GM invests $4B in U.S. plants for trucks, SUVs, shuffles EVs

Changes are afoot at General Motors. As consumers’ buying habits change, GM invests $4 billion in U.S. plants for trucks and gasoline SUVs while adjusting its future plans for EV production.

GM invests $4B in U.S. plants

The planned investment will take place over the next two years in three U.S. plants, and production of the Silverado EV and Sierra EV will not occur at the Orion Assembly Plant in Orion, Michigan, after a much-hyped $4B investment in 2023.

GM now says plants in Michigan, Kansas and Tennessee will expand finished vehicle production of several vehicles:

• Orion Assembly, Orion Township, Michigan: GM will begin production of gas-powered full-size SUVs and light-duty pickup trucks at Orion in early 2027. As a result, GM’s Factory ZERO in Detroit-Hamtramck, Michigan will be the dedicated assembly location for the Chevrolet Silverado EV, GMC Sierra EV, Cadillac Escalade IQ, and GMC HUMMER EV pickup and SUV.
• Fairfax Assembly, Kansas City, Kansas: Fairfax Assembly will support production of the gas-powered Chevrolet Equinox beginning in mid-2027. Fairfax remains on track to begin building the 2027 Chevrolet Bolt EV by the end of this year.
• Spring Hill Manufacturing, Spring Hill, Tennessee: GM will add production of the gas-powered Chevrolet Blazer at Spring Hill starting in 2027, alongside the Cadillac LYRIQ and VISTIQ EVs, and the Cadillac XT5.

Orion Assembly Plant zig zag

Originally planned to be reopened to build EVs, it was supposed to triple its output to 600,000 vehicles a year after ending production of the Chevrolet Bolt in 2023.

GM announced the aforementioned major investment and a near tripling of the workforce to produce the additional vehicles.

With the massive drop in consumer interest in electric trucks, we recently detailed, those plans have changed dramatically and now the plant will build internal combustion engine (ICE) versions of the popular trucks and full-size SUVs.

This news comes a week after the announcement of a planned $888 million investment into an engine plant in New York to build the next-generation V-8 engines.

Our take

GM’s CEO Mary Barra continues to state GM believes EVs are the future and while that may be true, Silverados and Tahoes are paying the way for that reality to take shape.

It will be interesting to see if production moves from GM’s Silao, Mexico, plant or if the Orion Assembly Plant will be a smaller facility aimed at only producing the rumored versions of the plug-in hybrid versions of the trucks and maybe full-size SUVs GM has talked about. Those vehicles could have some electric range with a gas or diesel engine providing longer range when needed.