Demand for fuel efficiency sparks Volt production rise
GM to build 1,000 more than planned in '11, 15,000 extra in '12
Christina Rogers / / The Detroit News
Last Updated: May 19. 2011 1:00AM
General Motors Co. has made it official: It's boosting production of its electric Chevrolet Volt.
The Detroit automaker said Wednesday it will build 1,000 more Volts than planned this year — about 16,000 in total — and increase production to 60,000 cars in 2012, up from the 45,000 previously targeted.
GM officials said they're upping production — long expected — to meet strong demand for the battery-powered car, which comes with a backup gas engine. With gas prices hovering around $4 a gallon, GM and other automakers are eager to capitalize on the car-buying public's new lust for fuel efficiency.
GM will shut down its Detroit-Hamtramck plant, where it makes the Volt and its export version, the Opel Ampera, for four weeks starting in June to retool for added production. The carmaker will also build its next-generation 2013 Chevrolet Malibu at the plant, starting late next year.
The production hiatus will further constrain Volt supplies at dealers heading into the summer months, GM warned, but will better prepare the company for the 2012 Volt's nationwide rollout in the second half of this year, said Cristi Landy, directory of Chevrolet Volt Marketing. GM initially launched the 2011 Volt in a handful of markets, including New York, California and Washington, D.C., in December.
"By taking the time to reconfigure the plant, we will be better able to meet the tremendous consumer demand," Landy said.
GM's CEO Dan Akerson has pressed for more Volts "faster" and set production goals higher with hopes of eventually building more than 100,000 a year. Akerson also has challenged the Volt team to investigate ways to cut $10,000 in costs out of the high-tech vehicle. The car retails for $41,000, minus $7,500 in tax incentives.
Of the 16,000 Volts planned for this year, about 2,500 will go to dealer demonstration fleets, and another 3,500 will be built for export to China, Canada and Europe, GM officials said. The remaining 10,000 Volts will be sold in the United States — that hasn't changed, GM said.
Of the 60,000 Volts GM will build for 2012, about 45,000 will go on sale at U.S. dealers.
GM officials wouldn't say if the increased production would add jobs at the Detroit-Hamtramck plant or require additional investment there. GM announced last week it would spend $2 billion at 17 U.S. locations to make upgrades. The move would create or keep about 4,000 jobs in eight states.
"We're not talking about jobs yet," said Michelle Bunker, a Chevrolet spokeswoman, of hiring plans for the Detroit-Hamtramck factory.
The plant is running on one shift but soon will stop building the Buick Lucerne and Cadillac DTS — two models GM is retiring. It employs about 958 hourly and 159 salaried people. Workers will be laid off during the shutdown, said GM spokesman Chris Lee.
So far this year, GM has sold about 1,700 Volts, including 493 last month, according to tracking firm AutoData Corp. But while GM has been ahead — it was the first to bring this hybrid-style plug-in to market — its rivals are quickly catching up.
"There is going to be a host of new competition coming out, which is good and bad for GM," said Dave Sullivan, an Ann Arbor-based auto analyst with AutoPacific, Inc.
While more plug-in electrics on the road could help raise awareness and expand the charging infrastructure, it will also mean more automakers vying for a still small population of buyers willing to consider a battery-powered car, Sullivan said.
"At the same time, fuel prices are expected to remain within the $4 a gallon range," he added. "And I think GM is putting all its chips in that fuel prices are going to remain high."
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