GM to add Flint factory for Cruze engines

FLINT, Mich. (AP) – General Motors Corp. said Thursday it will build a new factory in Flint to make four-cylinder engines for the Chevrolet Volt rechargeable electric car and other models.

GM Chairman and Chief Executive Rick Wagoner said the new plant will build a 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine that will extend the range of the Volt, and a turbocharged version that will power the Chevrolet Cruze, a new compact car to be built in Lordstown, Ohio.

"This will be one of the places. You will be one of the teams that help GM lead into our second century," Wagoner told workers and government officials gathered for the announcement.

Production at the new $370 million plant will begin in 2010, and both cars are slated to go on sale in the same year.

Workers at the nearby Flint Engine North plant, which GM is in the process of closing, said the announcement is good news for an area hard hit by auto job losses.