Isuzu and GM Partner-up to Produce Medium-duty Trucks in the US

Hoping to re-enter the medium-duty truck market, General Motors is expected to announce a new collaboration with Isuzu in order to produce medium-duty trucks in the US.

The medium-duty truck market has grown tremendously and has now become the largest segment in the nation, statistics show. In 2015 alone, the market has increased 3.5 percent, which only suggests that GM is making a killer-deal.

In an economy that is continuously rebounding from the deep economic recession, truck sales have also bounced back and companies such as GM and Isuzu will surely reap the benefits of such an investment.

This collaboration will involve procuring work trucks from Isuzu Motors Ltd. Which will be sold under the Chevrolet seal in the United States. Basically, the terms of the deal will state that Isuzu is the vehicle manufacturer while General Motors will contribute its dealer network as well as a nigh-pristine reputation so that the vehicles can be properly sold.

Although you’d expect that such a deal is unordinary, Isuzu’s deal with GM doesn’t differ greatly from GM’s deal with Nissan Motor Co. The two companies have a similar deal in which GM purchases Nissan’s work vans and re-brands them as Chevys. They are later sold to US customers.

Additional terms of these agreement have been kept hush-hush for now, though sources familiar with the deal suggest that General Motors will contribute an engine for the Isuzu-manufactured Chevys.

This recent endeavour by GM is a welcome step forward after massive downsizing, especially when companies such as Daimler AG and Ford Motor Co. have managed to remain active on the market. The exact number of vehicles that Isuzu has promised to supply isn’t clear yet, however, according to the terms of the deal, 80 percent of the trucks will be powered by Diesel engines.

These vehicles are expected to be shipped out of Japan. The remaining 20 percent are expected to be assembled in the United States, in a factory operated by Isuzu partners. They will be powered by General Motors gasoline engines.
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