GM Delays Announcement of Plan for Assembly Plant in Van Nuys
General Motors likely will not make a decision about the future of its Van Nuys assembly plant until this year’s fourth quarter, a GM spokeswoman said.
The plant, which employs about 3,800 workers, has been building GM’s Chevrolet Camaros and Pontiac Firebirds since 1977, and is awaiting word on whether it will be awarded the contract to build the 1992 models of those cars. The Van Nuys plant’s contract expires in 1991, and if it doesn’t win the new Camaro and Firebird contract, the plant could be shut down.
Production of the new models would start in the summer of 1991 for the 1992 model year.
However, three other GM plants are vying to build the new models, which are expected to include major design changes. The competing plants are in Pontiac, Mich.; Oklahoma City and Ste. Therese, Quebec, Canada.
GM had said it would make a decision by March, but the plans probably won’t be announced until the fourth quarter, said Nettie Seabrooks, a GM spokeswoman in Detroit. She declined to explain the delay or provide any other details.
Robert Stramy, manager of the Van Nuys plant, also declined comment.
No Word on Fate
Joe Garcia, United Auto Workers Local 645 treasurer, said he had not heard any word recently on the plant’s fate.
The Van Nuys plant, the last major auto assembly plant in Southern California, is considered to have at least one disadvantage in getting the new contract--its location. Most of the plant’s parts suppliers are in the Midwest, and more than 75% of the cars built in Van Nuys are sold east of the Rockies.
Meanwhile, GM on Monday announced that four of its assembly plants--three in Michigan and one in Missouri--will be closed for an extended period this summer to help reduce its inventory of unsold cars. GM declined to be specific about whether there might be closing dates at its other plants, including Van Nuys.
Ward’s Automotive Reports, a weekly industry newsletter, reported that four additional GM plants--in Michigan, Georgia, Delaware and Kansas--would be closed for at least one month this summer. The report also made no mention of the Van Nuys facility.
