UAW strike could throw a wrench in GM’s plans for SEMA

Now in its fourth week, the bitter, ongoing United Auto Workers (UAW) strike against General Motors is causing parts shortage that will allegedly disrupt the carmaker’s plans for the SEMA show. The company might not finish the concepts it’s building in time for the event, which kicks off November 5.

Anonymous sources told website Muscle Car and Trucks that the strike is affecting every step of the parts supply chain, including production, shipping, and receiving. The tipster added that some of the components needed to build the SEMA-bound concepts aren’t available, though it’s unclear which parts are delaying which projects. General Motors hasn’t announced its SEMA line-up yet.

The company normally doesn’t introduce new cars at the annual tuning and aftermarket show held in Las Vegas; it saves those for bigger auto shows, like the ones in Detroit and New York. It instead displays parts and variations of existing models. In 2018, Chevrolet introduced a crate engine for classic cars, several Camaro-based concepts (including one with a new-look front-end design), high and low variants of the Silverado (pictured) decked out with accessories, and an electric drag racer.

Odds are this year’s crop of design studies will shine the spotlight on the eighth-generation Corvette, and an earlier report claims the strike is holding up production in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Chevrolet also announced plans to display the updated 2021 Colorado ZR2 during the event. 

General Motors didn’t confirm or deny the report.

“It’s too early to speculate on production timing impacts of any of our SEMA builds due to the UAW work stoppage,” a spokesperson told Muscle Car & Trucks. Autoblog reached out to the company for more information, and we’ll update this article if we learn more.