General Motors announced new plans to open a new technical center near Charlotte, North Carolina. The center, which will be located in Concord, North Carolina, less than 10 miles away from the Charlotte Motor Speedway, will focus on racing vehicles and performance with an eye for applying advanced technology to GM’s other vehicles.
In a statement, Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. VP of performance and motorsports, said, “We’re thrilled to expand GM’s U.S. footprint by establishing a greater presence in Charlotte, a community that has become a racing and engineering mecca. The new facility will be close to a number of key Chevrolet and Cadillac racing partners, teams, and suppliers. This will allow for improved collaboration as well as access to some of the industry’s best talent.” In a phone call, Stefan Cross with GM's Motorsports Communications, said that GM was still finalizing what staffing for the facility would be like.
“Racing helps us accelerate the development, performance and popularity of our cars and trucks across the world,” said Campbell. Technology originally used to push racing vehicles faster and faster often finds its way to the production lines of consumer vehicles: The use of scale models and wind tunnel tests were both pioneered in racing applications.
Among other high-performance production features, the new technology center will include what GM calls “Driver-in-the-Loop” simulators, which combine driving and vehicle hardware simulators and can be used to evaluate a vehicle’s performance digitally.
“This new facility will build on [Chevrolet and Cadillac Racing’s] legacies and hopefully lead to even more success on the track,” said Campbell. The 75,000-square-foot plant is expected to open by the middle of 2020.
