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Article: Upscale vans are major departure for Lear.(Lear Corp. finishes General Motors Corp. vans)
- Article from:
- Automotive News
- Article date:
- March 5, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 Crain Communications, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Lear Corp.'s new foray into finished van production required two skills that supplying parts rarely requires: the ability to gauge what consumers want in a completed vehicle, and the ability to deliver it.
In early February, the U.S. seating and interiors giant became a ``second-stage manufacturer,'' in industry parlance. Lear takes unfinished cargo van shells from General Motors' Wentzville, Mo., G-van plant and turns them into dealer-ready recreational vans. The vans are on sale at Chevrolet and Pontiac-GMC dealerships.
Lear alters both the interior and exterior of the van shells, running a complete final assembly line to install parts and alter ...