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“After four years of working with multiple potential buyers, General Motors has decided to wind down its medium-duty truck operations,” is the message from bankruptcy court. Topkicked to the curb, so to speak. Because if someone hasn’t bought after four years of wrangling, it’s time to move on. July 31 will mark the end of production for Topkick and Kodiak, which sold a combined 20,000 units last year. Reuters reports that the medium duty truck workers will be reassigned or leave the company through GM’s attrition program.
32 Comments on “GM Winds Down Medium-Duty Truck Business...”
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Not really a huge loss, as anyone who’s familiar with the Kodiak and Topkick can attest.
They were crude and hardly user friendly and accepted modifications (of the industrial kind) poorly compared to comparable Fords.
Still a shame, as Hino will probably come in one of these days and gobble up a huge chunk of this business without much of a fight.
So are they going to scrap Ironhide from the next transformers flick?
Still a shame, as Hino will probably come in one of these days and gobble up a huge chunk of this business without much of a fight.
Actually, that’s a good point. A lot of people (who spend a lot of time slamming Toyota for not making a medium-duty truck) completely forget about their stake in Hino.
But you’re right that this will go mostly to Ford, and largely because Ford is much better mated to the aftermarket body companies.
Wasn’t the medium duty profitable for GM? I remember when they were originally going ot sell the medium duty it was pulling in a profit. Shut down or sell off the profitable parts that work to keep the unprofitable and poorly managed car business rolling, typical GM.
“Wasn’t the medium duty profitable for GM?”
Perhaps GM SAID it was profitable, but that they could not sell the business after three years of trying, I’m guessing the financials told a different story.
Well there goes my explanation for keeping GMC. Without big trucks, there is no need for badge engineered Chevy’s.
Nothing this company (or this government) does makes any sense at all.
Well there goes my explanation for keeping GMC. Without big trucks, there is no need for badge engineered Chevy’s.
Actually, they badged these as Chevies, too.
Kodiak is a great name for a truck… The product wasn’t great, but the name was killer…
I would much rather say that I drive a “Kodiak” than a “GMC” or a “Silverado”
And the future of Ford Medium-Duty is in doubt as their contract with Navistar is unwinding. The F-550 is continuing production at Louisville (as it is closer to the F-450 than anything), but the 650/750 are endangered animals until Ford either makes room for them somewhere or kills them off.
Hino may have an even easier time than you think.
But isn’t Hino a 100% cab-over-engine deal?
Most of the big city trucks, except for garbage trucks, here in Toronto are big GMC trucks just like these. I know because about 50 of them were parked outside my building at 5am pissing me off!
Isuzu, Navistar, Volvo/Mack, Daimler/Freightliner and others all compete in the Medium Duty market as well. GM’s sales in this segment are reportedly down over 60% from two year ago levels. GM didn’t come close to doing what it needed to do to remain a top tier competitor in the segment. Sound familiar?
“But isn’t Hino a 100% cab-over-engine deal?”
No, it is actually a conventional cab.
“GM’s sales in this segment are reportedly down over 60% from two year ago levels.”
As was the entire segment.
Is this what’s left of the legacy of the legendary 6×6 GMC trucks of WWII?
Daimler bought Ford’s medium-heavy truck operations and renamed it Sterling a few years ago, but that died (was euthanized) a few months ago. I presume that’s one size up from these rigs….
Does that leave Ford (“Maybe”), International and just who else as truly American engineered trucks in this size category?
Wow…. truckapocolypse
Can’t we Americans engineer and build “anything” any more?
It’s sad.
During an economic downturn medium duty truck market always collapses so GM selling 60% less doesn´t say much
Looks like 600-700 medium duty trucks per month isn’t a viable business.
