History of General Motors in Argentina

In 1922 Hampton and Watson importers came to an agreement with General Motors Co. to make the assemblage of some models of the Chevrolet line in Argentina. The agreement was in order to reduce costs by means of the assemblage with imported and local components.
Next year a premise at Garay St.near Darsena Sur, is rented and in 1924, the first Doble Phaeton units are on sale. In 1925 General Motors settled down in Argentina and starts producing the Doble Phaeton standard and the Doble Phaeton called "Especial Argentino".
At a price of 1,975 and 2,300 pesos respectively, both models are well welcomed with great demand.

Diversity of marks and models

The production was completed with a sedan model, a roadster and a truck chassis also adaptable to transports of passengers.
Sales increased and soon the Oldsmobile, Oakland and Pontiac units were incorporated to the assembly line. Annual sales came up to nearly 8,000 cars and 500 trucks and in 1926 the unit 10,000 was delivered. Soon the capacity of the premise was not enough to supply the increasing demand and the building of a new plant was required. The new 48,000 m2 plant with a covered area was opened in 1929 in Limay st. in Barracas location, and since then the Buick, Marquette, La Salle, Cadillac, Vauxhaul and Opel marks have also started to be produced, amounting to 27,000 units at the end of that year. On 24th September 1928, the first taxi-bus runs through Buenos Aires, later it is known as "colectivo", based on a Chevrolet Doble Phaeton, giving birth to the public passenger’s means of transport throughout Buenos Aires city.

GM leads the market

In 1931, Mr. Alberto M. De Tonnay takes over the presidency of the company. The offer is completed with the direct importation of all trademarks produced by General Motors in its main premise. The local production is affected by the American recession in spite of that, the local rate of components is increased. In 1934, the amounts of production start to improve getting to 120 daily units. Chevrolet line becomes strong for the public passengers transportation and its chassis body worked by local companies are known in the most important cities of the country. At the end of the thirties the General Motors participation in the market gets to 40%.

This event encouraged the authorities of the company to approve an important investment and build a new plant; this time the chosen place was an area in General San Martin location that belonged to the Ferrocarril Central Argentino, near General Paz and San Martin Avenue. This premise was opened in 1940 and beside cars, Frigidaire refrigerators, batteries and car suspenders of different makes were produced. At the same time, the plant located in Barracas went on with cars and trucks production.

During the war

When the Second World War broke out the operations were complicated. In 1941 the Chevrolet 250.000 is made, but the shortage of products made car production impossible.
The last Chevrolet goes out of the plant located in Barracas in august, 1942. In order to avoid the total stoppage, the company made electrical and portable refrigerators and car accessories. Metallic cabinets, window and door frames and garden games for children were also made in San Martin. School desks were also made with the wood of the drawers where car imported components had been packaged. When the war ended, General Motors dedicated itself to recondition Sherman tanks for the army and to make the bodywork of buses for the Transport Corporation of Buenos Aires City. An important investment in buildings and equipments in both plants is carried out in order to produce again

The first produced cars are the Oldsmobile Club sedan and Pontiac. The line of Bedford, English trucks with five tones also starts to be produced and later the Chevrolet ones are added. At the beginning of the fifties General Motors employed almost 3,000 people among operators, office workers and technicians.

The first Argentinean Chevrolets

In 1959, the plant in San Martin is enlarged, and it is set up to produce cars, pick ups and trucks. On 25th January 1960 the first Argentinean pick up Chevrolet is introduced.
Next year the national government approves the investment plan for 45 million dollars which included the building of a stamping plant of 12,000 m2.
On 12th march 1962 the first Chevrolet 400 is made. The original plan considered a national integration of 50% during the first year of production, this amount must get to be 90% in 1964 with a production of 15,000 units.

The amounts of production increases year after year and the range of models is also increased. Apart from the Chevrolet 400 and the pick up, truck chassis and the Bedford buses are manufactured. In 1963 the first steering box and the Chevrolet motor with six cylinders in line and seven bearings are introduced into the market. In December 1969, the Chevy line, derived from the American Chevy Nova is presented.

A hard time

In 1971 Chevy range is completed with the launching of the coupe. This same year General Motors exports 11,719 vehicles. In 1974 the Opel K 180 is launched into the market. In spite of the investments, in the middle of the seventies, General Motors involvement into the market starts to come down sharply, reducing the number from 9% in 1976 to 2% in 1978. This year, the company occupied the ninth place in the ranking among eleven manufacturers with a total production with only 5,876 units. Losses exceeded the 30 millions dollars and from the head company in the USA they decided to stop the productive activities in Argentina. Between 1959 and 1978 General Motors produced 195,000 cars (Chevrolet 400, Chevy and Opel K 180) and 207,000 industrial vehicles (pick up, chassis for trucks and Bedford and Chevrolet buses).

The return

In spite of its retirement, Chevrolet trade mark reappears in 1985 by means of an agreement between Sevel and General Motors for the production of the pick up Chevrolet in the plant located in Ferreyra, Cordoba. This agreement expired in 1991. In 1993 and after 15 years of absence in Argentina, General Motors decided its return which it is carried out in two stages. During the first one, an agreement with Ciadea (ex Renault) for the production of the pick up in its versions C-20 and D-20 is carried on.
The plan considered a production of 25,000 units in 1995, 19,000 units would be destined to the exportation specially Brazil and other countries of Mercosur

During the second stage of the project, the building of a new facility for the production of Corsa line and vehicles 4x4 Grand Vitara, near Rosario city, Santa Fe, is carried on during the second half of the nineties.