called the Spark EV will be joining it in 2013.
That GM is working on an all-electric Spark ; a version of the vehicle (also known as the Beat) earlier this year and GM CEO Dan Akerson said at the this past January that his company was working on an all-electric vehicle to be sold in the U.S. A Spark EV also fit the rumors that GM’s new electric car would be small and designed for urban areas, particularly in California, where it would be used to meet the upcoming ZEV mandate changes.
Official details released by GM this morning back this up. According to the automaker, the Spark EV will use nanophosphate lithium-ion battery packs from A123 Systems and be sold in “limited quantities in select U.S. and global markets starting in 2013, including California.” More specific details about power, range and overall performance will be released at a later date.
We’re in the heart of General Motors’ downtown Detroit headquarters for a press conference tied to the 100th anniversary of , and Chris Perry, the brand’s Vice President of Global Marketing and Strategy, has just confirmed a new . To be based on the company’s new global mid-size , the vehicle will be unveiled November 10 at the Dubai Motor Show.
Chevrolet officials have not yet offered word on where this vehicle will be built or in which markets it will be available, but given that the Colorado has recently been confirmed for the U.S., we wouldn’t be surprised to see a new TrailBlazer once again plying America’s roads.
Earlier this year, we received of a new mid-size General Motors SUV testing near the automaker’s headquarters, meaning development of the Colorado-based TrailBlazer could already be well under way.
More details as they become available.
UPDATE: General Motors has released an official teaser image (above) as well as a press release, available . The automaker confirms that the 2013 TrailBlazer will first go on sale in Thailand beginning in early 2012.
For years, Detroit automakers would argue that the Japanese yen was artificially devalued, and that the value of the currency was a big competitive advantage to the likes of and . To erase this gap, The Detroit Three pressured suppliers to lower costs in any way possible, which caused ill-will within their supply bases. In fact, Japanese automakers routinely scored higher in supplier relation studies, while , and hovered at the bottom of the list.
One massive global recession and a fast-rising yen later, it appears that the shoe is on the other foot. Automotive News reports that Toyota has made it clear to its 219 largest domestic suppliers that costs must be cut or business will be lost to countries with cheaper labor.
Toyota reportedly loses $343 million in profit for every one yen the currency rises against the dollar. Given that the Japanese currency has risen by 13 versus the dollar over the past year, Toyota could be looking at a staggering $4.5 billion in losses. For perspective, that’s more than half of Toyota’s total research and development spending for any given year. Ouch.
And Toyota isn’t alone in looking for ways to combat the rising yen. Honda that it was going to build more vehicles outside of Japan. CEO Carlos Ghosn recently asked the Japanese government to adjust the issue of the rising yen, or risk losing a great deal of the country’s industrial base.
Given its currency conundrum, we can’t blame Toyota for looking for more cost-effective ways to build vehicles. But when GM, Ford and Chrysler were in the same predicament, corners were cut and many vehicles were less competitive than they could and should have been. As a result, The Detroit Three had to add heavy incentives just to move product and their reputations suffered. Here’s hoping history doesn’t repeat itself.
As expected, General Motors has just announced that the company’s global is, in fact, headed our way. The company says that the vehicle’s fuel efficiency, design and capability all make it ideal for American buyers, and that the excitement surrounding the truck’s earlier this month helped push the company to decide to bring it to the States. Unfortunately, GM isn’t saying where the truck will be built or what kind of drivetrain(s) it will offer when it arrives. We have our fingers crossed for the 2.8-liter turbo diesel Duramax four-cylinder engine with 356 pound-feet of torque.
Of course, we have a hard time believing that GM would be willing to sell a mid-sized truck with that kind of power given that the engine bests the torque figures provided by the base V8 currently available in the , but that won’t stop us from lighting a candle, as we
think the U.S. market is itching for a reliable diesel mid-sized truck.
When it arrives, the Colorado will face diminished small- and mid-size pickup competition now that is finally calling it quits with the and has the . for GM’s official press release.
has announced that the world’s most powerful production droptop* – the 2013 Chevrolet Convertible – will officially debut at the in November. Like its coupe kin, the ZL1 Convertible will pack 580 horsepower and 556 pound-feet of torque from its supercharged 6.2-liter LSA V8, besting the Convertible’s power figures of 550 hp and 510 lb-ft.
Good thing is working on that for the next-generation GT500. The horsepower wars are anything but dead.
