GM, Navistar to co-develop trucks

DETROIT/LISLE, Ill. (Oct. 2, 2015) — General Motors Co. and Navistar International Corp. have agreed to develop and assemble medium-duty, conventional cab Class 4/5 commercial vehicles, allowing Navistar to strengthen its product lineup and GM to expand its Chevrolet commercial truck portfolio.

“Bringing medium-duty conventional cab trucks back into the portfolio strengthens Chevrolet's commitment to providing commercial customers with more choices and one-stop shopping for a versatile lineup of trucks, vans and crossovers,” said Ed Peper, U.S. vice president of GM Fleet and Commercial Sales.

Future products will be developed jointly using Navistar's expertise in rolling chassis configurations and manufacturing capabilities and GM's commercial components and engines, the parties said.

Class 4 trucks are those with a gross vehicle weight rating ranging from 14,001–16,000 pounds; examples are Ford F-450 trucks, Dodge Ram 4500 and GMC 4500.

Class 5 trucks have a gross vehicle weight rating ranging from 16,001 to 19,500 pounds; examples include the International TerraStar, GMC 5500, Dodge Ram 5500 and Ford F-550.

The jointly developed vehicles are slated for production in 2018 and will be manufactured at Navistar's facility in Springfield, Ohio. Navistar plans to add 300 jobs and invest more than $12 million in facility upgrades and state-of-the-art equipment to produce the new vehicles.

“Our collaboration with GM is another example of our customer-centric, open integration approach — providing our customers with the best technologies available,” said Bill Kozek, president, truck and parts, for Navistar.

“By working with an industry-leading company like GM, we'll be able to enhance our medium-duty product portfolio and leverage our scale and expertise in manufacturing medium-duty trucks.”

Specific terms of the agreement were not disclosed.  Additional product information will be announced later.

Lisle-based Navistar is a holding company whose subsidiaries and affiliates produce International-brand commercial and military trucks, proprietary diesel engines, and IC Bus-brand school and commercial buses.