2009 Gmc Sierra 1500 Sle on 2040-cars

Auto blog

GM pickup truck plant in Flint to add 1,000 assembly workers

FLINT, Mich. — General Motors said Tuesday it will add 1,000 workers to build new heavy-duty pickup trucks at its plant in Flint, Michigan, and will give priority to GM workers who were laid off elsewhere. The announcement comes the day after GM said it was starting to hand pink slips to about 4,000 salaried workers in the latest round of a restructuring announced in late November that will ultimately shrink its white-collar workforce in North America by 15 percent out of 54,000. GM has come under fire from U.S. President Donald Trump and Midwestern lawmakers for its plans to stop production at five North American factories and cut up to 15,000 jobs in all. The automaker has said it is trying to find new jobs for 1,500 U.S. hourly workers at the affected plants. Flint's truck plant could be a haven for many of these employees. Sales of heavy-duty pickups in the United States have grown to more than 600,000 vehicles a year, up more than 20 percent since 2013, according to industry data. Prices for luxury models can easily top $70,000. GM on Tuesday will celebrate the launch of a new generation of heavy-duty GMC and Chevrolet pickups at the assembly plant in Flint, Michigan, that is now building all such trucks for the company. Elsewhere in the company on Monday, two people briefed on the cuts in the white-collar salaried workforce said GM is cutting hundreds of jobs at its information technology centers in Texas, Georgia, Arizona and Michigan and more than 1,000 jobs at its Warren, Michigan Tech Center. GM is filing new required mass layoff notices with state agencies and disclosed the cuts to lawmakers. The largest U.S. automaker announced in November it would cut a total of about 15,000 jobs and end production at five North American plants. The cuts include eliminating about 8,000 salaried workers, or about 15 percent. GM cut about 1,500 contract workers in December and said 2,300 salaried workers accepted buyouts, officials said. "These actions are necessary to secure the future of the company, including preserving thousands of jobs in the U.S. and globally. We are taking action now while the overall economy and job market are strong, increasing the ability of impacted employees to continue to advance in their careers, should they choose to do so," GM spokesman Pat Morrissey said, adding the bulk of the cuts should be completed in the next two weeks. Morrissey said GM would provide salaried workers with severance packages and job placement services.

GMC caught using Rivian R1T image for Sierra Denali EV Photoshop

The rise of electric start-ups have many legacy automakers checking their rear view mirrors as they scramble to join the EV party. Most wouldn't like to admit it publicly, but we know that at least some folks at General Motors are keeping an eye on Rivian. That's because a recent post on social media account by the General Motors design department appears to have used an image of the Rivian R1T, but heavily photoshopped. The post was intended as a peek of the GMC Sierra Denali EV's rear view. Eagle-eyed observers like AllCarNews soon noticed many familiar elements to the rendering, including the wheels and tires, mirrors and doors. Even the backgrounds are identical, including some leaves that the truck is kicking up. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Seen side by side, the two pickups' similarities don't end there. The Sierra EV is wider, but the cab's rear pillars and glass look the same as the Rivian's, just stretched horizontally. The rear bumper and its license plate cutout and reflectors on either side look a bit too close for comfort as well.  The post as since been deleted. A GM spokesperson explained the situation to The Drive, "The GM Design Instagram channel is meant to give followers an inside look at the process of designing new products and the creative teams behind it. Often, these posts use sketches made for internal studio use during design development. The sketch in question was intended for internal use only, and was posted without the necessary approval. It has been removed from the GM Design Instagram page." Automakers often use products from the competition as benchmarks or design inspiration. Designers sometimes use existing images as a starting point as well, in order to quickly get an idea down "on paper". They just tend to do it in private. A juggernaut like GM using an image from an upstart like Rivian is embarrassing for the General, but surely an ego boost for the EV brand.  When dealing with an up-and-comer, perhaps it's best to take a page from Mad Men's Don Draper. In season four of the advertising drama, a newspaper calls the hot shot exec for a quote, after a young rival publicly says he's gunning for Draper. Draper knows exactly who the reporter is talking about but when asked for comment says, "Never heard of him." Related Video This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

NHTSA upgrades probe into 1.7 million GM vehicles over wiper failures

WASHINGTON — The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said Tuesday it is upgrading an investigation into 1.7 million General Motors vehicles for windshield wiper failures. The auto safety agency opened the probe in November 2018 to see if GM needed to expand a 2016 recall of 2013 model year Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain SUVs to cover additional vehicles. The engineering analysis probe covers 2010-2012 and 2014-2016 Equinox and Terrain vehicles. NHTSA could demand a recall after it completes the probe. NHTSA said it has reviewed 1,900 complaints and reports related to the issue in the 1.7 million vehicles. NHTSA said it has seen elevated failure rates in the 1.7 million vehicles, even though GM said the recalled vehicles have "double the warranty rate and five times the complaint rate." GM said it will "fully cooperate to support their investigation. We do not believe these windshield washer systems are defective." The wiper failures that prompted the 2016 recall were attributed to water and debris intrusion into the windshield wiper assembly ball joints, leading to excessive wear and eventual detachment of the ball joint. GM said it was installing an improved windshield wiper motor and transmission assembly and relocating a drain hole at the base of the windshield. Related Video: