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This Is Where Chevrolet Colorado & GMC Canyons Are Made

By: Author Stefan K.

Posted on Last updated:

Categories Trucks

This Is Where Chevrolet Colorado & GMC Canyons Are Made

We’ve written extensively about the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon and their capabilities on this blog. Today we’re going to look at where the Colorado and Canyon are made. This seems to be a straightforward question, but these cars consist of many components (engine, transmission, tires, etc.) made in different parts of the world. Let’s start with a quick answer:

The first generation of the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon were assembled in Shreveport, Louisiana, and the second generation is assembled in Wentzville, Missouri. The engines for these cars have been built worldwide in locations such as Tennessee, Michigan; New York; Ontario, Canada, and Mexico. Most transmissions have been made in Toledo, Ohio, although some are built in other countries.

However, that certainly doesn’t answer the question entirely. Below, we’ll first dive into detail about the assembly location. After, that we’ll give you the complete rundown of where the engines are made, and we’ll do the same for all transmissions used in these vehicles. Finally, we’ll talk about how to identify which tires you have and where they are manufactured precisely. Read on!

Also read: The Types Of Fuel A Chevy Colorado Uses (All Generations)

What's Inside show

Assembly Locations Per Generation

The first generation of the Chevrolet Colorado And GMC Canyon were manufactured from 2003 – 2012 in Shreveport Assembly in Shreveport, Louisiana. The second generation of these cars, manufactured since 2015, is assembled in the Wentzville Assembly Plan in Wentzville, Missouri.

assembly locations chevy colorado and gmc canyon
1) Shreveport, Louisiana 2) Wentzville, Missouri

Now, it’s also worthwhile to note that other versions of this car have been produced worldwide. However, they have different names. For example, the first generation of this car is also called the Holden Colorado in Australia or Isuzu I-series in the rest of Asia. These are assembled in Rayong, Thailand.

The second generation is again called the Holden Colorado in Australia. However, in the rest of Asia, the car carries the name HSV Sportcat. These are both also assembled in Rayong, Thailand. In Southern America, the car was also called the Chevrolet S10, and in this case, it was assembled in São José dos Campos, Brazil.

Engines

Back to the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon for the American market. These cars have had several different engines throughout the generations but in most cases both the Colorado and Canyon take 87 octane fuel regardless of the generation.

Below we’ve created an overview for each generation together with where these engines have been manufactured. First, the engines for the first generation:

  • The 2.8L LK5 Inline-4, 2.9L LLV Inline-4, 3.5L L52 Inline-5 and 3.7L LLR Inline-5 were manufactured at the Tonawanda Engine plant in Tonawanda, New York, near Buffalo.
  • 5.3L LH8/LH9 V8 are manufactured in St. Catharines, Ontario and Romulus, Michigan.
  • The 2.5L 4JK1-TC and 3.0L 4JJ1-TC/TCX VGS Turbo were both diesel engines (which can be found in the 2016 Colorado) manufactured by Isuzu in Thailand.

And these are the engines for the second generation, together with the location where they are manufactured:

  • 2.4L Flexpower Inline-4 (ethanol-based engine) was made in São José dos Campos, Brazil by GM.
  • 2.5L Ecotec LCV Inline-4 are made in multiple locations, to include Spring Hill Manufacturing, in Spring Hill, Tennessee while the engine block and cylinder heads are cast at Saginaw Metal Casting Operations in Saginaw, Michigan.
  • 3.6L LFX/LGZ High Feature V6 is manufactured in four locations: St. Catharines Engine Plant, St. Catharines, Canada; Flint Engine South in Flint, Michigan, United States; Romulus Engine Plant in Romulus, Michigan, United States; Ramos Arizpe, Coahuila, Mexico.
  • 2.8L LWN Duramax Inline-4 manufactured in Moraine, Ohio
engine manufacturing locations chevy colorado and gmc canyon
1) Tonawanda, New York 2) St. Catharines, Canada 3) Romulus, Michigan 4) Sao Jose Dos Campos, Brazil 5) Spring Hill, Tennesse 6) Flint, Michigan 7) Ramos Arizpe, Mexico 8) Moraine, Ohio

Transmissions

In this article, we have already talked extensively about the transmissions used in the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon. Below we’ve listed the specific transmission types and the locations where these have been manufactured. For the first generation, that looks like this:

  • 5-speed Aisin AR-5 manual was either manufactured in Seymour, Indiana or Marion, Illinois since Aisin has two productions faiclities in the United States. However, official information is not available.
  • 4-speed 4L60-E automatic are made in Toledo, Ohio.

For the second generation, that looks like this:

  • The 6-speed manual Eaton N8D is, unfortunately, almost impossible to track. However, it’s most likely Eaton makes these in Brazil for the North American market.
  • 6-speed automatic 6L50 is manufactured by GM Powertrain plants in Toledo, Ohio; Silao, Guanajuato, Mexico; and by the independent Punch Powerglide company in Strasbourg, France.
  • 8-speed automatic 8L45 manufactured in Toledo, Ohio.
transmission manufacturing locations chevy colorado and gmc canyon
1) Seymour, Indiana 2) Marion County, Illinois 3) Toledo, Ohio 4) Silao, Guanajuato in Mexico

Tires

Unfortunately, GMC and Chevrolet have no information about what brand of tires come stock on the Colorado or Canyon. Therefore, it’s impossible to give information about this. However, there is a way to figure this out yourself.

Suppose you want to know exactly where the tires of your GMC Canyon and Chevy Colorado are made, then you can look up the DOT code on the side of your tires. This code is not that large, so you’ll have to take a moment to find it. It’s an extended code of letters and numbers that starts with the letters ‘DOT’. DOT stands for Department Of Transportation.

After the DOT letters, you’ll find a combination of three letters, numbers, or a mix. For example, ‘1M3’. In this case, 1M3 indicates Michelin makes the tire in Greenville, South Carolina. You can search on the internet for the specific three number/letter combination you have to find the exact manufacturer and location where the tires are made.

Are Chevrolet Colorado And GMC Canyon American Made?

Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon are largely American-made because the second generation is assembled in Wentzville, Missouri. Furthermore, most engines come from places in the United States, such as Tennesse, New York, and Michigan. Also, most transmissions are made in Toledo, Ohio. However, depending on the specific engine and transmission, they can also be made in Canada, Brazil, or Mexico.

Conclusion

The journey of how the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon come to life is a global endeavor. The assembly of these vehicles occurs in the United States, with their engines and transmissions crafted in various locations worldwide.

That makes it a little difficult to say exactly where these vehicles are made without a longer explanation.

It’s also not the only aspect of these vehicles that isn’t always straightforward and details like the 6-lug bolt pattern of the Chevy Colorado or the GMC Canyon also require more than a quick answer to really understand.

By understanding these aspects of your vehicle, from assembly to specific component details, you can make more informed decisions about maintenance, customization, and even purchase considerations.

After all, knowledge is power, especially when it comes to the machines we entrust with our daily travels.

Sources

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