The Sterling Heights Assembly Plant (abbrevriated SHAP), is a
automotive manufacturing factory in
Sterling Heights, Michigan
Sterling Heights is a city in Macomb County of the U.S. state of Michigan, and one of Detroit's core suburbs. As of the 2020 Census, the city had a total population of 134,346. It is the second largest suburb in Metro Detroit, and the fourth la ...
currently operated by
Stellantis North America
Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automotiv ...
.
[Sterling Heights]
at Stellantis NA
History
The factory was opened by Chrysler under its
Missile Division in 1953 to produce missiles. The nearby "Sterling Stamping" opened in 1965. The plant was operated by the
US Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
for a number of years and was purchased by
Volkswagen of America
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (sometimes referred to as Volkswagen of America, abbreviated to VWoA), is the North American operational headquarters, and subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group of automobile companies of Germany. VWoA is responsi ...
in 1980. However, VW had entered a sales slump and never produced any vehicles at the plant. In 1983, the plant was sold to Chrysler to produce the
Dodge Shadow
The Dodge Shadow and Plymouth Sundance are economical 3-door and 5-door hatchbacks that were introduced for the 1987 model year by the Chrysler Corporation. For 1991, a 2-door convertible variant was added to the Shadow lineup; this bodystyle was ...
and
Plymouth Sundance
The Dodge Shadow and Plymouth Sundance are economical 3-door and 5-door hatchbacks that were introduced for the 1987 model year by the Chrysler Corporation. For 1991, a 2-door convertible variant was added to the Shadow lineup; this bodystyle was ...
.
After the plant was modernized in 2006, the assembly line and tooling for the outgoing Stratus and Sebring were sold to
OAO GAZ and shipped to that company's factory in
Nizhny Novgorod
Nizhny Novgorod ( ; rus, links=no, Нижний Новгород, a=Ru-Nizhny Novgorod.ogg, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət ), colloquially shortened to Nizhny, from the 13th to the 17th century Novgorod of the Lower Land, formerly known as Gork ...
in
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
. GAZ continued to produce the Stratus under license there through 2010, marketed as the
Volga Siber
The GAZ Volga Siber (russian: Волга Сайбер) is a four-door sedan manufactured by the Russian firm GAZ, introduced at the 2007 Moscow International Automobile Salon and marketed in a single generation for model years 2008 to 2010.
Man ...
.
On May 6, 2009 it was announced that the Sterling Heights Assembly plant would close by December 2010 with the adjacent stamping plant to remain open however the decision of the Chrysler board to make the new
200 model allowed it to bring new life into the plant and saved it from being closed.
In 2010 Chrysler purchased the plant from Old Carco LLC for
USD
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
$20 million. The plant will retain its current 1,200 employees. Chrysler will break ground on a new paint shop at the plant on June 21, 2011. This comes after an announcement of an 850 million dollar investment in October 2010.
When the Chrysler 200 was discontinued in December 2016, FCA announced that the Sterling Heights facility would receive a $1.49 billion investment to retool so it can build the next-generation
Ram 1500
The Ram pickup (marketed as the Dodge Ram until 2010) is a full-size pickup truck manufactured by Stellantis North America (formerly Chrysler Group LLC and FCA US LLC) and marketed from 2010 onwards under the Ram Trucks brand. The current fif ...
pickup, which will be transferred from the
Warren Truck Assembly
Warren Truck Assembly is a Stellantis automobile factory in Warren, Michigan. The factory opened in 1938 and was known as "Dodge City" until the mid-2000's. The nearby Warren Stamping opened in 1949 and just south of Eight Mile Road in Detroit, t ...
so that it can build the all-new, full size
Jeep Wagoneer
The Jeep Wagoneer is a sport utility vehicle (SUV) nameplate of Jeep vehicles, with several models marketed for the 1963 through 1993 model years and again since the 2022 model year.
Various versions of the Wagoneer were manufactured in the US ...
with a planned launch in 2018.
