GM closing 4 truck and SUV plants in North America

By Associated Press – June 3, 2008 …

WILMINGTON, Del. - General Motors is closing four truck and SUV plants in the U.S., Canada and Mexico as surging fuel prices hasten a dramatic shift to smaller vehicles.

CEO Rick Wagoner said Tuesday before the automaker’s annual meeting in Delaware the plants to be closed are in Oshawa, Ontario; Moraine, Ohio; Janesville, Wis.; and Toluca, Mexico.

He also said the iconic Hummer brand may be discontinued.

Wagoner said the GM board has approved production of a new small Chevrolet car at a plant in Lordstown, Ohio, in mid-2010 and the Chevy Volt electric vehicle in Detroit.

Wagoner said GM’s board approved the production schedule of the Chevrolet Volt

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GM plans to bring on-line around 2010 the “All-Electric” Chevrolet Volt … a technological breakthrough required to make this concept a reality is a large lithium-ion battery.

This type of electric car, which the technical community calls an “EV range-extender,” would require a battery pack that weighs nearly 400 pounds.

Some experts predict that such a battery – or a similar battery – could be production-ready by 2010.

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