GM to Stop Volt Production Again in July
The Detroit assembly plant, currently idle, will shut down for an additional week in July.
General Motors, continuing to face low demand for the Chevrolet Volt, is shutting down production for an additional week in July, according to a report today by the Detroit Free Press.
The Volt's Detroit assembly plant, which has been shut down since March 19, will be closed for an additional three weeks in July -- one week longer than the usual two-week shutdown, the report said. The plant and its idle 1,300 workers won’t resume production of the plug-in hybrid until April 23.
In March, Chevrolet sold 2,289 Volts, a 50 percent increase since December. But Chevrolet fell short of its 10,000-unit target for 2011, selling only 7,671 Volts. Nissan sold 2,003 more all-electric Leafs in the same period. Both cars are priced at more than $35,000.
GM said it expects to sell 45,000 Volts in the U.S. in 2012, despite a voluntary recall in January that addressed reports of battery fires and hampered sales.
[Source: Detroit Free Press, MSNBC]
Speaking of diesel performance cars, it's not a V8, but how about the BMW 335D? (or is it a 5 series?)
No!The 335d, while sporting an impressive engine and being a clean diesel is also automatic only! Out of the question, or else I would own one by now; I even went to the nearest BMW dealer to inquire about it, and was ready to drop the cold, hard cash on the table, but not for an automatic. That is a movie we will not be watching, not now, not ever. No manual transmission, no sale.
Is anyone from BMW reading this? BMW lost a sale because they would not offer a clean diesel with a manual. Your competitors got my money instead, and they were more than happy to sell what I wanted to me!
Annatar, Yes, people would buy a diesel hybrid that gets 60mpg and cost less than 20,000. Do you know why no manufacture has done it? That price point is not attainable.
The price point is very much within reason, especially considering GM already has well developed and well proven small diesel engines for city cars. If GM can sell an Opel Corsa for the equivalent of $14,885 USD elsewhere, it stands to reason they could do a clean diesel hybrid for under $20,000 USD here. Well under $20,000 USD, in fact.Diesel engines do not cost any more to develop, nor is the modern clean diesel any heavier than a gasoline counterpart. Those are common misconceptions of people unfamiliar with the current diesel technology.
You constantly talk about how great Japanese diesel engines are. Yet no performance diesel engines for sale. Why do they get a pass?
The Japanese have luxury diesel performance cars for other markets, it is just that they do not sell them here. GM does not even have that, at all, for any market. Right now, GM is hopelessly lost: they are too big, too corporate, too unfocused, incompetent. Of the entire company, Holden is probably their most advanced daughter company, followed by Opel AG. Those two have the potential to be successful: American GM is too bogged down in corporate politics and mired by internal corruption affairs. The engineers are constantly overriden in favor of political wrangling.But fear not, I am even angrier with the Japanese car companies than I am with GM, especially with Subaru. Fuji Heavy Industries has sorely disappointed me: it started with the Legacy, then continued on to the Impreza, and is now rounded up and complete with the BRZ as the latest FAIL. They made all the wrong decisions they could possibly make. That is some impressive FAIL, if FAIL were something one should be impressed with.
This is NOT something GM was ready for. The low sales are a direct result of price and the greater populations apathy toward American branded autos.
Face it folks, US car manufacturers ARE getting better but they still have a ways to go.
Like Racecar said, how many 1st gen Prius do you see around?? I haven't seen one in months.
I see one and exactly one all the time. I don't where the guy is, but I think he's a neighbor, because I always see the same first gen Prius all the time in the parking lots of various local stores.
There is also someone else, again probably a neighbor, who has a light silver Volt.
No, no I can not! What I want is Cadillac CTS-V station wagon with that 4.5L Duramax V8 diesel and a manual transmission!
Yeah, that would actually be pretty darn cool! Only thing I'd worry about would be that heavy DMax wreaking havoc on the handling.
That would also be a great engine for 1/2 ton pickups and SUV's as well. In fact it might be better suited to those platforms, because of the weight issue. I'm of the belief that all suv's and pickups should have the diesel option.
Speaking of diesel performance cars, it's not a V8, but how about the BMW 335D? (or is it a 5 series?) Either way, I love the idea of that car, luxo interior and sporty handling with 400ft/lbs and 35mpg.
As far as the Volt, it may take a few years, but I think it'll catch on. I actually saw TWO of them yesterday. Not a bad looking car, but they should have made it a Cadillac to better justify the price.
Like Racecar said, how many 1st gen Prius do you see around?? I haven't seen one in months.
Shrimp_roll, do you think the Prius is a successful car for Toyota? Do you know that the first year of production the Prius did not have as many sales as the Volt did? Toyota sold the Prius at a loss for the first several years. Now Toyota has several Prius models and the tech is spread across several cars in their line. I am sure that is what GM is hoping for with the Volt.
Troy S., Yes they will get paid, do you know that even Toyota and Honda in the US also pay their workers when they have a short term layoff? It is cheaper to pay them for a few weeks while the plant is idle or retooling then to hire and retrain new workers if the laid off workers find another job.
Annatar, Yes, people would buy a diesel hybrid that gets 60mpg and cost less than 20,000. Do you know why no manufacture has done it? That price point is not attainable. I would like to see some manufacture try though.
they should really kill the money losing over priced (too expensive) volt. they sell it at a loss anyways.
the figures look like it will only reach 40% of expected yearly sales.
(the volt was some pre bankruptcy dream to begin with)
GM had a dismal march and were punished at the stock market for it.
(personally i did not think the figures were all to shabby)
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