Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2013 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Autoblog builds an LS9 for someone's Corvette ZR1]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2009/11/17/autoblog-builds-an-ls9-for-someones-corvette-zr1/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/11/17/autoblog-builds-an-ls9-for-someones-corvette-zr1/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/11/17/autoblog-builds-an-ls9-for-someones-corvette-zr1/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Our completed LS9 V8 - Click above for high-res image gallery

When you think of brands like Aston Martin, Ferrari and AMG, the idea of their engines being built by the hands of skilled craftsmen is no great surprise. However, most people would be very surprised to learn that General Motors has its own special facility dedicated to building its highest performaning engine by hand.

The GM Performance Build Center is located in a nondescript industrial park in in Wixom, MI, not far from the company's Milford Proving Ground. The PBC is a 100,000-square foot factory that opened in 2005 and has since produced both the supercharged Northstar V8 that was used in the Cadillac STS-V and XLR-V, as well as the dry-sump small-block V8 used in the Corvette Z06 and ZR1. The most recent addition to the lineup is the dry-sump LS3 used in the new manual transmission Grand Sport. We were invited by GM to tour the facility and even build one a monster LS9 that would eventually wind up in someone's ZR1.


Gallery: Building an LS9 V8 at the GM Performance Build Center

Photos Copyright (C)2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

Continue reading Autoblog builds an LS9 for someone's Corvette ZR1

Autoblog builds an LS9 for someone's Corvette ZR1 originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>chevroletchevrolet corvetteChevroletCorvettecorvettefeaturedgeneral motorsGeneralMotorsgm performance build centerGmPerformanceBuildCenterLS9LS9 engineLS9 V8Ls9EngineLs9V8Wixomwixom factorywixom michiganWixom.MichWixomFactoryWixomMichiganzr1Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:58:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/19218002/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2009/11/17/autoblog-builds-an-ls9-for-someones-corvette-zr1/19218002/article-detail.xml 19218002 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/11/pbc-build-1280-63_opt_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/11/pbc-build-1280-63_opt.jpg <![CDATA[Movie studio looking to move into Ford's abandoned Wixom plant]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2008/08/21/movie-studio-looking-to-move-into-fords-abandoned-wixom-plant/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/08/21/movie-studio-looking-to-move-into-fords-abandoned-wixom-plant/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/08/21/movie-studio-looking-to-move-into-fords-abandoned-wixom-plant/#commentsFiled under: ,

After over a year of being shuttered, Ford's abandoned plant in Wixom, Michigan could get a new lease on life in the form of a movie studio. Rumor has it that Warner Brothers Pictures is considering taking up residence in the ex-auto plant for a short period, though Ford may want something a bit more long-term. The production company has confirmed that it toured the plant for the first time about four months ago with officials from Ford present. When contacted for comment, a Ford spokesperson said only that the automaker would prefer to do something worthwhile with its old plant, but had no announcements to make.

Measuring in at over four-million square-feet, the old building has plenty of room and Warner Bros. would build a "small city" around the space, hiring between sixty and one-hundred permanent employees plus many part-timers and contract workers -- certainly a boon for the city's lagging economy -- not to mention starting the careers of a whole new generation of paparazzi.

[Source: The Detroit News]

Movie studio looking to move into Ford's abandoned Wixom plant originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 21 Aug 2008 08:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The "Way Forward" has claimed its latest victim, this time in the form of the 50-year-old Wixom plant in Michigan. The production center, tasked with building Lincolns since 1957, has built its final White Chocolate Town Car destined for a customer in Washington D.C.

However, the Town Car hasn't met its demise yet. Production will continue at the St. Thomas plant in Ontario, Canada, along side its Panther brethren, the Crown Victoria and the Grand Marquis.

Wixom was housed production in the recent past for the Lincoln LS, Continental and Ford Thunderbird. Even Ford's ultimate halo car, the GT, received its finishing touches at Wixom.

[Source: Ford]

Continue reading Ford's Wixom plant heads to the great assembly line in the sky

Ford's Wixom plant heads to the great assembly line in the sky originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 01 Jun 2007 17:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>canadaclosingfordlincolnmichiganontarioplantshutteringtown carTownCarwixomFri, 01 Jun 2007 17:28:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/908837/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2007/06/01/fords-wixom-plant-heads-to-the-great-assembly-line-in-the-sky/908837/article-detail.xml 908837 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2007/06/wixom_2356_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2007/06/wixom_2356.jpg <![CDATA[The last Ford GT rolls out of Saleen's Troy, MI facility]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/10/01/the-last-ford-gt-rolls-out-of-saleens-troy-mi-facility/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/10/01/the-last-ford-gt-rolls-out-of-saleens-troy-mi-facility/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/10/01/the-last-ford-gt-rolls-out-of-saleens-troy-mi-facility/#commentsFiled under: , ,

The last Ford GT

The end is nigh for the Ford GT, as the last production car has rolled out of the Troy, Michigan Saleen facility where most of the car's final assembly was completed. BlueOvalNews.com was on hand to cover the occasion, which saw Ford's Fred Goodenow, SVT Design Engineering Manager for the GT, pose for photos with Saleen's Ford GT Assembly Manager, Mike Zielinski.

Also present was the red and white final GT, whose ultimate destination will be a customer's garage somewhere in Canada. Before it can head to the Great White North, however, it'll get it's drivetrain installed and interior completed at Ford's Wixom plant.

This is the 4,038th Ford GT built overall. With the factory supercar's departure, the Shelby GT500 assumes the mantle of top dog in Ford's performance stable.

Head over to BlueOvalNews.com for more coverage, including a full photo gallery of the car as it came off the line.

[Source: BlueOvalNews.com]

The last Ford GT rolls out of Saleen's Troy, MI facility originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 01 Oct 2006 17:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With nary a Howie Mandel lookalike in sight, almost one-third of Ford's workers at its Wixom Assembly Plant in Michigan have taken the company's buyout bait- comprising everything from early retirement plans to $100,000 one-time payouts. All told, 433 of 1,433 hourly employees played took up the Blue Oval on their offer, bringing Ford employee buyout totals to 2,574.

 

Ford's Wixom plant isn't slated for closure until the second quarter of next year, which means that a second round of buyouts could be offered.

[Source: The Detroit Free Press]

Deal or No Deal: Nearly one-third of Ford's Wixom employees take the money originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 04 Jun 2006 12:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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