GM Tonawanda pulls plug on V-8
The end of the line — and end of an era — has arrived for what has been a staple product for more than 50 years at the General Motors Tonawanda engine plant.
On Friday, Dec. 18 the last variation of the “big block” class of V-8 engines that were made since 1959, is scheduled to roll off the line.
A late morning ceremony is planned to primarily honor those of the plant’s more than 800 employees who worked on the latest version, which has been produced since 1999.
The big engine was developed in the U.S. during the 1950s and 1960s and was used to power millions of Chevrolet vehicles over the years.
“As American automobiles grew in size and weight the engines powering them had to keep pace,” said Nina Price, a spokeswoman for the local plant.
The first big block V-8 engine, the W-Series, was first produced in 1958 with the next version, the Mark IV series, being introduced in 1965.
“Following this was the Mark V series big block V-8, which started production in 1989, and finally the L18 V-8 (Vortec 8100) engine started production in 1999,” Price said.
The plant’s current V-8 production equipment was installed for the Mark V series, Price said.
The V-8 was the plant’s longest-running engine line, but new trends in the auto industry made GM’s trademark automotive engine obsolete.
Currently the plant's main engine line is the L850. It also makes inline 4- and 5-cylinder engines.
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