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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

2018 Hyundai Accent vs subcompact sedans: How it compares on paper

Hyundai first revealed the new 2018 Hyundai Accent a few months ago, but that debut was in Canada for the Canadian-market car. We didn't get our look at the U.S. version until just recently, which is when we also finally got plenty of specifications on the little car. So as we did with the Genesis G70, we've brought you a breakdown of the Accent's specs and some of the segment's best and most popular: the Nissan Versa, Kia Rio, Chevrolet Sonic and Toyota Yaris iA. Before we get to the chart, let's give you a quick reintroduction to the 2018 Accent. The subcompact is completely new this year, and under the hood is again a naturally aspirated 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine. It makes 7 fewer horsepower and 4 fewer pound-feet of torque than the outgoing model with totals of 130 horsepower and 119 pound-feet. This drop in power probably won't be noticeable, though. It's also available with either a manual or automatic transmission, both featuring six speeds. Fuel economy hasn't been announced, but the Rio's numbers below are probably a good indicator as they share powertrains. The one thing that isn't available with an Accent is a hatchback. According to Autoweek, the hatchback was canned with the assumption that hatch buyers would simply purchase an example of the upcoming Kona crossover. But if you want a traditional subcompact hatch from South Korea, Kia is happy to oblige, as the Rio is still available as a hatchback. Learning that the Kona may have killed the Accent hatch causes us to wonder if Kia brought the Rio hatch to the U.S. because it wasn't planning on offering the Stonic. Related Video: News Source: Hyundai, AutoweekImage Credit: Hyundai Chevrolet Hyundai Kia Nissan Toyota Sedan nissan versa hyundai accent kia rio toyota yaris ia

GM extends vehicle production cuts into mid-March due to global chip shortage

DETROIT — General Motors said on Tuesday it was extending production cuts at three North American plants until at least mid-March due to the global semiconductor chip shortage, while vehicles at two other factories would only be partially built. GM, whose shares dipped 1% after the announcement, did not disclose the impact volumes or say which supplier and vehicle parts were affected by the chip shortage. But it said it would focus on keeping production running at plants building its highest-profit vehicles, full-size pickup trucks and SUVs. GM said it intended to make up as much lost production as possible once the shortage chip eased. "Semiconductor supply remains an issue that is facing the entire industry. GM's plan is to leverage every available semiconductor to build and ship our most popular and in-demand products," GM spokesman David Barnas said. GM said it was extending downtime at its U.S. plant in Fairfax, Kansas, its Canadian factory in Ingersoll, Ontario, and its Mexican facility in San Luis Petosi until mid-March when it would reassess the situation, he said. In addition, GM would build but leave incomplete for final assembly vehicles at Wentzville, Missouri, and its Mexican plant at Ramos Arizpe. GM vehicles affected by the idled plants include the Chevrolet Malibu sedan, Cadillac XT4 SUV, Chevy Equinox, and GMC Terrain SUVs. Vehicles to be left incomplete for now included the Chevy Colorado, GMC Canyon pickups and Chevy Blazer SUV. This week, GM had said it was idling the three factories where it has now extended downtime and said it would halve production at a plant in South Korea. The chip shortage has affected many automakers, including Toyota, Volkswagen, Stellantis, Ford, Renault, Subaru, Nissan, Honda and Mazda. Asian chipmakers are rushing to boost production but say the supply gap will take many months to plug. German chipmaker Infineon said the shortage would get worse in the near term. The chip shortage is expected to cut global output in the first quarter by more than 670,000 vehicles and last into the third quarter, IHS Markit said. AutoForecast Solutions estimated total lost production this year could reach 1 million vehicles. Honda and Nissan said on Tuesday they would sell 250,000 fewer cars in total this financial year due.