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GM laying off 500 workers to slow Chevy Sonic production

Due to slow sales of the Chevrolet Sonic and Buick Verano, General Motors is cutting a shift at the Orion Township plant that builds the pair. The move lays off about 500 workers, but most of them are expected to get offers to transfer to other factories, Automotive News reports. The move came just a day after GM announced adding 1,200 employees to the Detroit-Hamtramck plant. GM has been trying all year at the Orion Township factory to align production of the Sonic and Verano with their demand. The automaker first attempted idling the plant several times and eventually resorted to laying off about 100 workers. It also reduced the production rate there. With the huge rise in popularity of crossovers, demand for the plant's small cars is on the downturn. According to Automotive News, there's currently a 116-day supply of Sonics and 100 days of Veranos to sell. Delivers tell a similar tale because the Chevy is off 35.2 percent from January to September, and the Buick does little better with a 27.2 percent drop from the same period last year. While the situation at Orion Township might look rough now, big things are on the horizon. Soon, the new Chevy Bolt electric vehicle will be built there when it hits the market around 2017. Plus, the plant will also get a $245-million upgrade and 300 new jobs for another, unannounced vehicle.

These are the 10 longest-lasting vehicles on the road today

Buying a car has started feeling pretty bad. It’s hard to find what you want, and when you do, thereÂ’s a great chance itÂ’s not selling for the price you thought it would be. The least stressful way of coping with the situation is not to buy a new car, but how can you know how long your current ride will last? A recent study from iSeeCars found that some vehicles are prone to deliver many more miles of usable driving than others. iSeeCars looked at more than 2 million cars. The mileage over which the top 1% of cars within each model obtained was calculated and used to rank models, and the study required that a vehicle be sold for at least 10 of the past 20 years to be included. Unsurprisingly, Toyota dominated the top-10 list, but most of the other models come from General Motors with one Honda thrown into the mix. Ranked by mileage, the top-ten longest-lasting vehicles include: Toyota Highlander Hybrid: 244,94 miles Toyota Avalon: 245,710 miles Honda Ridgeline: 248,669 miles Chevrolet Tahoe: 250,338 miles Toyota Prius: 250,601 miles GMC Yukon XL: 252,360 miles Toyota Tundra: 256,022 miles Chevrolet Suburban: 265,732 miles Toyota Land Cruiser: 280,236 miles Toyota Sequoia: 295,509 miles The iSeeCars study found that SUVs and trucks occupy 75 percent of the top 20 vehicles with the potential to last the longest, and Toyota alone accounts for half of the top 20. Interestingly, the Prius and Highlander Hybrid made the list, suggesting that automakers are getting better at making batteries last a long time. "What we see is a list of highly-durable vehicles, capable of more than a quarter-million miles of use if properly maintained," said iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer. "And to be clear, this study isnÂ’t reporting the maximum lifespan of these vehicles. This is simply a measure of current odometer readings. Most of these cars are still in use and going strong." Of course, the longevity of a vehicle has a lot to do with how itÂ’s treated and maintained over its lifetime. ItÂ’s easy to find stories of people nursing Toyota Tundras and other vehicles past a million miles, and thereÂ’s a 1960s Volvo with more than 3 million miles. Some vehicle types, particularly the largest SUVs, are often used as road-trip vehicles by large families, which means they tend to rack up big mileage. In most cases, buying and owning a higher-mileage car can be a risk, so itÂ’s essential to get a pre-purchase inspection or regular maintenance if you already own one.

Honda, Chevy reveal low-drag speedway aero for Indy 500

As the two automakers currently participating in the IndyCar Series, both Chevy and Honda were invited this year not only to provide engines to the teams on the starting grid, but to develop their own aerodynamics packages as well. Both revealed their designs for the road-course races a few months ago, but with the Indy 500 approaching at break-neck speed, they've now unleashed their aero approaches for speedways. Both are based on the Dallara DW12 chassis introduced to the series a couple of years ago, but sacrifice some of their downforce at the altar of speed. And you can tell as much from looking at them: both Honda (above) and Chevy (below) have streamlined their designs, with single-plane front wings, lower-profile rear wings and fewer winglets on the body and around the wheels in between. The idea is to allow the cars to reach higher top speeds with less drag, while offering the necessary amount of downforce for the banked turns. With the four opening road-course rounds complete, teams using either automaker's equipment will keep the existing aero kits on their cars for the Grand Prix of Indianapolis on the infield course next week, then switch to the speedway package for the Indianapolis 500 later this month. Then it'll be back and forth for the rest of the season as the circus switches between road courses and speedways. Honda Unveils 2015 IndyCar Super Speedway Aero Kit Apr 30, 2015 - SPEEDWAY, Indiana - To be used at the Indianapolis 500 - Manufacturer seeking 11th Indianapolis 500 victory since 2004 - First public running to take place Sunday at Indianapolis Honda today debuted the "Super Speedway" aero kit of aerodynamic upgrades and components its teams will use at this year's 99th running of the Indianapolis 500. The Honda Super Speedway Aero Kit, produced by Honda Performance Development, Honda's racing arm in North America, includes a variety of individual aerodynamic components fitted to the existing Honda-powered Dallara Indy car chassis. All are intended to give Honda's six Indy car teams – encompassing a potential 17 '500' entrants - the ability to maximize performance at the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval and other large ovals ( over one mile in length) on the 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series schedule. "We're excited to unveil our Super Speedway aero kit, the newest element in this era of enhanced manufacturer competition in the Verizon IndyCar Series," said Art St. Cyr, president of HPD.