GM to build some SUVs without wireless phone charging due to chip shortage

General Motors will build certain midsize and full-size SUVs without the wireless phone charging feature.

This latest production tweak, which starts this week, is the result of the global shortage of semiconductor chips. GM wants to keep production moving and has been opting to build certain in-demand vehicles without various parts just to get them to dealerships.

GM’s wireless charging technology lets the driver or vehicle occupants charge certain smartphones without a cable.

The 2021 Chevrolet Tahoe rolls off the line at GM’s Arlington Assembly plant.

“Customers whose vehicles are built without this feature will receive an associated $75 MSRP credit,” said GM spokesman Kevin Kelly.

Since early this year the auto industry has had to either idle assembly plants or build vehicles shy of all the parts and then park them to await the arrival of chips. The result is comparatively empty dealer lots and a scramble to get as many vehicles built and shipped as possible when parts do arrive.

The chips, made mostly in Taiwan, are used in a variety of electronics. They are in tight supply after demand for them rose during the COVID-19 pandemic as people bought laptops and other personal electronics that also use them. The chips go into a variety of car parts.

More:Everything you need to know about the chip shortage that’s plaguing automakers

Affected vehicles

The wireless phone charging feature will no longer be available on the 2021 model year of these two SUVs built at Arlington Assembly plant in Texas:

Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban full-size SUVs
GMC Yukon and Yukon XL full-size SUVs

Also on certain 2022 model year of the following vehicles:

Cadillac XT5 midsize SUV built at Spring Hill Assembly, Tennessee
Cadillac XT6 midsize SUV built at Spring Hill Assembly, Tennessee
Chevrolet Traverse midsize SUV built at Lansing Delta Township Assembly
Buick Enclave midsize SUV built at Lansing Delta Township Assembly

Kelly said starting Monday, GM will stop including the feature on certain 2021 Tahoe and Suburban and GMC Yukon and Yukon XL SUVs. Starting on Aug. 2, it will stop putting it on certain 2022 XT5, XT6, Traverse and Enclave SUVs.

More cars without parts

This is not the first time GM has built vehicles without certain technology or parts.

In March, GM said it will build certain 2021 light-duty full-size pickups without a fuel management module starting Monday until the end of the model year in late summer. The result is those affected pickups will not achieve top fuel economy performance.

In June, GM said certain full-size SUVs and pickups will not contain Automatic Stop/Start, the feature that turns off the engine when a driver stops at an intersection and then automatically restarts it when the driver steps on the throttle. The fuel economy adjustment will vary by vehicle, but generally it is around 1 or 2 miles per gallon on the combined Environmental Protection Agency rating.

Taking proactive steps

GM has taken other measures to keep production rolling to meet demand.

As the Free Press first reported, in June GM started construction on four new vehicle stalls in the body shop area of Fort Wayne Assembly, which had been empty for years. GM builds its full-size light-duty Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups at Fort Wayne in Indiana. The extra stalls will allow GM to finish production on pickups awaiting chip parts when the parts arrive. GM needed the extra space because the finish area, where that work is typically done was too backed up.

In June, GM also said it was redirecting what chip parts it could get to its most in-demand products.

“Our supply chain organization continues to make strides working with our supply base to mitigate the near-term impacts of the semiconductor situation,” Kelly said in an email to the Free Press. “GM continues to leverage every available semiconductor to build and ship our most popular and in-demand products. However, the semiconductor situation continues to remain fluid globally.”

More:GM to increase vehicle deliveries to dealers: ‘Help is on the way’

More:GM reports Q2 new vehicle sales boost, but inventory still tight

Contact Jamie L. LaReau at 313-222-2149 or jlareau@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @jlareauan. Read more on General Motors and sign up for our autos newsletter. Become a subscriber.

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