GM has announced the closure of the Norsom plant, officially known as SAIC-GM (Shenyang) Norsom Motors Co., Ltd., in Shenyang, Liaoning, China, this month. A source told Reuters that it’s part of a restructuring effort underway for GM’s business in China.
The plant shutting down exclusively builds cars for the Chinese domestic market. It’s the production site for the Buick GL8 Legacy van and the Chevy Tracker crossover. The sprawling facility also serves as an engine plant.
This likely means the discontinuation of the Buick GL8 Legacy, which is based on the second-generation GL8 that was first introduced in 2010. The current generation, the Buick GL8 Century, is produced at the SAIC-GM Jinquiao plant in Shanghai.
The Chevy Tracker is also likely to be discontinued in China since General Motors CEO Mary Barra has been emphasizing a push toward more profitable, upmarket vehicles from the Durant Guild and the Buick and Cadillac brands in the region. “Those are vehicles that are very desirable for certain Chinese consumers, that we can bring in and have a very successful business,” Barra said at a conference last week. The brand’s lineup also includes the Chevy Seeker crossover, China’s version of the North American Chevy Trax that’s built in Korea.
Buick GL8 Legacy
The GM Shenyang facility opened in 1992 as Jinbei GM Automotive, a 30/70 joint venture between General Motors and Chinese automaker Jinbei. In 1998, it was restructured as a 50/50 joint venture, and SAIC-GM took it over in 2004.
GM’s restructuring efforts and the closure of the Norsom plant are consequences of an ongoing takeover of the Chinese car market by domestic brands that are either owned or heavily subsidized by the Chinese government. However, The General still sees a business opportunity in the higher end of the market, since the popular domestic offerings are largely on the more affordable side.
Chevy Tracker
General Motors stated that its $137 million loss in equity income in China for the third quarter of 2024 was driven by intense competition in challenging market conditions, partially mitigated by proactive measures to optimize inventory levels through production control.
However, GM remains committed to the Chinese market. “We’re committed to maintaining cash stability there at a point where it’s self-sustaining. That means not needing any capital from outside,” General Motors CFO Paul Jacobson said last August. “I don’t necessarily accept the notion that we’re struggling to make money there.”
Comments
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Drill Baby Drill No more EV GM needs a overhall .
You realize that the reason it’s closing is GM is not producing EVs for China? China is at over 50% EV sales and climbing fast. These are dying gas cars.
RUN! Get as far away from china as you can for your own survival. Only way you’ll live with communists is total abdication, and even then they might decide to kill you off with a whim. Good move, now leave the rest
You don’t understand the world automotive markets do you?
China is the world’s largest automarket, nearly double that of the US. If automakers aren’t in China, they aren’t going to survive long term.
WOW … thought the highest cash boxoffice of GM is 1, China 2, USA and 3rd South America
that’s what gm made one think until recently.
Like her continuing stance on EVs, Mary is also being pigheaded on China. They don’t want you there anymore, so pull completely out, ASAP. Geez, Louise.
Mary needs to go, she will Bankrupt GM and then walk away with a Golden Parachute full of MONEY. Ditch all of the EV’s, no one wants a vehicle that only the “RICH” can afford.
That’s right! I would not buy a electric vehicle unless their forced to! Not enough plug in spots and too much trouble starting in bitter cold temps!
You were so close to getting it. Mary is focused on EVs because that’s where the Chinese auto industry is going. They are at over 50% new car sales as EVs. GM needs to offer competitive EVs in that market or they are going to seriously shrink.
revolutionary,
Not to mention that the population of China is over 1.4 billion people, that’s a lot of customers.
Like it or not it’s a global market. It has been proven that isolationism doesn’t work. Unless you want to live on the edge of starvation and homelessness, like North Korea.
The only thing proven is that Wall Street reaped nearly all the benefits of free trade while hollowing out the country built by the previous generation. Battery Electric Vehicles continue to be promoted the most by the same group of people that don’t understand that the electric grid is completely inadequate for a 100% BEV adoption by 2035. The electric grid won’t be ready for 100% BEV in 20 years. But these libs are delusional and think that they can manifest this massive change by deluding themselves. All they will do is drive electric rates sky high, create Cali style rolling blackouts, and cause a decli e in quality of live for all Americans. Battery technology is still vastly inadequate and charging infrastructure is nonexistent. It’s time to stop pretending the delusional fantasies of some European elitists is actually possible if we just pretend we can will it into existence.
Hadrinian,
Buy European entitlist do you mean Elon Musk ?
