Alexander Alusheff

Lansing State Journal

DELTA TWP. – General Motors' Lansing Delta Township Assembly Plant will shut down for a month starting this week to prepare for the launch of the new Buick Enclave and Chevrolet Traverse.

The plant closes after second shift on Friday to phase out production of the GMC Acadia. When it resumes on June 12, the third shift will be gone along with more than 600 workers.

Back in March, when the cuts were first announced, GM believed it might have to lay off as many as 1,100 at the plant.

"At this point, we anticipate approximately half the number of people reported in the WARN notice to be impacted by the shift reduction," said Erin Davis, GM's Lansing spokeswoman.

Of the roughly 600 who will be laid off, 500 could be brought back in the first quarter of 2018, Davis said, when production and demand for the Enclave and Traverse is expected to be in full swing.

"We're advocating for additional product at the plant," said Bill Reed, president of UAW Local 602.

A third product would bring back the third shift, he said.

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"Right now, we're focused on making sure we have a successful launch," he said.

GM announced that the Delta Township plant would produce the new generation Traverse in January. It confirmed the new generation Enclave would be made at the plant in March, the same day the layoffs were announced. The company invested $583 million in new tooling, equipment and an expansion at the plant for the two SUVs.

The Enclave was formally unveiled last month at the New York Auto Show. It will be powered by a 3.6L V-6 engine with 302 horsepower, an improvement over the 288 horsepower in the previous model. It will also have a nine-speed automatic transmission instead of a six-speed transmission. The seven passenger SUV weighs 4,358 pounds, nearly 600 pounds lighter than the previous model.

With front-wheel drive, it will get 17 mpg in the city and 25 on the highway. With all-wheel drive, it will get 17 mpg in the city and 24 on the highway. The first-generation Enclave gets 15 mpg in the city and 20 on the highway.

Both the Traverse and Enclave will go on sale this fall. Pricing has yet to be announced.

Though it is a sensitive time, the fact that GM chose to continue to build the Traverse and Enclave at the plant speaks to the quality its workforce, said Marcos Purty, plant manager.

"Our people put out a very good product," he said.

There is still room for another product at the plant. Auto analysts predict that GM could select a Cadillac crossover to fill the gap.

GM laid off 500 people at the Lansing Grand River Assembly plant in January due to declining sales of the Cadillac ATS, CTS and Chevrolet Camaro.

Alexander Alusheff is a reporter at the Lansing State Journal. Contact him at (517) 388-5973 or aalusheff@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexalusheff.