Sales uptick prompts GM to recall 900 at Michigan plant
DETROIT -- Spokeswoman Sherrie Childers Arb said the laid-off workers will come back to the plant in Delta Township Aug. 24, with the second shift continuing indefinitely.
"It's an uptick in market demand," she said.
The company also says it has canceled plans to shut the Spring Hill, Tenn., plant for an additional week in August because of increased demand for the Chevrolet Traverse crossover.
All the large crossovers seat eight and are built on car underpinnings so they are lighter and more fuel-efficient than sport-utility vehicles, which are considered light trucks.
At the end of May, GM had only a 46-day supply of the Enclave, 53 days worth of the Outlook, and a 59-day supply of the Acadia, according to Ward's AutoInfoBank. It had a 104-day supply of the Traverse, top seller of the four vehicles.
Industry analysts say a 60-day supply is optimal to provide enough of a selection, but not so much that large incentives will be needed to move vehicles.
Enclave sales were down 9% for the first five months of the year and Acadia sales were off 33%, but the U.S. auto market as a whole was down 37% for the period.
All four crossovers were designed to catch buyers fleeing from sport-utility vehicles with better handling and fuel economy than the truck-based SUVs.
The Enclave, for instance, gets up to 17 miles per gallon in the city and 24 on the highway, compared with a gas-powered Chevrolet Suburban SUV, which gets 14 in the city and 20 on the road.
The added shift at the Lansing Delta Township plant is good news for U.S. GM workers, thousands of whom have been laid off for up to 13 weeks this spring and summer because the company temporarily shuttered their factories due to the nationwide auto sales slump.
Overall, GM sales are down 42% so far this year.
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