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GM powering its cars with Chinese engines

GM powering its cars with Chinese engines

Viknesh Vijayenthiran March 27th, 2008 Viknesh Vijayenthiran By Viknesh Vijayenthiran Author March 27th, 2008
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December 31st, 1969 The fledgling Chinese auto industry has been embroiled in scandals of stealing designs and producing poor quality cars but despite this one major carmaker has already been selling vehicles in the U.S. with engines sourced from China. The truth of the matter is Americans may already have a Chinese engine under the bonnet of their car because GM has been selling its Chevrolet Equinox with a powerplant sourced from across the Pacific. This is the first instance of a Chinese engine in an American car, revealed CSM Worldwide analyst Eric A. Fedewa during a recent interview with The Detroit News. The move, according to Fedewa, was an exercise by GM to see how much money could be saved in the cost of production. In fact, only 55% of parts used in the Equinox are sourced locally, the rest coming mostly from Japan and China. Is this really a problem though? In an increasingly globalized world, consumers are less concerned about the origin of their cars. Technological advancements in quality control and production have allowed major corporations to move operations overseas in order to make savings on labor, materials and other expenses while essentially maintaining quality and efficiency. If you're worried about driving a Chinese engine, there's bad news for the future. China will not just be supplying engines for American cars, but whole vehicles as well. Chrysler, which has signed a deal with China’s Chery auto, is likely to become the first carmaker to sell a Chinese-built car in North America with a new Dodge compact car slated to arrive by the end of the decade.
GM powering its cars with Chinese engines

GM powering its cars with Chinese engines

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The fledgling Chinese auto industry has been embroiled in scandals of stealing designs and producing poor quality cars but despite this one major carmaker has already been selling vehicles in the U.S. with engines sourced from China. The truth of the matter is Americans may already have a Chinese engine under the bonnet of their car because GM has been selling its Chevrolet Equinox with a powerplant sourced from across the Pacific.

This is the first instance of a Chinese engine in an American car, revealed CSM Worldwide analyst Eric A. Fedewa during a recent interview with The Detroit News. The move, according to Fedewa, was an exercise by GM to see how much money could be saved in the cost of production. In fact, only 55% of parts used in the Equinox are sourced locally, the rest coming mostly from Japan and China.

Is this really a problem though? In an increasingly globalized world, consumers are less concerned about the origin of their cars. Technological advancements in quality control and production have allowed major corporations to move operations overseas in order to make savings on labor, materials and other expenses while essentially maintaining quality and efficiency.

If you're worried about driving a Chinese engine, there's bad news for the future. China will not just be supplying engines for American cars, but whole vehicles as well. Chrysler, which has signed a deal with China’s Chery auto, is likely to become the first carmaker to sell a Chinese-built car in North America with a new Dodge compact car slated to arrive by the end of the decade.

Tags: Industry, General Motors

Posted in: News


Comments (8 total)

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  1. By don rap #1, Posted: 3/27/2008

    GM using China for engines is depressing and disappointing. This action taints what I considered America's best car company. Hopefully America will generate new smaller manufacturers who are innovative.

  2. By chris #2, Posted: 3/27/2008

    don, america has small car manufacturers. the problem is that they make cars that have price tags like every small car manufacturer. high. look at shelby. prime example. stellar cars, stellar prices.

    truth be told, the germans get engines from france, and entire cars that are made in czeck republic. british cars may be made in india as soon as 2011, and japanese cars sold in america are mostly american made.

    like the article says, the machines are making the product. it doesnt matter what country you're from, anyone can push a button. the thing that really matters is who makes the plant, provides, and installs the machinery. and for the most part, even factories in china that make american cars (the mazda2/ford fiesta will be made in china) will be built and set up by either western european, american, or japanese contractors.

    quality isnt exactly a function of where the car is built. if the camry can be built in tennesee of all states, and if BMWs are made in south carolina, who really cares.

    I think it was smart of GM to source the engines from china without telling any one and then letting the cat out of the bag after the fact. "see? the world DIDNT blow up".

    the only concern that I have is this continuing trend of foreign brands producing more cars in america while american brands are pushing their production OUT of america.

  3. By Gus #3, Posted: 3/27/2008

    See above.

  4. By CraigS #4, Posted: 3/27/2008

    What really bugs me is the desperate way which domestic auto manufacturers advertise by saying buy American instead of buy our great products (if they were great). This kills their last vestage of trying to sell their domestic junk as it's parts are no longer American.

  5. By Gus #5, Posted: 3/27/2008

    Well, my new Mustang has an engine built in Germany, a transmission from France, and it's asembled in Detroit.

    Better than China, I guess.

    But the good part is that the profits stay in this country, for the most part (when Ford makes a profit, that is)...

  6. By Car Fan #6, Posted: 3/27/2008

    Big mistake!

    I disagree with Chris, in the case of China it does matter that the GM engines are built there because China in particular has a documented history of bypassing rules and regulations, not to mention copyright infringement and horrendous quality (due mainly to all of the above). I have the absolute lowest perception of GM among all US carmakers because they try to lower prices AT ANY COST, rather than improving process efficiency (reduce expenses), improving quality (would reduce warranty costs), and improving design (increases sales by creating a more desireable product)... they try to get cheap labor, cut corners, get the cheapest materials and cheapest vendors. That may produce the cheapest car but in no way translates to improved profits or even an improved car.

  7. By Palmer M #7, Posted: 3/27/2008

    What the article doesn't mention is that this isn't news at all, unless you consider it "news" several years after the fact. I have known about this since the Theta hit the market, and it
    wouldn't at all dissuade me from buying the Equinox. It's the Honda V6 that in the old Saturn Vue that would have prevented me from buying that model!

    The other thing not mentioned is that it is a Chevrolet engine, produced by the GM Shanghai partnership. Look under the hood of the Equinox, and it looks the same as the other 3100, 3400, and 3500 installations. It's not as if GM just went shopping and is buying any old engine. Besides, there are plenty of those same engines that are produced here running around in Malibus, G6s, Impalas, etc. Maybe the China plant was just the one with the capacity...I think the China-built Buick W-bodies use or have used this engine series.

    GM has been building engines, components, and cars all over the world for decades, before many automakers started, much less thought of going global. I would drive an Equinox with pride, knowing it is the design and product of an AMERICAN global powerhouse, no matter where the components are produced. I think it's a cheap shot to headline this article as if it were some scandalous news.

  8. By chris #8, Posted: 3/28/2008

    lol i like seeing that gus is just straight up refering to my posts now. gus has got the idea exactly. keeping the jobs in america, well thats going to be hard. its hard for any industry. the point is that the MONEY is staying here, and keeping what ever jobs ARE here. u'll just make the problem worse if use this as an excuse to buy foreign.

    carfan; i think you may want to refer to palmer's article. these engines arent pulled out of a chery. theyre built BY GM... in china. like i said. no matter how racist you are, anyone can push a button. CHINESE COMPANIES will break regulations and cheat and lie and steal and what ever u want to say, but GM is an american run company, and i wouldn't doubt that there are american men running that factory. the same is true here. japanese plants have japanese migrant workers at the controls. you may find it funny but GM has some degree of brand image and that is worth more than cost deferrals.

    Palmer; thats unfortunate... I wish that it was as this article suggests. would have been much more comical. but i guess ud probably piss off more people if they found out 2 years later that their engines are chinese. gotta let them know upfront.

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