GM Delays Van Launches

08/19/96

Reuters reported that a Story in Thursday's Wall Street Journal announced that General Motors Corporation has encountered delays in launching production on two new full-sized vans at Wentzville, Missouri. The delays were reported as GM is scheduled to introduce an unprecedented number of new vehicles over the next year.

Plant workers say an extensive overhaul of the Wentzville facility has taken longer than expected. The launch of the new vans has also been slowed by glitches in a new computer-driven robotic body shop that GM installed.

GM confirmed that the launches of the redesigned Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana vans was running more slowly than expected, but said it was on or ahead of schedule for all its other new product launches. The company said that among the eight U.S. and Canadian assembly plants it is overhauling for 14 new cars and light truck launches this summer, only the Wentzville plant is behind schedule.

GM started the Wentzville launch in January and expected it to be done in six months.

Paul Dever -- The Auto Channel