GM plants hit by chip shortages to reopen by Nov. 1

DETROIT — General Motors on Friday reported it expects to reopen the remaining three North American assembly plants that have been idled mainly because of the global microchip lack by Nov. 1.

GM also reported it programs to resume setting up Chevrolet Malibu sedans for the initially time in practically 9 months at a plant that has partially reopened in Kansas.

The automaker reported its plant in Ramos Arizpe, Mexico, which has been shut considering that mid-August, would begin setting up Chevy Blazers on Oct. 18, followed by Chevy Equinoxes as quickly as Nov. 1.

Two additional Equinox plants — San Luis Potosi Assembly in Mexico and CAMI Assembly in Ontario — that have been down considering that mid-July, will reopen Nov. 1, GM reported. CAMI also builds the GMC Terrain.

“Whilst the situation stays intricate and pretty fluid,” GM reported in a assertion, “we continue to be assured in our team’s capability to continue obtaining creative methods to lower the influence of the semiconductor shortages that have been impacting the marketplace.”

The rest of GM’s North American assembly plants that were being down mainly because of the chip lack resumed procedure before this month. Numerous plants continue to be down for retooling, and Chevy Bolt creation has been halted thanks to a battery remember.

Restarting Malibu creation would be a indicator that GM thinks it can get enough chip materials in the foreseeable upcoming. Fairfax Assembly in Kansas resumed creation of the Cadillac XT4 final month but has not constructed a Malibu considering that early February.

GM redirected chips intended for the slow-advertising sedan to plants creating additional lucrative cars, this sort of as its SUV plant in Texas, which has remained on the internet constantly all over the provide disaster.

Even so, the company has postponed previous Malibu creation restarts numerous situations for the duration of the shutdown and could do so again if it establishes the chips are still greater made use of somewhere else.

As a result of the creation shutdown, GM sold just 269 Malibus in the U.S. the 3rd quarter, ninety nine percent fewer than in the same period a 12 months before.