Chevrolet Teams Up With AutoShare to Ease Transportation Costs for Students

© General Motors

DURAND, Mich. – Could Chevrolet be dipping its toe into car sharing, as some of its competitors are? Potentially, but for now Chevrolet is teaming up with AutoShare to ease transportation costs for students at some of the most prestigious post-secondary institutions in the Greater Toronto Area.

Chevy will give AutoShare 16 vehicles to add to its fleet at Ryerson University, the University of Toronto, and York University. Available Chevy models for the AutoShare fleet will include the 2015 Chevrolet Trax, Sonic, and Cruze, all fitting vehicles for dense Toronto’s narrow streets.

“We are thrilled to be working with AutoShare to provide university students in Toronto with this unique opportunity to find new roads, both on and off campus,” said John Roth, GM Canada’s VP of sales, service, and marketing. “This partnership provides around-the-clock access to a range of fun-to-drive and stylish Chevrolets.”

The idea for Chevrolet to team up with AutoShare and ease transportation costs for students stems from the reality that the entire college experience comes with hefty costs – tuition, food, and rent, to name a few. Transportation is an additional cost that many students have to squeeze into an already compact budget.

Chevy will waive service registration fees for students, and AutoShare will only charge students $6 hourly driving rates on Chevy models. By saving students 35–40% on transportation, Chevy and AutoShare will help these young scholars worry less about finances and focus more on taking advantage of a quality education.

Is it safe to assume, if this experiment with AutoShare goes well, that we could see Chevy partner with American car sharing companies to provide fleets on American university campuses? Considering the abundance of universities and large cities that call the U.S. home, it might be a good move on Chevy's part.

If you’re a college student at the University of Michigan–Flint or Kettering University, we understand how difficult it can be to maintain your vehicle. But don’t forget the importance of getting a regular oil change and replacing your tires at the appropriate times and seasons. Stop by Hank Graff Chevrolet Durand and we’ll help you out!

Located at 9009 East Lansing Road Durand, MI 48429, Hank Graff Chevrolet Durand is revolutionizing the car buying experience. We provide all the transparency and customer service you need, while simultaneously making your purchase experience fun! Learn more about Hank Graff Chevrolet Durand, or for any questions contact us at (989) 288-2657 or visit our website at www.GraffChevyDurand.com!

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Flint Engine Builds Millionth 1.4L Engine and Prepares Ecotec Engine Production

© General Motors

DURAND, Mich. – In August 2015, General Motors’ Flint Engine built its millionth 1.4L engine and is preparing for Ecotec engine production.

When the facility ends production of the 1.4L engine at the beginning of September, workers will transition to manufacturing the all-new Ecotec small gas engine. The Ecotec will be used in the Chevrolet Cruze and Volt, and full implementation is expected by year’s end.

GM began manufacturing the 1.4L engine for the Volt, Cruze, and Sonic in 2001, and Flint Engine became a key facility in that production after opening its doors in 2002. Now, GM is investing $200 million in upgrades to the plant in order to manufacture the new Ecotec.

GM will used eight engine plants, including Flint’s, in six countries to produce 2.5 million Ecotec engines a year by 2017. For now, Ecotec engines built at Flint Engine will go into the Volt and Cruze, but the engine is expected to become a global component eventually.

The launch of the Ecotec in 2013 catalyzed a team made of Flint Engine employees and GM engineers and employees from Michigan, Mexico, and Japan for the powertrain pre-production process. For months the team collaborated to develop the Ecotec engine that will begin production in early September 2015. 

Throughout the development phase of the Ecotec engine, construction crews installed equipment and readied the plant to transition production from the 1.4L engine. The crew is in the final phase of equipment installation, just in time for Flint Engine to build its millionth 1.4L engine and prepare for Ecotec engine production.

By year’s end, the first shipment of Ecotec engines will head to GM’s Lordstown, Ohio, assembly plant for the Chevrolet Cruze, and Volt production will begin later in 2016.

Despite ending 1.4L engine production, Flint Engine will continue to manufacture the 3.6L engine through its transition to the Ecotec engine. The facility builds the 3.6L engine for the Chevrolet Colorado and Traverse, GMC Canyon and Acadia, and Buick Enclave.

Once again, it’s great to see how much attention GM is paying to Flint. With a handful of engine facilities, the automaker could have gone anywhere else. But Flint seems to be the ideal location for GM, possibly for its layout, but perhaps also because the Vehicle City is home. All of the activity makes us proud to represent GM as a Flint area Chevy dealer with a variety of new Chevy cars and trucks.

Located at 9009 East Lansing Road Durand, MI 48429, Hank Graff Chevrolet Durand is revolutionizing the car buying experience. We provide all the transparency and customer service you need, while simultaneously making your purchase experience fun! Learn more about Hank Graff Chevrolet Durand, or for any questions contact us at (989) 288-2657 or visit our website at www.GraffChevyDurand.com!

