Sad they will be gone forever. Wonder what that means for parts? Wonder what I should buy for my 1984 GMC 7000 before the parts are gone? How much is available after market like brake pads rotors and clutches? Wonder what happens to what new inventory is on the lots I guess it will be a firesale to get people to buy them. What was it like when they just dropped the Sterling line up? Sad guess I'll get an IH in the future. I don't want a Ford from Mexico. This will help Ford sell more trucks in the future. Monday, June 8, 2009 GM ready to drop Flint Assembly's medium-duty trucks Robert Snell / The Detroit News General Motors Corp. has scrapped plans to sell its medium-duty truck business after a fruitless four-year search. President and CEO Fritz Henderson said the business has not been successful financially. GM had negotiated with Isuzu Motors Ltd. as recently as February to reach a deal that would have kept the truck division in Flint through 2014. An earlier failed agreement with Navistar International Corp. would have relocated jobs to another factory. Advertisement About 400 hourly and salaried workers are employed on the medium-duty truck line in Flint, which produced 22,000 vehicles last year. The medium-duty truck business is based in Flint Assembly, where workers will either be offered buyouts or be deployed at other facilities, Henderson told reporters today. Production of the Chevy Kodiak and GMC Topkick medium duty trucks will stop by July 31.
It's sad to see any company division like gm medium trucks come to an end.They built a great truck throughout the years.I would say parts will still be available from aftermarket sources .They run a long time,Hear is a picture of our 1966 chevy c-60.All the repair parts for it have been aftermarket for many years.
Penske bought Saturn from GM and I think that is a bold step into manufacturing for that company. But what I don't understand is why they didn't buy GM's medium duty truck line instead of Saturn? To me it would seem a perfect fit to manufacture your own rental truck chassis.:beatsme Of course a common layperson such as myself, doesn't know all the interworkings, corporate structure or earnings potential of Saturn vs GM Medium Duty but it still has me scratching my head.:beatsme Sad state of affairs even though I never liked the GM medium duty line (or Ford for that matter).
Penske will not manufacture anything. GM will make the cars for him under contract for two years then he will bring his Saturn line up from an overseas manufacturer. Which will mean more jobs gone in the USA. i am sure he will have some good input for the new models he buys.
cool truck means my 1984 7000 can last 18 more years.
Which non-US manufacturer will be making Saturn for Penske?
Business wise, it makes sense for the Saturn line. Simple reason is the fact that there is a huge customer base for the Saturn. Something like 2.5 to 3 million is what Penskee says. Dont let the two year deal fool ya. Think of it this way. Gm continues to build the Saturn line, Penske buys them, and then sells them. This continues the line. Two years down the road GM is in a better position financially, and they purchase the Saturn line back, bringing them back into the fold.
Wow . . I feel like I'm in Economics class *starts taking notes* I never would have thought of it like that Turbo . . . But then again I really don't keep up alot with this stuff. It's strange to see such a large company like GMC struggle so much though . . It just doesn't make sense to me, you'd think they'd have allllll kinds of money.
In a time when car sales are at there lowest in years, how does it work out that GM produces the cars, Penkse buys them and then re-sales them for a profit? If the Saturn line is profitable enough for a "middle man" (Penkse), then why sell the line in the first place?:beatsme
Same as he did in 1988: Penske Corporation buys a portion of the company and together with GM spin Detroit Diesel Corporation off as a separate company. http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/Detroit-Diesel-Corporation-Company-History.html
Good reading there amunderdog Notice how Penske got to take credit for the revitalised company that was saved by the 60 series engine, which was released in 1987, a year before he took over. Looks like he got a real sweetheart deal along the way.
the local GM dealer called my Dad, looking to see if he would like to replace his 98 pick up with a new one at " a deal to good to pass up" your not even at the lot they already up your ass for you wallet!
Thanks for the link umunderdog. Puts it in perspective in the huge business and Wall Street world. I didn't know that Penske had a hand in Detroit Diesel, you, learn something everyday. ( I guess I need to concentrate on moving dirt instead of arm chair quaterbacking the auto industry ) Gambling with the companies debt on new R&D resulting in poor earnings was "swept under the rug" in the article as well.
