GMβs EV Plant Will Now Build The Gas Models People Actually Want

- GM has hit the gas on the production of gas-powered vehicles.
- The company killed plans for an EV plant in Lake Orion, Michigan.
- The facility will instead build gas-powered trucks and SUVs.
General Motors has finally acknowledged the obvious: no one is buying the Chevrolet Silverado EV and GMC Sierra EV. As we recently noted, the company only sold 2,383 Silverado EVs and 1,249 Sierra EVs in the first quarter.
Those are dreadful numbers, and they appear to have been the final nail in the coffin for plans to turn Orion Assembly into an EV plant. The facility was originally slated to build electric trucks in 2024, but that date was eventually pushed back to late 2025 to βbetter manage capital investment, while aligning with evolving EV demand.β
More: The 2026 GMC Sierra EV Now Starts $27,500 Less Than Before
Fast forward to today, and GM has thrown in the towel on its electric truck plans. Instead, Orion Assembly will now build gas-powered full-size SUVs and trucks starting in early 2027. The move means the plant will likely produce the redesigned Chevrolet Silverado, Tahoe, and Suburban as well as the GMC Sierra, Yukon, and Yukon XL.
As for the Silverado EV and Sierra EV, theyβll continue to be built at the nearby Factory Zero in Hamtramck. That facility also builds the GMC Hummer EVs as well as the Cadillac Escalade IQ.
The Gas-Powered Chevrolet Blazer Lives

The aging Chevrolet Blazer was expected to be discontinued, but itβs getting a reprieve as production will begin at Spring Hill Manufacturing in 2027. That facility is best known for making the electric Cadillac Lyriq and Vistiq, but it also builds the dated XT5 and XT6.
Speaking of EV plants doing double duty, Fairfax Assembly is slated to begin building the 2027 Chevrolet Bolt EV by the end of this year. However, itβs getting some company in the form of the gas-powered Chevrolet Equinox, which will be built at the plant in mid-2027.
GM said the move will help support sales of the popular crossover, which was βup more than 30% year-over-year in the first quarter.β However, itβs important to note the model is currently built in Mexico, and this could have played a role in shifting some production stateside.

Unsurprisingly, GM didnβt mention tariffs or slower-than-expected electric vehicle adoption in todayβs announcement. Instead, they packaged it in Trump-friendly form as CEO Mary Barra said, βTodayβs announcement demonstrates our ongoing commitment to build vehicles in the US and to support American jobs.β
She added, βWeβre focused on giving customers choice and offering a broad range of vehicles they love.β Thatβs a not so subtle hint that gas-powered vehicles arenβt going away anytime soon.
GM said the investments total around $4 billion, which is roughly the same amount of money they were investing in transforming Orion Assembly into an EV truck hub. This begs the question of how much money was squandered on the bad EV bet.