Sterling Heights survives
/ref>
Vehicles produced
Current
*Ram 1500
The Ram pickup (marketed as the Dodge Ram until 2010) is a full-size pickup truck manufactured by Stellantis North America (formerly Chrysler Group LLC and FCA US LLC) and marketed from 2010 onwards under the Ram Trucks brand. The current fif ...
(2019–present)
Former
* Sterling Heights Assembly
**Chrysler 200
The Chrysler 200 is a mid-size sedan that was manufactured and marketed by Chrysler from model years 2011 to 2017 across two generations in four-door sedan and two-door convertible (first generation only) body styles.
The 200 nameplate debuted ...
Sedan (2011–2017) and Convertible (2011–2014)
**Lancia Flavia
The Lancia Flavia (Tipo 815/819/820) is an executive car produced by Lancia in Italy from 1961 to 1971. Production continued as the Lancia 2000 from 1971 to 1975.
The Flavia was launched with a 1,500 cc engine at the Turin Motor Show#1960, ...
(2011–2014)
**Dodge Avenger
The Dodge Avenger is a front-wheel drive, mid-sized sedan that was marketed by Dodge. The Avenger made its North American debut in 1994 for the 1995 model year as a coupe that was produced until 2000. The model name was reintroduced to the ...
(2008–2014)
**Chrysler Sebring
The Chrysler Sebring ( ) is a line of mid-size automobiles that was sold from 1995 through 2010 by Chrysler. Three generations of convertibles, two generations of sedans, and two generations of coupes were produced. Although the coupe shared th ...
Sedan (2001–2010) and Convertible (1996–2010)
**Plymouth Breeze
The Chrysler Cirrus is a mid-sized 4-door notchback sedan introduced by Chrysler motors for the 1995 model year. Built on the Chrysler JA platform, the 4-door notchback sedan joined Chrysler's roster of "Cloud Car" models drawing their names ...
(1996–2000)
**Dodge Stratus
The Dodge Stratus is a mid-size car that was introduced by Dodge in December 1994 and was based on the 4-door sedan Chrysler JA platform. The Stratus, Plymouth Breeze, and Chrysler Cirrus were all on ''Car and Driver'' magazine's Ten Best list ...
(1995–2006)
**Chrysler Cirrus
The Chrysler Cirrus is a mid-sized 4-door notchback sedan introduced by Chrysler motors for the 1995 model year. Built on the Chrysler JA platform, the 4-door notchback sedan joined Chrysler's roster of "Cloud Car" models drawing their names f ...
(1995–2000)
**Dodge Daytona
The Dodge Daytona is an automobile which was produced by the Chrysler Corporation under their Dodge division from 1984 until 1993. It was a front-wheel drive hatchback based on the Chrysler G platform, which was derived from the Chrysler K pla ...
(1992–1993)
**Dodge Shadow
The Dodge Shadow and Plymouth Sundance are economical 3-door and 5-door hatchbacks that were introduced for the 1987 model year by the Chrysler Corporation. For 1991, a 2-door convertible variant was added to the Shadow lineup; this bodystyle was ...
/Plymouth Sundance
The Dodge Shadow and Plymouth Sundance are economical 3-door and 5-door hatchbacks that were introduced for the 1987 model year by the Chrysler Corporation. For 1991, a 2-door convertible variant was added to the Shadow lineup; this bodystyle was ...
(1987–1994)
**Chrysler LeBaron GTS
The Chrysler LeBaron, also known as the Imperial LeBaron, is a line of automobiles built by Chrysler from 1931-1941 and from 1955-1995. The model was introduced in 1931, with a body manufactured by LeBaron, and competed with other luxury cars ...
/Dodge Lancer
The Dodge Lancer is an automobile that was marketed in three unrelated versions by Dodge during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1980s. The first version debuted as a hardtop version of the full-sized 1955 Dodge, and was produced in that form until 1959 ...
(1985–1989)
* Sterling Stamping
** Stamped metal panels
References
External links
*
{{Stellantis
Chrysler factories
Motor vehicle assembly plants in Michigan
Buildings and structures in Macomb County, Michigan
Industrial buildings completed in 1953
1953 establishments in Michigan
Sterling Heights, Michigan