SHREVEPORT, LA — General Motors has announced plans to begin production of up to 10,000 new trucks: Isuzu-badged versions of GM trucks already built there. In the coming year, the plant will build 5,000 to 10,000 midsize Isuzu i-280 and i-350 trucks, based on the Chevy Colorado and the GMC Canyon, according to Donna McLallen, GM spokeswoman. “The parts that would be unique to Isuzu would be cosmetic: the grill, the badging,” said Chip Letzgus, spokesman for Isuzu Motors America. McLallen would not speculate on whether the additional production will keep jobs at the plant, which also builds Hummer H3s, or bring in new ones. “Right now we’re just trying to focus on our day-to-day objectives,” she said. The plant used to build the Isuzu Hombre, based on the former Chevy S-10 pickup. GM has partnered with Isuzu for decades. The first Isuzu vehicle built and sold in the United States was the Chevrolet Light Utility Vehicle in 1972. It stayed part of the Chevrolet lineup for 10 years. After years of sharing compact pickups, Isuzu and GM began to develop a new midsize truck in 1997, with Isuzu building for Thailand and GM for North America, which resulted in the Isuzu D-Max, Chevy Colorado, and GMC Canyon.
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