Anyody Remember The Old GM Van Nuys Camaro Plant?
02-01-2016, 03:58 AM
#1
Burning Brakes
Thread Starter
Anyody Remember The Old GM Van Nuys Camaro Plant?
Today, I was reading about the huge Van Nuys GM Plant in Van Nuys, Calif. This mega factory plant made all the Camaros and Firebirds up to about 1993. Beginning in 1940. Was wondering if any of you guys knew the Plant personally, and what it was like? Why did the plant shut down? Today, it's a chessy shopping center. Did GM lease the land or sell it outright to a developer? This was huge financial blow to the San Fernando Valleys. Today all of Van Nuys is mostly a Mexican city in America, if you did not know. Where did all those factory workers go? Did they stay in the Valley?
What an interesting history it is ....
What an interesting history it is ....
Last edited by C4.Ray; 02-01-2016 at 04:01 AM.
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Cosi Lane Preston (01-26-2022)
02-01-2016, 04:43 AM
#2
Melting Slicks
Van Nuys Assembly was a General Motors automobile factory in Van Nuys, California. The plant opened in 1947 producing Chevrolet Advance Design trucks. Later it would produce several different models including Chevrolet full-size (Caprice, Impala, etc.), Chevrolet Corvair, Chevrolet Greenbrier, Chevrolet Chevelle, Chevrolet Nova/Buick Apollo/Oldsmobile Omega/Pontiac Ventura, and Chevrolet Camaro/Pontiac Firebird. It also produced the Chevrolet Monte Carlo and the Buick Skylark. The plant was closed in 1992 when Camaro/Firebird production moved to Sainte-Thérèse Assembly in Quebec due to air quality remediation efforts.
Sign for the commercial complex
The site was razed in 1998. A retail and industrial complex, known as The Plant, resulted on the 68-acre (28 ha) site, as well as Station 81 of the Los Angeles Fire Department. The retail portion totals 365,000 square feet (33,900 m2) and is home to 35 retail stores and restaurants. A 16-screen movie theater honors the site history with an automotive theme décor. GM continues to operate a car-testing facility on 27 acres (11 ha) next to The Plant.
Sign for the commercial complex
The site was razed in 1998. A retail and industrial complex, known as The Plant, resulted on the 68-acre (28 ha) site, as well as Station 81 of the Los Angeles Fire Department. The retail portion totals 365,000 square feet (33,900 m2) and is home to 35 retail stores and restaurants. A 16-screen movie theater honors the site history with an automotive theme décor. GM continues to operate a car-testing facility on 27 acres (11 ha) next to The Plant.
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the kid C6 (04-01-2017)
02-01-2016, 07:54 AM
#3
the camaro went to Canada. and a big bunch of the workers came to Texas to build the caprice. it looked like little Mexico moving in. music in the plant went from country to salsa. then bigger radios came in. it got very heated then the plant made the rule you could not plug in your radio. then every one gave up batterys cost to much. once it calmed down. you could buy some good Mexican food untill the food vendor in the plant complained and the plant shut them down. the older workers rode the job bank in Cali untill they could retirer.
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the kid C6 (04-01-2017)
02-01-2016, 08:46 AM
#4
Drifting
Today, I was reading about the huge Van Nuys GM Plant in Van Nuys, Calif. This mega factory plant made all the Camaros and Firebirds up to about 1993. Beginning in 1940. Was wondering if any of you guys knew the Plant personally, and what it was like? Why did the plant shut down? Today, it's a chessy shopping center. Did GM lease the land or sell it outright to a developer? This was huge financial blow to the San Fernando Valleys. Today all of Van Nuys is mostly a Mexican city in America, if you did not know. Where did all those factory workers go? Did they stay in the Valley?
What an interesting history it is ....
What an interesting history it is ....
It was dark, filthy, nasty stuff in there. Nothing at all like the line at the BMW facility here in SC (which I photographed for BMW).
What happened was well documented in a film called "Roger and Me." That was about Flint, MI, but the story is the same.
