fatherlarry
09-30-2007, 11:04 AM
"Bowling Green to Lose the Corvette?" :dunno:
Sept 29, 2007
"Bowling Green to Lose the Corvette?"
Well folks, For several months now there have been top level discussions of moving Corvette production to the newest GM plant in Spring Hill TN. Many of you do not how close that decision was to being made prior to the recent UAW/GM negotiations.
Most of you don’t know this but the BG plant is actually very antiquated when compared to most all others in GM. In fact, the paint department that paints the two flagships of the GM fleet, the Corvette and Cadillac XLR, are painted in the oldest, most ancient paint department in all of GM. Then how do those cars keep being rated as the top in all of the US in quality by several of the various survey companies? Well, you can thank the many dedicated employees who work 2 shifts in the paint department in order to stay up in quality and numbers with the single shift of assemblers. The 7 miles of conveyer system is also as old and in need of major upgrades.
When GM moved to BG in 1981, the city (who actually owns the land and property) gave GM a 30 year lease for just $1. That lease is up 2011. Also, the plant was given very reduced utilities and a sales tax exempt status from the city and state as well. The plan was that GM would bring many new jobs to the area….a fact that never occurred. You see, the plant hires mainly UAW members from its own ranks, many from closed plants elsewhere. Therefore, very few, maybe as little as 2% of the workforce at the BG plant is from the local community. This has been a sore spot between the plant and the city of Bowling Green for some time.
But the plant, along with the NCM have been the mainstay of tourism dollars for many years and in fact, are the top attractions in all of Kentucky. Over 22 million in tourism dollars were spent here in the city just last year and most of that attributed to the two Corvette attractions. Combine that with nearly 1200 employees living in the area and one can easily understand that even though the plant doesn’t hire many from the community, its economic impact is considerable and in fact, vital to the Bowling Green area.
Spring Hill on the other hand, has brought much in the form of economic growth to its area and has the newest of all paint lines and although the plant was built for Saturn production, shortfalls in sales has left millions (yes I said MILLIONS) of square feet of state of the art production facility unoccupied. If left to the GM beancounters, the Corvette would move to TN by the 2011 model year.
It wouldn’t take long to understand how such a move would affect the area, especially our own museum. The NCM has become dependent on its Corvette delivery program whose most popular feature is the plant tour. No plant? No tour. And although the program also includes a tour of the NCM and a full orientation of the vehicle, which is worth the price of the option all by itself, the plant tours are by far the biggest hit (and the NCM staff is to be highly commended for that).
We must also point out that the BG plant is a sore spot for GM as it is the only GM plant ANYWHERE that produces cars in just a single shift. Somehow, if the plant was to remain in BG, there had to be another shift added to keep those beancounters at bay.
But a couple of days ago some things transpired that warmed the hearts and settled the worried minds of many here in Bowling Green. We’ve been discussing many questions and remedies for the BG plant for some time now. As of 2012, the BG plant will become known as the GM “Two Seater Capital of the World” when it combines assembly of the Corvette with the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky which are currently being assembled in Wilmington, DE. That move will add shifts and another 1000 or so employees to the existing plant and will finally mean termination of one of the most disappointing production concepts to come to Cadillac since the Allante, the XLR.
Bowling Green is growing quickly and in fact, is the fastest growing city within all of Kentucky. Having moved here some three years ago now, I can honestly say that the people are fantastic and there is nothing better than southern hospitality. The Museum too should reap the rewards as the community grows and more and more tourists make their way in and around the area.
A huge thank you should be in order for all those at GM and the UAW who negotiated what seems like such a huge WIN WIN for everyone. Not just for the UAW, not just for GM, not for the city or state, but also for us, the Corvette enthusiasts. After all, what would it be like if we didn’t know…..”Bowling Green, Home of the Corvette”?
Thanks folks!
Jim Van Dorn
http://www.AutoMastersofBG.com
P.S. Due to the huge response from you regarding our customer who got ripped off by the Florida "Collection" used auto dealer, we will keep the links to the report available below. The vehicle was offered on EBay as “mint”, “garage kept”, “excellent original condition inside and out”, “original beautiful paint, “ “never in accidents” (notice the plural tense), “mechanically 100% sound”, “immaculate”, “showroom condition show car”, etc., etc., etc. In reality, we believe this vehicle to be intentionally and somewhat scrupulously prepared (by persons unknown) to appear as such, while concealing a nearly non-existent and highly suspect history.
MOST IMPORTANT: Have ANY vehicle thoroughly inspected by a knowledgeable person PRIOR TO buying any vehicle.
The previous EBay auction (same vehicle but that buyer was able to return the vehicle) is still available for viewing under the following item number: 170055512046
As you will see in the accompanying pages, nothing could be farther than the truth as we detailed. Regardless of who prepared this vehicle, it is at least quite evident that the seller misrepresented said vehicle.
When the owner contacted the seller and asked for a refund after our report, the owner related that he was told by the seller simply that the attorneys would have to work it out. The seller offered no other recourse. The matter is currently being pursued with various legal avenues and is far from over
Sept 29, 2007
"Bowling Green to Lose the Corvette?"