I can tell you the truth about why the U.S. medium duty truck industry got it’s ass kicked but it would set off such a firestorm about it being rascist, that I don’t dare. If the powers that be will allow it, I will tell you.
commando1
You know what website you’re on? Let her rip.
menno
There are also Dodge Ram 4500’s and 5500’s. They were released a couple years ago and are gaining ground fast, and are probably one of the reasons GM’s medium-duty trucks failed. The Cummins is solid, the Aisin is solid, the brakes perform well, it’s more or less compatible with all F-series aftermarket add-ons, they haul more than comparables Fords and GM’s, and frankly, nobody in this segment gives a damn about the low-rent interior borrowed out of the last-gen Ram 1500.
I think International must be in a good position now, although I don’t follow the industry for these types of vehicles.
I know the Canadian government let a bid for a large quantity of medium duty logistics vehicles recently (without a predetermined price…a full competitive bid) and International was the only one that submitted a proposal. Who knows, maybe that doesn’t mean anything.
BTW, there aren’t open forums so I had to post this here…I saw a Suzuki Equator today. What the **** is that? NEVER heard of that before.
There are also Dodge Ram 4500’s and 5500’s. They were released a couple years ago and are gaining ground fast, and are probably one of the reasons GM’s medium-duty trucks failed.
Which, incidentally, makes a version called Sterling, which as noted above, Daimler bought from Ford and partnered with Chrysler on.
Suzuki Equator= rebadged Nissan Frontier.
Nissan worked a deal to get some rebadged Suzuki kei cars to sell in Japan, and Suzuki got a rebadged Nissan for the three people who want to buy a truck and think, “Hey, I wonder what the Suzuki dealer has?” Perhaps they should have asked Mitsubishi how that Raider thing worked out.
I’ve sold quite a few of these as buses, and they are a great chassis. Very disappointed that it is no longer going to be an option, although I do think somebody will buy the rights and tooling to make this chassis under a new name in the future.
bumpy ii :
June 8th, 2009 at 5:59 pm
Suzuki Equator= rebadged Nissan Frontier.
Nissan worked a deal to get some rebadged Suzuki kei cars to sell in Japan, and Suzuki got a rebadged Nissan for the three people who want to buy a truck and think, “Hey, I wonder what the Suzuki dealer has?” Perhaps they should have asked Mitsubishi how that Raider thing worked out.
Your post reminded me of why I stopped at a Suzuki dealer for the first time ever. I saw that truck and wondered just what in the world it was. Of course taking a truck that’s ugly in the first place and making it even worse doesn’t seem like a brilliants sales strategy.
Can anybody answer this? Who does the warranty work, the Suzuki dealer? What in the world do they know about a Nissan and would they even have air filters in stock? This is a no brainer, if you want a Nissan truck go to the Nissan dealer.
The Suzuki offers a better warranty, if you’re into that sort of thing.
I find it hard to believe that you can’t make money in this segment…
I would like to hear what Buickman thinks about this issue.
Sometimes the clone represents a better value.
In Yesterdays paper the Carson City GM dealer was offering AWD Pontiac Vibes for $15 vs 19k for the Doppelganger AWD Matrix at the Toyota Store.
The Saabaru 9-2 and Mazda B-series can sometimes offer a better value then their better know clones.
If the Suzuki has the better warranty and a lower price, buy the Suzuki. I can’t imagine a Frontier/Equator is that difficult to work on, after all, we are talking about a fairly crude mid-size pickup here, not a GT-R or ZR1. Similarly, I never understood why people shunned the Isuzu clones of GM vehicles when the Isuzus offered thousands off the price, and a warranty nearly double the length.
If both GM and Ford give up this market, there are a couple of other players that can fill the gap. The main two I can see are Scania and Iveco, who is concidentially owned by Fiat. If the Fiat/Chrysler “marriage” works out, maybe some of the redundant Chrysler dealers may start selling Iveco products.
Sidebar: Volvo is already in this market in North America, by way of Mack trucks. This is in addition to the heavy duty trucks sold under the Volvo brand.
Gotta love how these are considered “Medium Duty” as GM slathers “Heavy Duty” stickers across so much of their passenger truck line…