GM's new Chevy Silverado bids for more US pickup profits

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General Motors Co. on Saturday fired a new round in the battle for profits from one of the US auto industry’s most lucrative segments when it showed a new generation of its Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck at Detroit’s auto show.

The new Silverado, a highlight of the show, is the successor to GM’s best-selling cars in North America. Sales of the current Silverado rose nearly two percent to 585,000 vehicle in 2017.

Analysts and company executives say the Silverado and the similar GMC Sierra are among the highest-profit models for the company, generating a significant share of its 9 billion US dollars in North American pretax earnings for the first nine months of 2017.

By adding luxury features to their pickups, automakers have pushed prices in the segment to an average 46,984 US dollars a vehicle, according to Cox Automotive. That is well above the industry’s average 2017 transaction price of 31,600 US dollars cited by GM.

Competition in the North American large pickup market will heat up as GM and rival Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV begin selling their redesigned trucks later this year and Ford Motor Co invests in its best-selling F-series.

Speaking on stage flanked by several gleaming new Silverados, GM global product development chief Mark Reuss said the automaker had cut the pickup’s weight 450 pounds (204 kilograms) using lighter materials including aluminum doors, hood and tailgate.

Source(s): Reuters