One rumour was Nissan :thumbdown They said he was holding all options open at this time.
GM is not expected to turn a profit until 2011 at the earliest. That is if things go well in the economy and with fuel which is now 62% higher than in DEC. 08. Fuel prices take billions out of the US economy. I forgot what it was for every penny it rises but the amount was huge. My hope would be he takes over the manufacturing and lets Saturn keep running here employing people. He was also said to be wanting electric cars to sell.
speaking of electric cars GM seems to be dooing a good job at that already, check out the chevy volt set for release in 2011
We are now near the point of not being able to make a meduim / heavy truck in this country. What is made here in the USA IH?
New GM Battery plant in Warren MI.:usa
We have the Pete/KW medium duty line that has a new diesel/electric hybrid model. Are the Freightshaker medium duty's still made in US? The Hino conventional is assembled in the US but is still Toyota. IH makes chassis for themselves and Ford in Mexico.
Freightliner went to Mexico recently or is in the process. I thought KW and Peterbuilt were from Canada? found this Kenworth Truck Company, a division of PACCAR Inc, is a leading manufacturer of heavy and medium duty trucks. The company maintains its headquarters in Kirkland, Wash. and operates manufacturing plants in Chillicothe, Ohio; Ste-Therese, Que.; and Seattle and Renton, Wash.
I just bought a GMC 2500 HD back in March. That was a kick in the face.
Don't worry mike, the 2500 isn't a medium duty truck, they're stopping the single axle straight truck line, not pickups.
Like 5500 and up? My next service trucks are going to be 5500's Ford lost me for a customer, way to many problems on way to many trucks.
This is really a shame, gonna cost some bigg bucks to the owners I would be willing to bet.
I don't think the 5500 is included in that. Just the Kodiak and Topkick size
4500 and up
I have read awhile back, that Hino made trucks that alot of owners of small fleets swear by. They where doing mostly city or regional type work. http://www.hino.com/trucks/ http://www.truckertotrucker.com/listings/58224.cfm
Toyota owns Hino. We have one in our roll-off company, 26K GVW, Air brakes, Allison Auto, Swaploader hook. It has been an excellent truck with very little problems. I drove it from B'ham AL to just north of Greenville SC to get the hook fitted and it was a very comfortable truck to drive, even as a cab and chassis. The Hino conventional http://www.hino.com/trucks/story_808.php I had an '03 IH 4300 flatbed dump I bought new and had nothing but problems out of it - electrical shorts, guage malfunctions, computer issues and multiple A/C failures within the first 30K miles. Not getting enough pain from IH :Banghead, I bought a '05 7600 Tandem dump, what a mistake but it was my fault for giving them a second chance . Same problems as the 4300 and the A/C was still not working for the 6-7 time, when I sold it (seeing that truck leave the yard was one of the happiest days of my life ) I hope IH has worked the bugs out of their lineup by now. I would by another Hino without a doubt.
Thats real smart of GM. They might as well just give up on everything.
When your going broke you need to get rid of everything your not making money with that is costing you money. They only sold 30,000 units a year or two ago now they are down to 20,000 Tough to make money at those low units. No one is buying at the moment not even municipalities.
If were going to be a truck this size, I would buy a Peterbilt. But the problem is parking them at your house, many municipalities have a ordinance saying No commercial vehicle over 10,000 lbs can be parked at a residence, with out a variance. Although the F-550 is over 10,000 lbs people it "blended" in a little better than a Pete 330 would.
kinda off topic but if anyone wants a 1972 chevy C50 Box truck....first one to pick it up its yours...free! located in Stockton Ca
But they've got to buy sometime. The muni's especially are still racking up the miles, just postponing replacement. Who'll be left to sell trucks when demand picks back up?
Our City was in the process of replacing all their Chevy 3500HD service trucks (20-30) of them with the 4500 Chevy/GMC's....but this sure is going to change things.
Didn't Izusu pick up the "top kick" and stick it with their S series?
The Topkick and Isuzu were co-branded for a while but I think the Topkick is officially dead at the moment.