GM Is Investing $632 Million to Build Next-Gen Pickup Trucks

General Motors (GM) plans to invest $632 million USD, or nearly $1 billion CAD, in its Fort Wayne, Indiana, assembly plant to outfit it for the production of the group's next generation of light-duty pickup trucks, the company announced yesterday.

And to be clear, we're talking about combustion-engine vehicles. Electric variants are coming next year, but the transition won't be instantaneous. 

The Fort Wayne announcement comes on the heels of GM's investments in its HD pickup plant in Flint, Michigan and its full-size SUV plant in Arlington, Texas, as well as in its truck plant in Oshawa, Ontario. 

Since 2013, GM has invested more than $31.6 billion USD in its U.S. production and parts distribution plants.

“Today we are announcing a significant investment to continue our industry-leading full-size truck business by preparing Fort Wayne Assembly to build the next-generation ICE full-size light-duty pickups. This investment reflects our commitment to our loyal truck customers and the hard work of the dedicated Fort Wayne team.”

- Gerald Johnson, GM executive VP, global manufacturing and sustainability

The Fort Wayne plant assembles the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500. Improvements there will include installation of new conveyors, tools and equipment in the body and general assembly areas.

2023 Chevrolet Silverado | Photo: V.Aubé

GM did not provide details of the next-generation models or the production schedule, though that could come this fall. Recall that the current-generation Chevrolet Silverado was presented to the Canadian press in September 2018 for the 2019 model-year. 

Just last Thursday, GM announced it will invest more than $500 million USD in its Arlington, Texas plant, where the Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban, GMC Yukon and Yukon XL, and Cadillac Escalade and Escalade-V models are built.

Early last week, GM also announced investments in two Flint plants - Flint Assembly and Flint Metal Center - for a total of over $1 billion, as well as a $280 million investment in Canadian currency at its Oshawa, Ontario assembly plant.