DETROIT -- The early-2014 rollout of General Motors' next generation of full-sized SUVs will come about three months later than the company had planned.
In an interview this month, GM North America President Mark Reuss confirmed that the timeline was pushed back to ensure a "flawless" launch of GM's next-generation full-sized pickups, which are being rolled out over the next several months. The redesigned 2014 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups are built on the same platform as the SUVs.
"We re-cadenced all of this so that we're successful," Reuss said. "It's load. How much can we really do, and do it really flawlessly? There was a real deep-dive assessment of what can we really do."
Reuss didn't say when GM decided to delay the launch. He said it was unrelated to any problems with suppliers.
Supplier sources have told Automotive News that the start of the SUV launch was delayed three months, to January from October. Reuss said that timeline is "roughly" correct.
The next generation of the Chevrolet Suburban and Tahoe, the GMC Yukon and the Cadillac Escalade will be the first redesign for the big SUVs in about eight years.