Well folks, For several months now there have been top level discussions of moving Corvette production to the newest GM plant in Spring Hill TN. Many of you do not how close that decision was to being made prior to the recent UAW/GM negotiations.
Most of you don’t know this but the BG plant is actually very antiquated when compared to most all others in GM. In fact, the paint department that paints the two flagships of the GM fleet, the Corvette and Cadillac XLR, are painted in the oldest, most ancient paint department in all of GM. Then how do those cars keep being rated as the top in all of the US in quality by several of the various survey companies? Well, you can thank the many dedicated employees who work 2 shifts in the paint department in order to stay up in quality and numbers with the single shift of assemblers. The 7 miles of conveyer system is also as old and in need of major upgrades.
When GM moved to BG in 1981, the city (who actually owns the land and property) gave GM a 30 year lease for just $1. That lease is up 2011. Also, the plant was given very reduced utilities and a sales tax exempt status from the city and state as well. The plan was that GM would bring many new jobs to the area….a fact that never occurred. You see, the plant hires mainly UAW members from its own ranks, many from closed plants elsewhere. Therefore, very few, maybe as little as 2% of the workforce at the BG plant is from the local community. This has been a sore spot between the plant and the city of Bowling Green for some time.
But the plant, along with the NCM have been the mainstay of tourism dollars for many years and in fact, are the top attractions in all of Kentucky. Over 22 million in tourism dollars were spent here in the city just last year and most of that attributed to the two Corvette attractions. Combine that with nearly 1200 employees living in the area and one can easily understand that even though the plant doesn’t hire many from the community, its economic impact is considerable and in fact, vital to the Bowling Green area.
Spring Hill on the other hand, has brought much in the form of economic growth to its area and has the newest of all paint lines and although the plant was built for Saturn production, shortfalls in sales has left millions (yes I said MILLIONS) of square feet of state of the art production facility unoccupied. If left to the GM beancounters, the Corvette would move to TN by the 2011 model year.
It wouldn’t take long to understand how such a move would affect the area, especially our own museum. The NCM has become dependent on its Corvette delivery program whose most popular feature is the plant tour. No plant? No tour. And although the program also includes a tour of the NCM and a full orientation of the vehicle, which is worth the price of the option all by itself, the plant tours are by far the biggest hit (and the NCM staff is to be highly commended for that).
We must also point out that the BG plant is a sore spot for GM as it is the only GM plant ANYWHERE that produces cars in just a single shift. Somehow, if the plant was to remain in BG, there had to be another shift added to keep those beancounters at bay.
But a couple of days ago some things transpired that warmed the hearts and settled the worried minds of many here in Bowling Green. We’ve been discussing many questions and remedies for the BG plant for some time now. As of 2012, the BG plant will become known as the GM “Two Seater Capital of the World” when it combines assembly of the Corvette with the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky which are currently being assembled in Wilmington, DE. That move will add shifts and another 1000 or so employees to the existing plant and will finally mean termination of one of the most disappointing production concepts to come to Cadillac since the Allante, the XLR.
Bowling Green is growing quickly and in fact, is the fastest growing city within all of Kentucky. Having moved here some three years ago now, I can honestly say that the people are fantastic and there is nothing better than southern hospitality. The Museum too should reap the rewards as the community grows and more and more tourists make their way in and around the area.
A huge thank you should be in order for all those at GM and the UAW who negotiated what seems like such a huge WIN WIN for everyone. Not just for the UAW, not just for GM, not for the city or state, but also for us, the Corvette enthusiasts. After all, what would it be like if we didn’t know…..”Bowling Green, Home of the Corvette”?
Thanks folks!
Jim Van Dorn
http://www.AutoMastersofBG.com
P.S. Due to the huge response from you regarding our customer who got ripped off by the Florida "Collection" used auto dealer, we will keep the links to the report available below. The vehicle was offered on EBay as “mint”, “garage kept”, “excellent original condition inside and out”, “original beautiful paint, “ “never in accidents” (notice the plural tense), “mechanically 100% sound”, “immaculate”, “showroom condition show car”, etc., etc., etc. In reality, we believe this vehicle to be intentionally and somewhat scrupulously prepared (by persons unknown) to appear as such, while concealing a nearly non-existent and highly suspect history.
MOST IMPORTANT: Have ANY vehicle thoroughly inspected by a knowledgeable person PRIOR TO buying any vehicle.
The previous EBay auction (same vehicle but that buyer was able to return the vehicle) is still available for viewing under the following item number: 170055512046
As you will see in the accompanying pages, nothing could be farther than the truth as we detailed. Regardless of who prepared this vehicle, it is at least quite evident that the seller misrepresented said vehicle.
When the owner contacted the seller and asked for a refund after our report, the owner related that he was told by the seller simply that the attorneys would have to work it out. The seller offered no other recourse. The matter is currently being pursued with various legal avenues and is far from over