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the kid C6 (04-01-2017)
04-01-2017, 01:52 AM
#5
I Remember the Old GM Van Nuys Camaro Plant Very Well
I hired in on April 13, 1976, at the GM Van Nuys Plant located in Van Nuys, CA, at the young age of 19. I was one of very few women in the body shop where my first job was spotwelding rocker panels on the Chevy Nova and Buick Skylark. I had replaced another gal who could not learn the job within the required time of three days. I worked on the main frame while cars were on car trucks and cars were held together by bars until welded together. No one can ever tell me that I don't know what hard work really is. I met my husband there who went through two plant closures, the Van Nuys Plant in 1992, and then his relocated plant in Muncie, Indiana, Delco Remy Battery Plant. He retired at 30 years seniority from Bedford Foundry in 2004. He began his GM career in Santa Fe Springs, CA, at GM Parts Warehouse, where when laid-off, began at the GM Van Nuys Plant.
I ended my five-year GM Van Nuys Plant employment in 1981 when I was on a lengthy layoff and opted for the TRA College Retraining where I attended Los Angeles Valley College and stdied Executive Secretarial Procedures. I would later take my children along with a group of homeschooled children and their parents for a tour of the Van Nuys Plant.
I ended my five-year GM Van Nuys Plant employment in 1981 when I was on a lengthy layoff and opted for the TRA College Retraining where I attended Los Angeles Valley College and stdied Executive Secretarial Procedures. I would later take my children along with a group of homeschooled children and their parents for a tour of the Van Nuys Plant.
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the kid C6 (04-01-2017)
04-01-2017, 09:20 AM
#6
Safety Car
Interesting history. The 1989 IROC-Z I had back in the day was built there. 
04-01-2017, 08:21 PM
#8
Melting Slicks
I recall Van Nuys was #36 of 36 GM assembly plants for quality. Dead last. It showed in the product, too.
A lady acquaintance of mine had an 86 Firebird. She worked in the plant in administration. She was good looking, had big *****, and the workers liked it when she came out in the plant. They knew her. She bought her Firebird through the channels for employee orders, knew her VIN and scheduled build date. When her car was built, she followed it along taking pictures. The workers KNEW who's car they were building. And it was still a total POS. Stuff fell off. Trim didn't fit. Lots of stuff just quit working. She sold it two years later and got a Honda Civic. She was still there when the plant closed, but I don't know what she did afterwards.
A lady acquaintance of mine had an 86 Firebird. She worked in the plant in administration. She was good looking, had big *****, and the workers liked it when she came out in the plant. They knew her. She bought her Firebird through the channels for employee orders, knew her VIN and scheduled build date. When her car was built, she followed it along taking pictures. The workers KNEW who's car they were building. And it was still a total POS. Stuff fell off. Trim didn't fit. Lots of stuff just quit working. She sold it two years later and got a Honda Civic. She was still there when the plant closed, but I don't know what she did afterwards.
04-02-2017, 08:40 AM
#10
Melting Slicks
Seems to be a theme with the camaro. I live in cincinnati and grew up about 5 miles away from the norwood plant (camaro/firebird was built there from 67-87). As a kid in the 80's i remember seeing in amazement all of the assembled cars sitting in the shipping lot off if the highway. Ive heard stories about lousy attendance and poor work ethic running rampant. I must say that the 85 Norwood IROC i had in high school was pretty good from a quality issue. I am currently restoring an 88 Van Nuys IROC
04-02-2017, 09:01 PM
#11
Safety Car
Someone asked why the plant closed?, here's your answer.....California Liberals
"Production moved to Sainte-Thérèse Assembly in Quebec due to air quality remediation efforts."
"Production moved to Sainte-Thérèse Assembly in Quebec due to air quality remediation efforts."
04-02-2017, 10:33 PM
#12
Instructor
As I grew up in N. KY, I remember the Norwood GM plant. They built F-bodies here till the plant closed.
GM closed it in late '87-early '88 and leveled the buildings. I think it's still a vacant lot all these years later.
My VERY FIRST car ( was still too young to drive) was a 1954 Chevrolet 2door. IT had the 'N' identifier in the VIN showing it was built in Norwood.
Jonathan.....
GM closed it in late '87-early '88 and leveled the buildings. I think it's still a vacant lot all these years later.
My VERY FIRST car ( was still too young to drive) was a 1954 Chevrolet 2door. IT had the 'N' identifier in the VIN showing it was built in Norwood.