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GM Plans to Renovate Durant-Dort Factory One Near Downtown Flint

© General Motors

DURAND, Mich. –– Before his successful foray into a seminal automotive industry in 1908 –– an entrance that correspondingly altered the business to this day –– General Motors founder William Durant cut his teeth producing carriages under Durant-Dort Carriage Company with his business partner Josiah Dort. After years of disrepair and neglect, GM plans to renovate Durant-Dort Factory One near downtown Flint as an homage to the automaker's forefather, but also to continue stabilizing the future of Flint and its metropolitan area through urban rejuvenation.

GM will invest millions to restore and repurpose the high-bay area of the factory’s west wing as an archive for an impressive auto collection presently under supervision at Kettering University and other noteworthy Flint vestiges from the Durant era. The second floor of the factory’s east wing will be renovated as a GM executives meeting area, as well as a space for community and educational groups to hold STEM-related classes, seminars, and research.

Before tackling the interior project, GM will work with architects from SmithGroupJJR, based in Ann Arbor, who have experience overhauling historic buildings and constructing contemporary archives.

GM purchased the factory in 2013 and has since invested $3 million to restore the exterior with new windows and doors, plus the installation of a fence around a GM-owned parking lot across Water Street. GM plans to renovate the interior of Durant-Dort Factory One near downtown Flint in early 2016, and expects a completion date to appear sometime in 2017.

GM's investment in the factory dovetails with a series of investments around Flint, including $2 million into Kettering University to develop a powertrain laboratory, $2 million into Kettering by 2018 for an automotive proving ground for students, and $877 million into Flint Assembly for a new body shop. It will also renovate the Durant-Dort Carriage Company office building across the street from the factory.

With the uproar of activity occurring in and around Flint, we truly believe this community is on the cusp of serious revitalization. We absolutely love being a Flint area Chevy dealer with an awesome inventory of new Chevy cars and trucks, and we can't wait to see what GM does for its hometown.

Located at 9009 East Lansing Road Durand, MI 48429, Hank Graff Chevrolet Durand is revolutionizing the car buying experience. We provide all the transparency and customer service you need, while simultaneously making your purchase experience fun! Learn more about Hank Graff Chevrolet Durand, or for any questions contact us at (989) 288-2657 or visit our website at www.GraffChevyDurand.com!

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Story of the First Chevrolet Corvette

DURAND, Mich. –­– There's no question Americans have an affinity for anything automotive, and many of the country’s top enthusiasts would agree that one particular classic performance car will never desist as a force to be reckoned with: the Chevrolet Corvette. In celebration of this monumental automobile that first rolled off the assembly line on June 30, 1953, it's worth taking a look at the story of the first Chevrolet Corvette's arduous road to success.

The idea for the Corvette emerged in 1951 after General Motors designer Harley J. Earl pondered the production of an affordable American sports car able to compete with European monoliths such as MG, Jaguar, and Ferrari. Although it took nearly two years for the concept to reach fruition, the first two-seater production Corvette finally entered the automotive pool and today we’re still seeing ripples from its impact.

Before beginning production, Chevrolet kindled the story of the first Corvette when they debuted a concept model in January 1953 at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City.  According to GM, a “trim, fleet naval vessel that performed heroic escort and patrol duties during World War II” was the eponymous influence for the fiberglass-body, six-cylinder Corvette that piqued the interest of everyone in attendance.

Like its ornate name, the first Corvette was one flashy son-of-an-automobile that exhibited an ostentatious Polo White exterior and red interior, a two-speed Powerglide automatic transmission, a wraparound windshield, whitewall tires, and removable plastic curtains in lieu of windows.

Unprecedented innovation also bolstered the 1953 Corvette as America’s new sports car, including features like a clock, cigarette lighter, and red warning light that turned on when the driver applied the parking brake. While the 1953 Corvette only showed average speed performance, going from zero to 60 in 11 to 12 seconds, its unique style and features helped value it at $3,490.

Despite the Corvette's popularity today, it struggled to gain recognition from the automotive world during the first two years of its life. To the chagrin of GM and Chevrolet, the 1953 Corvette received curious glances but failed to steal the hearts of American motorists.

By 1954, when Chevrolet began full-scale mass production of the car at one of their plants in St. Louis, the Corvette’s ho-hum start in the automotive world hadn't ceased spiraling downward since inception, and GM considered abandoning production for good. That is, until a certain rival automotive manufacturer introduced their two-seater Thunderbird.

This competitive threat pushed GM to improve the Corvette. In 1955 they stuck a V8 engine underneath the sports car's hood and never looked back. From then on the Corvette garnered the nickname “America’s sports car” and steadily became pop culture symbol perpetually revered and referenced by motorists and the media alike.

The Corvette’s impressive history and its comeback story are an example of what it took for Chevrolet to become the automaker it is today. Chevy’s drive, passion and the guts to do what others haven’t are what make us proud to sell New Chevy Cars and New Chevy Trucks at our Flint Area Chevy Dealership. Stop in sometime and see for yourself.

Located at 9009 East Lansing Road Durand, MI 48429, Hank Graff Chevrolet Durand is revolutionizing the car buying experience. We provide all the transparency and customer service you need, while simultaneously making your purchase experience fun! Learn more about Hank Graff Chevrolet Durand, or for any questions contact us at (989) 288-2657 or visit our website at www.GraffChevyDurand.com!

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