Chevrolet's fourth, best-selling nameplate in Canada is getting six new standard safety features, redesigned fascias and new LED headlamps and taillamps for 2021.

GM is retracting its previous 2020 financial forecasts and pulling US$16 billion from existing credit lines to strengthen its balance sheet as it weathers the coronavirus pandemic.

GM said the shutdowns will begin today, while Ford’s will take place Thursday. Meanwhile, FCA says its North American plants will close "starting progressively from today through the end of March." 

The automaker says the EVs it plans to build next year will be profitable and have up to 640 kilometres of range as a result of its new joint venture with LG Chem.

Equinox makes up nearly a third of GM's small to midsize crossover and SUV sales and it is GM's second-bestselling nameplate overall, behind the Chevy Silverado pickup.

The loss included a $2.6 billion ($3.45 billion Canadian) hit from the UAW's 40-day strike. For the year, net income fell 16 per cent.

The commercial, featuring NBA star LeBron James, marks GM’s plan to revive the Hummer name on an electric pickup. It will be sold under the GMC brand, with production starting in 2021. The new ad will air during the fourth quarter of the Canadian broadcast, GM Canada says.

The feature allows Super Cruise to change lanes on highways within its network when requested by the driver, as long as certain conditions are met. GM's new digital vehicle platform is crucial to the enhancements.

The Cruise Origin, developed with Honda, is designed with more passenger space, and the driverless taxi will give ride-hailing giants Uber and Lyft another rival, Cruise CEO Dan Ammann said during the vehicle's introduction Tuesday in California.

GMC's full-size Yukon and Yukon XL gain as much as 30 per cent more cargo space and a suite of advanced technology powered by GM's new digital vehicle platform as part of a redesign for the 2021 model year.

The 2021 Tahoe, due out in the middle of next year, gains 20 centimetres — or 10 inches — of third-row legroom and 30 per cent more cargo capacity, while the Suburban gets both longer and taller.

Cadillac will pilot Cadillac Live in the United States after launching the program in Canada in March. All Cadillac dealerships in Canada opted into the program. So far, 160 U.S. dealerships in the five pilot states have opted in.

General Motors and LG Chem will invest a combined US$2.3 billion to mass produce battery cells in northeast Ohio, near its former Lordstown assembly plant.

General Motors is recalling more than 75,000 pickups in Canada because they could catch fire when seat belt pretensioners deploy during a crash. GM has instructed dealers to stop selling the vehicles until repairs are complete.

GM said it has been substantially damaged because FCA "undermined the integrity of the collective bargaining process" over the past decade. Three former FCA executives who have pleaded guilty in the ongoing UAW corruption scandal were named as defendants.