General Motors is delaying the resumption of second shifts at a handful of its truck assembly plants in Michigan, Indiana, and Mexico due to a parts shortage from the U.S.’s southern neighbor.
The automaker had hoped to start second shifts today at its Ft Wayne, Indiana, Flint and Silao, Mexico plants, but that is no longer possible. It is now targeting a resumption of a second shift as early as later next week.
Reuters reports that Mexico auto parts production only started to slowly resume this week, hence the delay at the plants responsible for building its full-size trucks.
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GM suppliers were informed last week the company would look to resume three-shift production at its Fort Wayne plant and other plants as soon as June 1st.
Large pickups have significantly outperformed the rest of the market during the coronavirus pandemic. In April, large pickups such as Ford’s F-Series line, the Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra, and Ram brand accounted for nearly 21 per cent of all light vehicles sold in the United States, where the pickup segment traditionally accounts for 13 to 14 per cent of total sales.
Responding to the story of GM delaying the resumption of its second shifts, company spokesman Dan Flores said that “demand for our full size picks has been very strong so we are certainly exploring ways to add production and will do that when it makes sense.”