GM tells us that it has added a whole host of supports and reinforcements to the ZL1 Convertible’s body structure in an effort to reduce droptop demons like cowl shake. The improvements include things like a front X brace and rear V brace, a transmission support reinforcement brace, underbody tunnel brace and tower-to-tower brace under the hood.
The Camaro ZL1 coupe goes on sale in early 2012, and we’d expect the convertible to arrive shortly thereafter. We’ll have the full details in Los Angeles next month, but for now, for GM’s official release.
*Apparently cars like the don’t count in GM’s world.
General Motors is recalling 5,755 coupes for potentially faulty hatch hinges that could break loose in a crash. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the rear hatch hinges on Vettes built between January and September don’t meet federal weight capacity requirements.
The recall was scheduled to start on Oct. 7. According to the recall, dealers will notify owners of the recall and inspect and replace both hinges for free as necessary. for a press release.
The Opel Astra CC suffers from the same ailment as other small, hardtop convertibles like the Renault Megane and Peugeot 308 cc: an ungainly backside. Stowing a tin roof that needs to cover four people inside a small car just blows things up in the rear. That’s why the head of design in Europe says that the next Astra cabrio won’t be a hardtop, but return to cloth.
And in fact, it won’t even be called “Astra.” Set to bow in 2012, it will break from that nomenclature and forge its own – as yet unknown – brand path. “This car demands a new name,” it was said, because “it will look nothing like an Astra,” burdened as it will be with continuing the fight to raise Opel and cachet as, a battle begun with the Insignia.
We thought the we saw at the was pretty hot – put a softtop on that and hold its stance, and we’d applaud. But if Opel has something even better in mind, well then bring on 2012. We can’t wait to see it.
General Motors has formally established its first-ever car-sharing gig by signing a deal with . GM’s head of business development initiatives, Bob Tiderington, remarked:
We could stand on the sidelines and watch or we could choose to participate and try to make it into a favorable business model, which in this particular case, we have.
General Motors intends to adapt its OnStar tech to facilitate peer-to-peer car sharing through RelayRides. With OnStar in their vehicle, owners wishing to join the RelayRides car-sharing program will no longer have to install a separate device that allows entry and use of the vehicle.
When the peer-to-peer scheme kicks off in early 2012, all General Motors vehicles built after 2010 and equipped with OnStar will be peer-to-peer-ready, says Tiderington. That’s approximately 1.7 million vehicles that could transform into peer-to-peer automobiles overnight, at least in theory.
The breakthrough here is that RelayRides will no longer have to equip participating vehicles with an add-on device that lets a renter access it with a membership card. With OnStar, the service can be turned on with no more than a couple of movements and clicks of a mouse.
General Motors is aiming to improve fuel economy performance on both the and the by integrating the company’s eAssist hybrid system, according to GM Inside News. The report cites multiple unnamed sources indicating that the hybrid crossovers will debut for the 2014 model year, and that they will utilize the same eAssist system found on sedans like the , and . The system pairs a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine with a 15 kilowatt electric motor and a 115-volt lithium-ion battery pack.
So far, GM has priced its eAssist models identically to the company’s V6 offerings. If that trend continues, buyers will have their choice of fuel-efficient crossovers without having to endure a price penalty. As you may recall, the yields an EPA-estimated 25 mpg city and 37 mpg highway, which we’re guessing wouldn’t be too far off of what a front-wheel drive Equinox or Terrain eAssist would be capable of returning.
Owners of 2005-2007 , , Rainier and SUV models with faulty gas gauges now have some recourse. According to a report in The Detroit News, General Motors will cover half the repair costs for select vehicles with malfunctioning fuel level sensors. According to a GM spokesman, that should mean paying less than $200 for the fix, provided the SUV in question has less than 120,000 miles on the clock.
GM’s offer stems from a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation that was launched in April, after GM and NHTSA received thousands of complaints of gauge failure. According to the report, nearly 300,000 vehicles may experience premature wear on the fuel level sensor contacts. This can lead to incorrect fuel level readings, especially after filling the tank, when the gauge may still show empty. But it can also result in the gas gauge showing more fuel than is actually in the tank, leading to the inevitable running out of gas and engine stalling. A total of 867,337 vehicles were included in the investigation.
GM issued a service bulletin to dealers in August, as well as a notification to owners. So if your Trailblazer is running on empty, you might want to check your mailbox and start looking for change under the seats.