Jonathan.....
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AgentEran (06-25-2019)
04-03-2017, 08:19 AM
#14
Drifting
Damn liberals, with their always sabotaging each useful place by commanding them to not completely wipe out the other surrounding useful places by literally chemically dissolving them over a period of decades as a side effect of these places' competitions for profit (and their shareholders' inattention to the big-picture community impact instead of share prices)... Californians should follow the good Lord's plan of breaking the basic rules of chemistry that define which things dissolve and change each other -- a set of rules perpetuated only by liberals, who should have never performed those experiments to record the repeatable behaviors of chemicals in the first place. Pollution, chemistry, the weather yesterday -- it's all their fault. Pollution laws got you down? Don't blame the pollution or the offending polluters, no. Blame the liberals. Blame a scientist. Shoot the messenger.
Don't let the OFF TOPIC pinhead get you down. He'll go grab his life sized so-called president doll by the ***** and feel better.
It had nothing to do with their dead last quality control.
Losers always find someone else to blame. 
Just ask the Donald. 
Do svidaniya, comarade.
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AgentEran (06-25-2019)
04-03-2017, 08:37 AM
#15
Drifting
Yes, I remember the Van Nuys plant. I went there on a field trip from school. My 90 Camaro 1LE was built there. My neighbor was a suit, in some capacity, at that plant.
Last edited by Nokones; 04-03-2017 at 08:38 AM.
04-03-2017, 02:58 PM
#16
Safety Car
LouisvilleLT4,
Nobody is against clean air, but ask yourself why GM didn't rebuild the plant, or modernize it, instead of closing it and turning it into a shopping mall or whatever. Businesses are leaving Cali as quick as they can, so are many of your citizens. Liberal policies, over regulation, and high costs ( due to liberal policies) have shut down factories with well paying jobs and in their place are Starbucks, yoga studios, aromatherapy stores and the like....tell me I'm wrong..I just spent some time in San Fran and it seems its become a magnet for bums and homeless types, and totally unaffordable..
Nobody is against clean air, but ask yourself why GM didn't rebuild the plant, or modernize it, instead of closing it and turning it into a shopping mall or whatever. Businesses are leaving Cali as quick as they can, so are many of your citizens. Liberal policies, over regulation, and high costs ( due to liberal policies) have shut down factories with well paying jobs and in their place are Starbucks, yoga studios, aromatherapy stores and the like....tell me I'm wrong..I just spent some time in San Fran and it seems its become a magnet for bums and homeless types, and totally unaffordable..
Last edited by chiefttp; 04-03-2017 at 03:14 PM.
04-03-2017, 04:04 PM
#17
Drifting
Maybe you should ask GM, they're the ones who fled from neighborly responsibility with nothing to hold them accountable for it
04-04-2017, 08:35 AM
#19
Drifting
All the people with a honest income are leaving the state and taking their money with them. Everything either has a enormous regulation fee or is being taxed to death. Now, marijuana is taking over along with a lot of people sponging off of society. Nobody in California contributes to society they just sponge off of public assistance. Either they are a care taker for their sick grandma with a toe nail ache or they have this make up disability so they don't have to work and collect a public assistance pay check and sit home some their dope. California is becoming a waste land of a bunch of society deviates.
Last edited by Nokones; 04-04-2017 at 12:54 PM.
04-04-2017, 08:49 AM
#20
Safety Car
I was amazed at the amount of homeless and bums in San Francisco when I visited there last month. My Wife really wanted to visit San Fran and she couldn't leave fast enough after bums pestered us everywhere we toured. One bum stole French fries from the people next to us at the In-N-Out burger place. That kind of **** illicites a quick response in New York, bums don't panhandle inside of resturaunts in Brooklyn.. but everyone there sat motionless afraid to help the couple being accosted. Like they were scared of violating the bums safe space or something..sad..see the same stuff in San Diego a lot too. Beautiful cities and A Beautiful State slowly dying...so let's legalize pot, and make them sanctuary cities because that will definately help the problems! That's why GM left Van Nuys...saw the writing on the wall.
Last edited by chiefttp; 04-04-2017 at 08:55 AM.