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GM to invest $150 million in Flint to boost heavy-duty pickup production

FLINT, Mich. — General Motors President Mark Reuss said on Wednesday that the automaker is investing about $150 million at its Flint Assembly plant in Michigan to boost production of heavy duty trucks by another 40,000 vehicles a year. Reuss announced the investment at the Flint truck assembly plant wearing a United Auto Workers pin. The Detroit automaker had announced back in February it was adding 1,000 jobs in Flint to build a new generation of heavy-duty pickup trucks. GM did not say that the latest investment would add more jobs at the plant, but Reuss said there could be opportunities to add workers as the launch of the automaker's new trucks progresses. GM has been under pressure from President Donald Trump and lawmakers of both parties to add jobs in the United States after it said last November it would idle the Chevy Cruze assembly plant in Lordstown, Ohio, and likewise had no new products for three other U.S. manufacturing plants. The Flint investment will include upgrades to the plant's conveyors and other new tooling, and will be completed in the first half of 2020. GM has invested more than $1.6 billion in the plant since 2013. Last month, GM said it would invest $24 million to increase truck production at its assembly plant in Fort Wayne, Indiana, which makes Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra models. 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's Chevrolet and GMC brands have long trailed Ford's F-series heavy duty trucks in the lucrative segment. The new Chevrolet and GMC heavy duty trucks have been re-engineered to tow heavier trailers, and keep pace in what has become an arms race among the Detroit Three automakers to claim superior torque and towing capability. Related: Silverado HD vs. 2019 Ram, Ford heavy duty trucks: How they compare on paper

GM offering factory-backed extended warranty for Chevys, GMCs, Buicks and Cadillacs

Cars are generally more reliable than ever before. When things do go wrong, every automaker offers some form of factory warranty (in most cases at least three years and 36,000 miles, though many extend even longer), providing peace of mind to new-car buyers that many faults will be fixed at no charge to the customer. Starting today, GM is offering a new optional plan that will extend the factory warranty on all new Chevy, GMC, Buick and Cadillac products. In the past, extended warranties have been offered as dealer add-ons, with all profits from these sales going to the dealership. GM's new program can be viewed as another nail in the the looming dealership-model coffin. According to Automotive News, some dealers aren't happy to see GM cut into their business like this, saying that it helps GM far more than it does dealers. GM says the new program will help keep customers in the GM family. Customers are also more likely to visit a GM service center rather than going to an independent repair shop. Currently, new Chevy and GMC vehicles come with three-year/36,000-mile warranties. Buicks and Cadillacs are covered for 4 years or 50,000 miles. The new program extends Chevy and GMC warranties to five years or 60,000 miles. Buick and Cadillac warranties extend to six years or 70,000 miles. GM, citing IHS Markit, says most owners keep new cars for about 6.8 years, so these warranties will cover most of the length of their ownership. The extended warranty will add between $1,000 and $2,000 to the price of a vehicle, and the additional cost can be rolled into the vehicle's purchase or lease price. Unlike many dealer extensions, the factory program covers the vehicle no matter who owns it. That should help increase the car's resale value if it's sold within the covered timeframe. GM says there's no deductible and no need to file a claim form when getting warranty repairs. Additionally, dealerships can continue to sell their own extended warranties or service contracts. Related Video:

2023 GMC Sierra HD 2500 and 3500 will get more expensive

GMC Sierra HD pickups are about to get more expensive again after recently becoming more expensive, according to GM Authority. In July, GMC and Buick raised the prices on certain vehicles in their lineups anywhere from $975 to $1,675 by making the previously optional OnStar a standard feature. Next year, every GMC and Buick model will adopt the upgrade. The big boy Sierra HD gets the biggest increase, being $1,500 for three years of OnStar and the Connected Services Plan plus another $175 for to be "OnStar & GMC Connected Services capable." GMA says the MSRPs for the entire 2023 Sierra HD range will be increased $1,000 on top of that. After doing the math, though, we suspect the increase could in fact be anywhere from about $800 to at least $1,100 after factoring for OnStar. The GMC configurator rings up a price of $43,670 for an entry-level Regular Cab Sierra HD Pro 2WD, GMA says next year's price will be $44,770. GMA didn't break out the next year's destination charge, it's possible GMC is adding $1,000 to the MSRP and $100 to destination. We'll find out when official pricing is announced. GMA's table shows a price of $49,795 for the least expensive SLE trim, whereas the current configurator indicates the truck can be had for $47,295 — a $2,500 difference. The SLE configurator doesn't show any charges for OnStar the way the Pro trim does. So it's possible that after backing out a potential $1,675 for OnStar, the gravy on top is just $825. Not that your wallet will care where how the potato is being sliced when the potato costs an additional $2,500 no matter what. The least dear 2022 Sierra 3500 starts at $43,195 going by the configurator. GMA says that model will command $45,970 next year, a $2,775 difference. As with the 2500 HD SLE, the configurator doesn't show the OnStar charges for the base 3500 Pro trim; subtracting the $1,675 takes us back to the $1,100 difference that appears to be at the heart of all of this. If all goes to plan, the 2023 Sierra HD will give way to a heavily refreshed 2024 model with interior upgrades cribbed from the Sierra 1500. Spy shots reveal a reconfigured instrument panel with a larger infotainment touchscreen of a likely 13.4 inches among the interior tweaks. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.