The expansion of EV production will preserve jobs and could create new ones, depending on how fast the nation transitions from gas engines to batteries.UAW members strike outside of Ford's Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville, Ky. on Oct. 12, 2023. Updated:DETROIT — Stellantis plans to build a new midsize pickup truck, along with battery-run versions of six Jeep, Ram and Dodge vehicles.General Motors plans to build at least six new electric vehicles, including a full-size SUV.
About 146,000 union members will vote on the contracts in the next two weeks. Workers at 10 Ford facilities who have already voted have overwhelmingly favored the agreements, which will be in effect through April 2028. What's not yet known is whether consumer demand for EVs in the coming years will justify the automakers' plans to accelerate their production. In the meantime, the companies are moving ahead with their ambitious EV production plans.
And at the Detroit Assembly Complex, Stellantis plans to build the next generation of the Dodge Durango and Jeep Grand Cherokee SUV. Both are to have fully electric versions. The Ohio Assembly Plant near Cleveland will build a new EV van in addition to the medium-duty trucks and van chassis it now produces. And an unspecified new vehicle will be built at a factory in Flat Rock, Michigan, that has been building the Mustang muscle car, pending Ford's approval to move forward with it.
And GM will build future electric vehicles at both its Fairfax Assembly Plant in Kansas City, Kansas, and its Grand River Assembly Plant in Lansing, Michigan.