GM Inside News reports that General Motors is working on a new turbocharged four-cylinder engine for the Cadillac ATS. The small-displacement engine is expected to produce between 270 and 280 horsepower. Those are impressive figures, though there’s no indication as to whether or not the engine will require premium fuel.
If true, the engine’s introduction only stokes the rumors indicating that GM is walking away from V6 drivetrain options in its mid-size offerings altogether. Automakers like and have already abandoned the six, allowing those companies to produce lighter, more efficient sedans that are just as powerful as their V6 competition.
GMI says that the new 2.0-liter will be cut from the same cloth as the 2.5-liter Ecotec four-cylinder that GM recently unveiled in the . In other words, while it may borrow some tricks from the turbo 2.0-liter lump that powers the Buick Regal GS, it will by and large be its own beast.
We want to be in that number when the Saints go marching in. And so does , apparently, as the German automaker has acquired the naming rights to the stadium where the New Orleans football team plays.
The deal will see the recently renovated stadium (which is also set to host the 2013 Super Bowl and the 2012 Final Four of men’s college basketball) renamed as the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, and will see the Silver Star appear next to the team’s Fleur-de-Lis logo for the next ten years as official and exclusive vehicle of the Saints.
This isn’t the first time that a sports venue has been named for an automaker. Racetracks aside, the Detroit Lions play at Field, the Vancouver Canucks at Place and the Houston Rockets at Center. There are even Mercedes-Benz venues in Stuttgart, Shanghai and South Africa. It is, however, the first time a luxury automaker has acquired such naming rights in the United States, and you can bet it’s one which MBUSA will be keen to leverage and bank on for years to come. Details in the press release .
It sounds like the good people at General Motors have been having some fun with their newest toy; the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Jason Laird, executive director for product and technology communications at GM, tweeted that the meanest Camaro of them all managed to lap the Nurburgring in a scant 7:41.27.
If you’re keeping track, that time puts the ZL1 in some pretty heady company. Hardware like the Porsche 911 GT3, , and the have all done the deed slower, though perhaps not in the same conditions with the same driver. Regardless, it’s fast.
Currently there’s no word on who was behind the wheel during that mad dash around the track, but we have our fingers crossed for some suitably spectacular video sometime soon. Our hats go off to the suspension gurus at GM for an impressive effort. Just don’t tell James May…
General Motors has officially unveiled the company’s global in Thailand. The automaker says the truck is the culmination of a vehicle program that spanned five years, $2 billion and five continents. What did all that effort come up with? For starters, buyers in Thailand will be able to chose between a pair of new turbo-diesel four-cylinder Duramax engines. The engines are available in both 2.5-liter and 2.8-liter displacements, with the smaller lump producing 150 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque.
The larger, 2.8-liter turbo diesel yields 180 hp and a very impressive 346 lb-ft of torque. For reference, that’s just 20 horsepower shy of the base 4.8-liter V8 in the Chevrolet Silverado 1500, but it’s also 41 more lb-ft of torque. GM hasn’t released any fuel economy estimates on either diesel engine, but both can be mated to either a five-speed manual or a six-speed automatic transmission. Four-wheel drive versions of the Colorado make use of a two-speed, electronically actuated transfer case.
Will it come our way? GM isn’t saying, but recent United Auto Workers deal-related news suggests that a mid-size truck like this one . We’ve got our fingers crossed. Check out our high-res gallery and then for the press release.
and the United Auto Workers have agreed to a tentative labor agreement, according to Automotive News. The pact makes Ford the second domestic automaker to come to reach an accord with the labor union, and the deal covers some 41,000 workers. The agreement is expected to be discussed in further detail during separate press conferences held by representatives from the UAW and Ford. While no solid details are available as of the time of writing, Automotive News suggests that the deal may be very similar to the one that General Motors and the UAW recently agreed upon.
That means that we can likely to expect to see Ford planning to add or maintain domestic jobs through a variety of plant investments. Even so, Ford had sought to reduce its labor costs heading into negotiations. Some analysts suggest that Ford pays anywhere from $2-9 more per labor hour than GM or once benefits are accounted for. Additionally, Ford has fewer lower-paid workers than either of its two domestic competitors, and the automaker pays those workers more.
Stay tuned for details on the agreement.
UPDATE: Ford has released an official press release (available after the jump) stating that the automaker will add 12,000 hourly jobs in its U.S. manufacturing facilities by 2015. What’s more, Ford will invest $16 billion in the U.S. for new vehicles and components by 2015.
