GM to invest $1.5 billion in North American factories
BY Staff and Wire reports
Friday, January 18, 2013
1/18/13 at 4:52 AM
General Motors says it will invest $1.5 billion in its North American factories this year.
GM North American President Mark Reuss announced the figure in a speech Wednesday night but gave no details. The company says specific plants and job numbers will come later.
The automaker is revamping 70 percent of its U.S. models as it switches from the oldest lineup in the industry to the newest.
Reuss said the investment is in addition to the $10.2 billion GM already has spent on its factories since July 2009. The company has added about 2,000 U.S. jobs since then.
Detroit-based GM recently unveiled new full-size pickup trucks and a revamped Chevrolet Corvette.
Meanwhile, GM has found ways to save "thousands of dollars" in the cost of building the next-generation Chevrolet Volt through a vehicle platform designed specifically for batteries, Reuss said.
"You can decrease the size of the battery pack, decrease the size of the electric motors; get equivalent range with much lower cost," he said.
Reuss did not say when the next version of the electric car would come out.
The Volt was introduced in 2010. GM sold 23,461 in the U.S. last year but has not said how many it sold worldwide.
Associated Images:
GM executive Mark Reuss: The Chevrolet Volt will get a vehicle platform designed specifically for batteries, he said.
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