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Chevy ramping Silverado incentives after Ram beats it in March

General Motors isn't losing the pickup war without a fight. With the Silverado narrowly falling to third place in the truck segment in March, Chevrolet has announced that it is going to continue its Truck Month pricing through the end of April. In addition to those incentives, some Chevy pickups are going to see even deeper discounts, according to Automotive News.
General Motors Sales Reporting spokesperson Jim Cain says the reason for extending the sale is simple. "It worked," he said. The Silverado's sales were up 6.8 percent for March, which is a big win for a truck with sales down 7.6 percent for the year so far. "Last month we handily beat expectations," he said. Cain attributed the success to having "a simple, straightforward message." He also claimed that the pickup was also able to see growth with lower incentives than competitors. With the weather warming and the economy improving, he thinks the Silverado has the momentum to improve further.
The Truck Month incentives knock as much as $7,541 off some Silverado models, and Chevy is planning even more incentives on top of that in April. "Okay - time to take the gloves off and go back and take back what rightfully belongs to every one of you ... Silverado truck sales," said an email sent to dealers from GM's district manager in the Northeast, received by Automotive News, announcing lower lease rates.

Stellantis and LG launch joint venture for North American battery plant

Stellantis has struck a preliminary deal with battery maker LG Energy Solution (LGES) to produce battery cells and modules for North America, as the world's No. 4 automaker rolls out its 30 billion euro ($35 billion) electrification plan. Global automakers are investing billions of euros to accelerate a transition to low-emission mobility and prepare for a progressive phase-out of internal combustion engines. Stellantis and LGES's joint venture will produce battery cells and modules at a new facility with an annual capacity of 40 gigawatt hours (GWh), the two firms said on Monday. No financial details of the deal were provided. The plant is scheduled to start production by the first quarter of 2024, with groundbreaking expected in the second quarter of 2022, the companies said in their statement. Its location is under review and will be announced later. Stellantis, formed in January from the merger of Italian-American automaker Fiat Chrysler and France's PSA, has said it wants to secure more than 130 GWh of global battery capacity by 2025 and more than 260 GWh by 2030. The batteries produced under the deal will supply Stellantis' U.S., Canadian and Mexican assembly plants for installation in hybrid and fully electric vehicles, supporting its goal of e-vehicles making up more than 40% of its U.S. sales by 2030. The company, whose brands include Peugeot, Fiat, Opel and U.S. best-sellers Jeep and Ram, earlier this year announced it would invest more than 30 billion euros through 2025 on electrifying its vehicle lineup. Stellantis has said it would build three battery plants in Europe and two in North America, including at least one in the United States. Intesa Sanpaolo analyst Monica Bosio said the deal was positive, and a further step ahead in Stellantis' electrification process. It comes weeks after Stellantis and its partner TotalEnergies agreed to open up their battery cell joint venture ACC to Daimler, to expand their European sourcing of battery cells. Stellantis is also targeting more than 70% of sales in Europe to be of low-emission vehicles by 2030, and aims to make the total cost of owning an EV equal to that of a gasoline-powered model by 2026. Related video: Green Plants/Manufacturing Alfa Romeo Chrysler Dodge Ferrari Fiat Jeep Maserati RAM Citroen Lancia Opel Peugeot Vauxhall Electric Hybrid EV batteries LG

2020 Ram Heavy Duty Limited Black Edition answers the call of the void

Ram buyers overcome by the lure of the Sith or the call of the void when configuring their pickups have had a variety of ways to go dark on their trucks, from 1500 to the heavy duty line. Now the 2020 Ram 2500 and 3500 HD's top Limited trim is getting access to all the darkness possible with the Black Edition, creating a truck that says "lights out" in about six different ways. The package blacks out the heavy duty rigs entirely, starting with the black grille with black RAM lettering, black bumpers front and back, black tow hooks, black door handles, black side-view trailer tow mirrors, black bezels around the LED headlights and taillights, dark-tinted taillights, and matte badges. Any colored lenses, such as the clearance lights above the cab, are clear. Because on the Ram Heavy Duty Black Edition, black means black. The Black Edition can be optioned on the Ram 2500 or 3500 in 4x2 or 4x4, in single- or dual-rear-wheel trims. When outfitted with single wheels in back, the Black Edition sits on 20-inch black wheels. When dual wheels hang off the back axle, buyers will find 17-inch black wheels with machined eyelets. Engine choices are the regular trio of 6.4-liter Hemi V8 with 410 horsepower and 429 pound-feet of torque, the normal 6.7-liter Cummins straight-six diesel making 370 hp and 850 lb-ft, or a high-output version of the 6.7-liter restricted to the 3500 that puts out 400 hp and 1,000 lb-ft. The three-quarter- and one-ton darkness rolls into dealerships in a few months starting at $64,440 for the Ram 2500 2,745 after a $1,695 destination charge. That's a $1,095 premium over the standard Limited Trim. Assuming the same premium for the Ram 3500 Black Edition means a starting price of $65,790. Related Video: