GM Increasing Transmission Production At Toledo, Ohio Plant

General Motors is increasing transmission production at the GM Toledo Propulsion Systems plant in Toledo, Ohio. The move marks a pivot away from a focus on electric vehicle (EV) parts production as The General responds to shifting market demands. The Toledo facility plays a critical role in supporting GM’s light-duty truck production, including vehicles assembled in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and will now allocate more resources towards production for gasoline-powered vehicles.

“General Motors will revise production plans at Toledo Propulsion to support additional capacity of ICE (internal combustion engine) propulsion units in alignment with current market demand and manufacturing resiliency,” a GM spokesperson said in a statement, per a recent report from Reuters.

The move is set against broader industry-wide changes as automakers navigate economic uncertainty and fluctuating consumer preferences. GM clarified that the production shift at Toledo is not related to the 25-percent auto import tariff introduced by the Trump administration. Instead, the company cited stronger-than-expected demand for internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles as the primary driver of the change.

Back in 2022, GM announced a $760 million investment to convert the Toledo plant into an EV drive unit production facility, making it as the first GM U.S. powertrain facility retooled specifically for EV components. However, despite the hefty investment, no EV drive units have been produced for retail vehicles at the site as of yet. According to an internal memo, one of the plant’s EV production lines will be retooled to manufacture transmissions for gasoline-powered vehicles. The move follows a delayed start for EV truck production at the Orion Assembly plant in Michigan. Notably, GM also missed its 2024 EV sales goal, reporting 189,000 EV units delivered in North America, 11,000 units short of the initial 200,000-unit target.

Meanwhile, the auto industry is bracing for impact as the Trump administration announces a long list of tariffs on imported goods in an effort to boost domestic manufacturing. The 25-percent tax on vehicles assembled outside the U.S. is expected to extend to individual vehicle components next month, although exactly how the tariffs will be implemented remains to be seen.

Regardless, new vehicle imports are already piling up at ports around the U.S., while analysts expect a dramatic increase in vehicle pricing as automakers pass on the tariff costs to consumers. A study from the Center for Automotive Research estimates that the tariffs could cost automakers operating in the U.S. an additional $108 billion over the course of the 2025 calendar year.