Elon Musk was born and raised in Africa. Immigrated to Canada, and then came to the United States.
Trump was right we should have closed the Border.
The irony, could you imagine if Trump knew his handler was African. Trump thinks that any countries that have a majority of brown or black people, in his own words, are $hit whole countries. Trump is even too stupid to know that Africa is not a country it’s a continent.
Beachy29579, you have Kolpophobia.
Mary has to be fired. All she sees in that stupid brain is stopping most production of ice vehicles. She is going to break GM ESPECIALLY CADILLAC. I purchased my last Caddy. There is nothing left to buy.
Ben,
You are 199% correct, she needs to go.
How true and how quick can she get out of GM. We have been loyal Cadillac owners sine 2002 and have a 2020 CT6 Premium Luxury. That’s the last Caddy that we will buy. When we are ready to replace it, we’ll look at Mercedes and maybe BMW for a full-sized luxury sedan that is ICE.
I was offered a Lyriq as a loaner when I had the CT6 in for it’s routine 36K service. I politely declined and was given a CT5 instead. CT5 is just way too small and rides like a truck.
Mary claims to be the face of GM! Time for GM to get a makeover before she completely destroys the General.
Then GM absolutely needs a face lift!
gm gets smaller and smaller as they lose millions with EV’s and the China syndrome.
GM is now profitable on EVs. Catch up.
The U-van finally dies?
Everyone who bought a $70k pickup built that plant to the pain of labor in the USA.
The auto industry was very short sighted when deciding to enter the Chinese market. The CCP would need to be part owner in everything we started there. And the Chinese play the long game. Why reinvent a wheel? Over time they assimilate our technology and processes and remove us from the equation.
exactly.
Lonnie,
They don’t assimilate our technology they steal it. They don’t need an assembly plant to do that. All they need to do is buy a vehicle or product on the open market.
International patents and trademarks are almost impossible to enforce. Theft saves a lot of money for the thieves. It causes a large monetary burden for the companies being stolen from.
Research, development and testing, is one of the largest expenses in the automotive industry.
We lost Pontiac because the Chinese liked buicks. Now they don’t buy Buicks and we are stuck with the damn things
You don’t understand. It wasn’t a choice of keeping Pontiac or keeping Buick. Each brand had to show that it was profitable and Pontiac was unable to do so.
GM didn’t put any money into Pontiac to keep it fresh–thats why Pontiac died. Refreshing a bumper every 4 years is not exciting to the customer.
and mary just gave the chinese an expensive piece of property. thanks gm
The big 3, not just GMC needs to readjust there business also at home. The big 3 can’t keep cutting economy cars expecting everyone to keep moving up in the price range because it’s MORE profitable. GMC that sells one car wants to make 2-3-4 if not more thousand dollars per unit instead of $500. In the end this will hurt them bad. You will drive people away from your product. I am a Ford guy but my next car will likely be Mazda or Honda. Volkswagen in Germany is suffering because of this on-top of the Chinese car Company BYD building a 400km range EV for $15,000 USD. Our domestic auto makers are doing everything possible to keep BYD out of America. Keep this in mind. Tarrifs don’t prevent outside companies from coming in, it encourages innovation.
David, Trump is going to take care of all of this for you. He is the best businessman in the world. He is better than anyone, and smarter than everyone. Just ask him, he’ll tell you how great he is. Delusions of grandeur.
It’s time for Mary to go. These corporations see China as the next big market, until they kill your business and create there own.
Not mention killing off brands in the states, and selling midsized SUVs for 60K plus with noisy tiny 4 cylinder engines or switching them to all Electric. Unfortunately I will be forced to look at other brands.
iplaywithtrucks
I think you play with yourself too much. That’s what I think.
Suckers…foreign auto makers built the Chinese car market and will get squeezed out of it on orders of the CCP. It’s just beginning.
I am not sticking up for the Chinese or any foreign car manufacturer.
What people fail to realize is that the European and Asian car manufacturers are subsidized by their governments. That is why when they manufacture a lot of inferior products, making very little money on them they never go out of business. The cars driving around the streets of Europe are not the nice top of the line Mercedes manufactured for the US market.
Because of the way foreign cars are subsidized it will never be a level playing field, no matter how many tariffs you place on them.
Put a 100% tariff on the Buick Envision anyway.
Hopefully all Buick plants in China will close.
You do realize that GM sells made in China Buicks in China, for the Chinese market, right?
Why would you want them to stop making cars in the largest automarket in the world?
rEVolutionary,
They can’t see the forest through the trees.