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GM Shutting Down Bolt EV Assembly Plant Over Chip Supply Woes

Represented by UAW Local 5960, the General Motors Orion Assembly Plant isn’t going to make anything between August 23rd and August 30th. The Michigan-based production site is facing the same problem as the Kansas City Assembly Plant operated by Ford in Claycomo, Missouri.
2022 Chevrolet Bolt EV 39 photos
Photo: Chevrolet
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According to Automotive News, the Bolt-making facility is grinding to a teething halt over the ongoing shortage of semiconductors. Paul Jacobson, the senior financial exec at General Motors, previously highlighted that GM is safeguarding chips for more profitable models, especially pickup trucks.

In a way, the automaker’s decision is very coherent and sensible. Ram sold more workhorses than General Motors in the second quarter of the year while the Ford F-Series line finished the quarter in third place. These results present a huge chance for the half-ton Silverado and Sierra, which moved 117,275 and 53,640 examples, respectively, from April through June 2021.

We also have to remember that GM prepares to launch the mid-cycle refresh of the Silverado 1500 and Sierra 1500, and the latter is getting a lot more chips due to Super Cruise semi-autonomous driving tech. As for the former, the ZR2 will be introduced as the more capable sibling of the LT Trail Boss.

Turning our attention to the Bolt EV and Bolt EUV, the all-electric hatchbacks moved 11,263 units in the second quarter compared to 2,498 units in the same period last year. That’s a 350.9-percent improvement, which seems extremely impressive at first glance, but it’s not good enough.

Tesla, the Palo Alto-based automaker that’s notorious for quality issues, delivered 199,360 units of the Model 3 and Model Y worldwide in the same time frame. As far as North America is concerned, the extended-range Model 3 and Model Y are currently listed with January 2022 delivery dates.

As far as legacy automakers go, the biggest of the Big Three still can’t hold a candle to Elon Musk’s company. Adding insult to injury, General Motors will spend $11,650 for each of the 68,667 recalled Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicles. Of the $1.3 billion that GM set aside for warranty recall costs in the second quarter of 2021, $800 million will be going toward the Bolt.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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