1970 Chevelle on 2040-cars

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GM opens military discount to 21M veterans and their spouses

May marks the start of National Military Appreciation Month, and General Motors is getting into the spirit by expanding its military discount program to, well, just about everyone. That includes a total of 21 million military veterans and their spouses, along with the current slate of active duty, reserve, and National Guard members. The discount can slash thousands of dollars off the price of a new Buick, Chevrolet, or GMC vehicles, with Automotive News listing an $1,100 discount on the top gas-powered version of the Malibu, the Premiere. Those that want a bit more spice can get $1,700 off the price of a last-generation 2015 Camaro SS, while truck buyers will enjoy $3,000 off the Chevy Silverado All Star. That's just a start, though, since the military discount can be paired with other GM incentives. The discount doesn't apply to everything, though. Some are understandable – none of Cadillac's vehicles are included in the deal, nor is the Corvette Z06. You'll also be unable to apply the discount to a range of base-level trims, like the Chevy Cruze or Equinox L, the base Colorado, or the entry level GMC Acadia, Canyon, and Terrain. A full list is available at GM's dedicated military discount website. GM's expanded discount plan runs from today through May 31. News Source: General MotorsImage Credit: General Motors Buick Chevrolet GM GMC Car Buying Car Dealers Military

GM invests $24 million to build more crew cab trucks in Fort Wayne

The full-size pickup truck arms race continues unabated here in the United States as Ford, General Motors and Fiat Chrysler battle back and forth for sales supremacy. The Ford F-Series of trucks continues to lead the field in sales (214,611 units sold through the first quarter of 2019), but the race for second place has been a lot more interesting to watch. That's because Ram, long a distant third in truck sales, eked its way past Chevrolet late in 2018 and has managed to hold the position so far in 2019. Don't take this to mean that sales of GM's trucks have been poor across the board. In fact, the automaker reports that sales of its four-door crew cab pickups are up 20 percent in 2019 over the same period a year ago. And that's what makes GM's announcement today so interesting. The automaker is investing $24 million into its assembly plant in Fort Wayne, Indiana to build more Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra pickup trucks, and the focus will continue to be on crew cab models. "We are building Chevrolet and GMC crew cab pickups at record volume and mix levels to meet customer demand and the $24 million investment will allow us to build even more," said GM chief Mary Barra in a statement. "Crew cab sales have been very strong, and we are expanding customer choice with new models, more cab choices and innovative new powertrains." It's worth noting that, if crew cab sales are up 20% this year, but overall sales are down (over 15% for Silverado and around 2% for GMC), that means it's the cheaper regular cab and double cab models that are lagging. At the same time, sales of the midsize Chevy Colorado have surged 16%. And finally, if you combine sales of the Silverado and Sierra into one bucket, GM still has a comfortable lead over Ram overall. If there's a takeaway here, it's that trucks of all shapes and sizes have been, currently are and will surely remain hot in America, and automakers will continue to invest money into making sure they are able to satiate consumer demand.

Junkyard Gem: 1988 Chevrolet Spectrum Sport Coupe

Before General Motors created the Geo brand for cars built or designed by its overseas partners, the Chevrolet Division put its badges on U.S.-market versions of the Toyota Corolla Sprinter, the Suzuki Cultus and the Isuzu Gemini. Those cars were known as the Nova, the Sprint and the Spectrum, and all became Geos starting with the 1989 model year. Today's Junkyard Gem is one of the last Chevy Spectrums ever sold, found in a Denver self-service yard a few months ago. Midway through 1988, the Chevrolet Spectrum abruptly became the Geo Spectrum and was assigned to the 1989 model year. This car was built in May 1988, making it one of the very last of the pre-Geo Spectrums. The Chevrolet/Geo Spectrum was available as a four-door sedan and as a three-door hatchback, from the 1985 through 1989 model years. For 1988 only, a Spectrum Sport Coupe package, featuring some trim upgrades and these rad decals, could be had on the hatchback. This car was essentially identical to its Isuzu-badged counterpart, the I-Mark. In 1988, the MSRP for the cheapest possible Chevy Spectrum hatchback (the stripped-down Spectrum Express) was $6,495, while its somewhat better-equipped I-Mark twin started at $7,439 (that's $17,128 and $19,617 in 2023 dollars). Meanwhile, the base Hyundai Excel hatchback listed at $5,295 and the Yugo GV cost a hilarious $4,199 ($13,963 and $10,941 in today's money). Power came from this 1.5-liter SOHC four-cylinder, rated at 70 horsepower. A turbocharged version with 110 horsepower was available as well. You could get an automatic transmission in the Spectrum, but this car has the base five-speed manual. This car didn't get the optional air conditioning, but at least it has the traditional Isuzu HVAC control icons featuring blow-dried hair and high-heeled dominatrix boots. Just over 170,000 miles on the odometer. Someone installed a pretty good (for the 1980s) Blaupunkt Charlotte CR148 cassette deck in the dash. This was a necessity if you wanted to enjoy full appreciation of the music of the era. The Spectrum is special! It's as slick as city rain. "I didn't spend a lot of money but with my Spectrum it looks like I did." Joe Isuzu mocked Toyota salesmen when pitching the I-Mark. As was nearly always the case during the 1980s, the JDM ads for the same car were much more fun. They should have recreated this commercial with Spectrums.