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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe global shortage of computer chips led General Motors to build 95,000 vehicles without certain components during the second quarter.
The Detroit automaker said in a regulatory filing Friday that most of the incomplete vehicles were built in June, and that it expects most of them to be finished and sold to dealers before the end of the year.
The value of the unsold vehicles was equal to about 16% of GM’s total sales from April through June. The company said Friday that it sold more than 582,000 vehicles during the quarter, down more than 15% from a year ago.
The company reaffirmed its full-year profit guidance of $9.6 billion to $11.2 billion with pretax earnings of $13 billion to $15 billion. For the first time the company predicted that it would make $2.3 billion to $2.6 billion before taxes in the second quarter.
The chip shortage has vexed automakers across the globe since 2020, forcing many automakers to temporarily close factories and trim production. The shortage has limited the supply of new vehicles on dealer lots in the U.S. to about 1 million, when in normal years it’s about 4 million at any given time.
That has pushed prices to record levels and limited vehicle selection, but it’s also led to strong profits for most automakers.
In a prepared statement, GM said its North American production has been relatively stable since the third quarter of last year, but short-term parts disruptions are continuing. “We are actively working with our suppliers to resolve issues as they arise to meet pent-up customer demand for our vehicles,” the statement said.
GM shares rose 2%, to $32.42 each, in trading early Friday after filing was made public.
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As a potential buyer of one of those vehicles, my worry would be where they sat and how long. Reason: August 2019, I bought a new Honda Odyssey, just a few miles on the odometer. Parked it in my garage for 4 days until the roofers left. Next day, at 266 miles, the engine failed. Mice had chewed up the wiring harness to the tune of $1,633, which I had to pay to get it fixed. Turns out the wire insulation is a soyabean product, and tasty to mice. Honda’s response, all the manufacturers use this wire.
I checked my Chevy truck, to GM’s credit, they put plastic armour on everything I could check up to the last half inch. Honda just laid the wires out in the open for a 24″-30″ run. Apparently there are a lot of horror stories of wires eaten in airport parking lots near open grass. These new cars have multiple sensors which means much more wire in every nook and cranny of the vehicle.
Every manufacture is doing this, so when you buy our cars they are just a mediocre as the next manufacturer.
I had heard of this as well.