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Final Chevrolet Cavalier Built at GM Lordstown Complex
LORDSTOWN, Ohio -- The last Chevrolet Cavalier to be produced at the General Motors Lordstown Complex rolled off the production line at approximately 11 a.m. today. The black Chevrolet Cavalier LS Coupe will be shipped to a Chevrolet dealership in Mount Holly, N.J., plant officials said.Hundreds of Lordstown team members accompanied the Cavalier down the final leg of the production line. Plant management released a brief announcement and a photo to memorialize the event, which was closed to outside news organizations. The low-key approach to the end of Cavalier production contrasts with the intense media coverage of the plant's five-year bid to secure a new product and the communitywide rejoicing that followed GM's decision to build its new small car in Lordstown.The GM Lordstown Complex and its 6,500-member workforce will now spend the next several days preparing its manufacturing system and processes for the launch of the Chevrolet Cobalt. "This is the car for GM, and it's important that we have a clean launch," said Jim Graham, president of Local 1112 of the United Auto Workers union. Graham said he and the workers share "mixed emotions" about the last Cavalier coming off the Lordstown production line. "The Cavalier has been very good for us, GM and the Valley. It's a sad thing, but you're also looking forward to the future."Since December 2002, the Lordstown Complex has undergone a $500 million transformation that introduced advanced manufacturing technology as well as new management and business philosophies. Crucial in preparing for the Cobalt launch was installing the equipment as early as possible and training the employees. "We tried to do everything we could up front," while the Cavalier and Sunfire were still in production, said Walter Rokicki, Cobalt launch manager at Lordstown.The first Cobalts that will be shipped to GM dealers are expected to be produced one week from today. "It's critically important to GM that it become a serious contender in the small-car market," said Lori Queen, GM vehicle line executive for small cars. "We have to get it right."Altogether, 4,596,283 Chevrolet Cavaliers have been built at the Lordstown plant since the 1982 model year, according to plant management.More than 7 million Cavaliers have been built and sold in North America, which ranks the Cavalier as among the best-selling models in worldwide automotive history.In May, the Lordstown Complex built the last of its 827,830 Pontiac Sunfires."