GM to close Cobalt plant for 1 week

A survey shows the Cobalt is exceeding quality expectations.
By DON SHILLING
VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR
LORDSTOWN -- General Motors will shut down its Lordstown assembly plant for one week starting April 24 to reduce the number of Chevrolet Cobalts on dealer lots.
It will be the first time production has been curtailed since the plant started making the Cobalt in 2004.
Tom Mock, a plant spokesman, said it's been a few years since the plant has been shut down to reduce production. Vindicator files indicate the plant was closed for a week in April 2003 when it was producing the Chevrolet Cavalier and Pontiac Sunfire.
Dealers have a 100-day supply of Cobalts, compared with an industry goal of 60 days.
Dan Flores, a GM spokesman in Detroit, called the shutdown a minor adjustment and said it was "not a big issue."
Jim Graham, president of United Auto Workers Local 1112 at the plant, said shutdowns aren't unusual at this time of year because it is a slow period for car sales.
"March is always a slow month. In April, it will pick up again," he said.
Plant and union officials have said plant workers may be needed to work overtime once the plant begins making the Pontiac G5, a sister car to the Cobalt, in June.
Flores said GM remains happy with Cobalt sales.
Figures
GM said earlier this month that it sold about 14,300 Cobalts in February, compared with about 17,500 in January.
Last month's sales were nearly twice what the Cobalt recorded in February 2005, but the car was still early in its launch phase at the time.
Overall, GM car sales were down 13 percent last month when compared with February 2005. Its total sales were down 2.5 percent.
In other news, an item in the plant newsletter indicates that the Cobalt is exceeding management's quality expectations.
GM watches J.D. Power and Associates' survey of quality in the first 90 days of ownership. Though Power's annual quality report will not be released until June, a score for Cobalts built from October to December 2005 shows reason to believe the full report will be favorable, the newsletter said.
Those cars had a score of 99.7 problems per hundred vehicles, compared with the company's goal of 113 for the Cobalt.
The newsletter said this is believed to be the first time a Lordstown-built car has dipped below 100.
Last year, the Toyota Prius led all small cars in the Power rankings with a score of 72.
shilling@vindy.com