GM Boosts Production Of The Chevy Colorado

Many have eagerly been watching the Chevrolet Colorado, assessing if the “small” pickup truck is a sales success or not. With the recent news that GM has plans to boost production of the new model, it seems that the Colorado is indeed a hit.

Usually everyone waits longer to declare if a new model is successful or not, but the fact that GM is adding a third shift to the truck’s production team so it can pump out more to meet demand. During a recent interview with Wards Auto, Chevrolet brand vice president Brian Sweeney said that he anticipates all the Colorados it can make will sell quickly.

Despite its success, the Chevy Colorado is up against some stiff competition. The 800-pound gorilla in the market segment is the Toyota Tacoma. Even though the Canyon and its sibling the GMC Canyon scooped up 16,937 unit sales between November of 2014 and January of 2015, the Tacoma was able to obliterate that with 38,711 sales. What makes that even more amazing is the fact that the current generation of the Tacoma is ending later in 2015. With an updated version of the pickup hitting the market, it should see even stronger sales.

According to the interview with Sweeney, the Tacoma’s dominance right now is all about availability. Colorados and Canyons can barely stay on dealers’ lots right now, thanks to a constrained supply. Even though the third shift should help alleviate that problem, Sweeny believes that even with more Colorados churching out of the factory, they still won’t stick around dealerships for long. Sweeney added that the Colorado has a 41 percent conquest rate, which means buyers who have come from other brands (such as Toyota).

Right now the Colorado can be had with an efficient four-cylinder engine or a surprisingly capable and efficient V-6. GM will be upping its game for 2016 when it starts offering a 2.8-liter Duramax turbodiesel four-cylinder engine, which should provide a considerable boost in fuel economy and torque.