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Linden Assembly was a
By the 1970s, the plant was producing luxury models from Buick, Cadillac, and Oldsmobile. In the mid-1980s, the factory was retooled to produce the new L-body Chevrolet Beretta and Corsica.
Beginning in September 1991, the facility was idled and retooled for truck and sport utility vehicle assembly. The workers who accepted a
General Motors
The General Motors Company (GM) is an American multinational automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and was the largest in the world for 77 years bef ...
automobile
A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods.
The year 1886 is regarded ...
factory in Linden, New Jersey
Linden is a city in southeastern Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is part of the New York Metropolitan Area, located about southwest of Manhattan and bordering Staten Island, a borough of New York City, across the Arthur Kill ...
. The plant operated from 1937 to 2005 and made cars, trucks and SUVs for various GM automotive divisions. Engine block and cylinder heads were cast at Saginaw Metal Casting Operations
Saginaw Metal Casting Operations is an automobile engine foundry plant in Saginaw, Michigan. Opened under GM management in 1919, the factory produces engine blocks and cylinder heads for General Motors vehicles. The factory currently occupies 1 ...
, internal engine components were created at Bay City Powertrain and the engines were then assembled at assembled at Tonawanda Engine and Romulus Engine.
History
The factory opened in 1937 to buildBuick
Buick () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Started by automotive pioneer David Dunbar Buick in 1899, it was among the first American marques of automobiles, and was the company that established General ...
, Pontiac, Cadillac
The Cadillac Motor Car Division () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM) that designs and builds luxury vehicles. Its major markets are the United States, Canada, and China. Cadillac models are distributed ...
, and Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile or formally the Oldsmobile Division of General Motors was a brand of American automobiles, produced for most of its existence by General Motors. Originally established as "Olds Motor Vehicle Company" by Ransom E. Olds in 1897, it prod ...
vehicles from " knock down kits". During World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, the plant was also used to produce fighter planes for the United States military, primarily the FM Wildcat, an improved version of the F4F Wildcat
The Grumman F4F Wildcat is an American carrier-based fighter aircraft that entered service in 1940 with the United States Navy, and the British Royal Navy where it was initially known as the Martlet. First used by the British in the North Atlant ...
, as it is adjacent to the Linden Airport. After automobile production resumed, it was under the management of GM's newly created Buick-Oldsmobile-Pontiac Assembly Division created in 1945.
By the 1970s, the plant was producing luxury models from Buick, Cadillac, and Oldsmobile. In the mid-1980s, the factory was retooled to produce the new L-body Chevrolet Beretta and Corsica.
Beginning in September 1991, the facility was idled and retooled for truck and sport utility vehicle assembly. The workers who accepted a severance package
A severance package is pay and benefits that employees may be entitled to receive when they leave employment at a company unwillfully. In addition to their remaining regular pay, it may include some of the following:
* Any additional payment base ...
were pleased to leave, whereas the staying workers were displeased.
After reopening in 1993, it produced the Chevrolet S-10, GMC Sonoma, Chevrolet Blazer, and GMC Jimmy models. In February 2002, GM announced plans to shut down the plant in 2004, though the closure date changed after negotiations with the state government and union. A white 2005 Blazer was the last vehicle to leave the line on April 20, 2005.
In July 2007, GM and the City of Linden settled numerous tax appeals going back to 1983; Linden agreeing to pay GM $4.8 million and clearing the way for the sale and subsequent redevelopment of the site. The property was sold for $77 million on February 1, 2008 to Duke Realty, which redeveloped the facility as an industrial and retail site called Legacy Commerce Center. Most of the former factory structures were demolished by August 2008.
Vehicles produced
Cars
* 1959-1964 Buick Electra * 1963-1985Buick Riviera
The Buick Riviera is a personal luxury car that was marketed by Buick from 1963 to 1999, with the exception of the 1994 model year.
As General Motors' first entry into the personal luxury car market segment, the Riviera was highly praised by a ...
* Cadillac Series 61
* Cadillac Series 62
The Cadillac Series 40-62 is a series of cars which was produced by Cadillac from 1940 through 1964. Originally designed to complement the entry level Series 61, it became the Cadillac Series 6200 in 1959, and remained that until it was renamed t ...
* 1959-1984 Cadillac de Ville series
* 1965-1976 Cadillac Calais
* 1971-1985 Cadillac Eldorado
The Cadillac Eldorado is a luxury car manufactured and marketed by Cadillac from 1952 until 2002 over twelve generations.
The Eldorado was at or near the top of the Cadillac line. The original 1953 Eldorado convertible and the Eldorado Brougham ...
* 1980-1985 Cadillac Seville
The Seville was manufactured by Cadillac from 1975 to 2004 as a smaller-sized, premium model. It was replaced by the STS in 2004.
Origin of the name
The name of "Cadillac's first small car" was selected over a revival of LaSalle or the GM de ...
* 1987-1996 Chevrolet Beretta
* 1987-1996 Chevrolet Corsica
* Pontiac Catalina
* Pontiac Grand Prix
The Grand Prix is a line of automobiles produced by the Pontiac Division of General Motors from 1962 until 2002 for coupes and 1989–2008 for sedans.
First introduced as a full-size performance coupe for the 1962 model year, the model varied ...
* Pontiac Star Chief
* Oldsmobile 98
The Oldsmobile 98 (spelled Ninety-Eight from 1952 to 1991, and Ninety Eight from 1992 to 1996) is the full-size flagship model of Oldsmobile that was produced from 1940 until 1942, and then from 1946 to 1996. The name – reflecting a "Serie ...
* Oldsmobile Toronado
The Oldsmobile Toronado is a personal luxury car manufactured and marketed by the Oldsmobile division of General Motors from 1966 to 1992 over four generations. The Toronado was noted for its transaxle version of GM's Turbo-Hydramatic transmissi ...
Trucks and SUVs
* Chevrolet Blazer *Chevrolet S-10
The Chevrolet S-10 is a compact pickup truck that was produced by Chevrolet. It was the first domestically built compact pickup of the big three American automakers. When it was first introduced as a "quarter-ton pickup" in 1981 for the 1982 m ...
* GMC Jimmy
The Chevrolet Blazer is an automobile nameplate used by General Motors for its Chevrolet brand since 1969 for several SUV models:
* Full-size Chevrolet K5 Blazer, based on the C/K pickup chassis and built from 1969 to 1995 (renamed Blazer in 199 ...
* GMC Sonoma
References
{{General Motors factories General Motors factories Former motor vehicle assembly plants Motor vehicle assembly plants in New Jersey Companies based in Union County, New Jersey Linden, New Jersey 1937 establishments in New Jersey 2005 disestablishments in New Jersey