[ad_1]
Line workers work on the chassis of full-size General Motors pickup trucks at the Flint Assembly plant on June 12, 2019 in Flint, Michigan.
JEFF KOWALSKY / AFP / Getty Images
FLINT, Mich. – General Motors plans to invest nearly $1 billion in four U.S. plants to support production of components for electric vehicles as well as its next-generation of V-8 engines, signaling gas-powered trucks and performance cars are here for the foreseeable future.
The $918 million investment announcement on Friday is despite the automaker’s plans to exclusively offer all-electric consumer vehicles by 2035. It’s the latest example of legacy automakers such as GM having to balance its current lineup of vehicles with emerging EVs.
A majority of the investment – $579 million – will go toward preparing GM’s Flint Engine Operations plant in mid-Michigan for the automaker’s sixth-generation family of small block V-8 gas engines.
The engines are used in some of the automaker’s most highly profitable products, such as its full-size pickup trucks and SUVs. They’ve also been used in some Cadillac and Chevrolet performance cars.
GM said work at the Flint facility will begin immediately, signaling the next-generation V-8 engines are on the horizon. The automaker declined to elaborate on timing, performance and other details of the engines. The last new family of V-8 engines came about in 2013.
The remaining investments will occur at other parts operations in Michigan, Ohio and New York for gas-powered parts such as camshafts and manifolds as well as castings to support future EVs, according to GM.
[ad_2]
