GM thanks customers for 500 million vehicles milestone

At each of GM’s five regional celebrations, including today’s event at the Rayong Plant in Thailand, the company emphasised the important role customers have played in its accomplishment, and expressed its appreciation by giving new GM-branded vehicles to select loyal customers.

In addition, the company presented special videos about customers who have achieved their own milestones with GM-branded vehicles, including one about a Chevrolet Captiva club member from Bangkok who used a fleet of Captivas to propose to his girlfriend.

“This celebration isn’t about GM’s manufacturing prowess. It is really about our customers and the positive experiences they’ve had with Chevrolet and other GM-branded vehicles around the world,” said Stefan Jacoby, GM executive vice president and president of GM International, at the Rayong event.

“While we are proud to have built 500 million vehicles, we know we will only earn the right to build 500 million more by putting our customers at the centre of everything we do,” Jacoby added.

During the Rayong celebration, the company leaders presented a new Chevrolet Colorado High Country, built at the plant, to loyal customer Supot Khwankoom, a farmer from Phichit province, chosen from a number of video entries from Chevy Plus members of Thailand.

In his entry, Khwankoom explained that his current Colorado was his family’s first vehicle, delivered to them on his son’s birthday, is a great source of pride for them and has brought much luck.

Khwankoom is one of only five customers worldwide to be given a GM-branded vehicle as part of regional celebrations held this week in Kansas, the US; Ruesselsheim, Germany; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Shanghai, China, and Rayong, Thailand.

“It is an incredible honour for our Southeast Asia Operations and GM Thailand that the Rayong Plant was selected to host one of the five celebrations,” said Tim Zimmerman, president of GM Southeast Asia.

Vice president, Manufacturing of GM Thailand Amnat Saengjan said, “It’s worth remembering that just over a year ago we celebrated one million vehicles built here at Rayong – a great milestone itself. We continue to produce great vehicles with a strong focus on quality, because our customers deserve the best.”

“During 2015, we expect to sell more than 1,000 new vehicles per hour, 24 hours per day,
This adds up to nearly 10 million vehicles, the most in our history.

“I look at this extraordinary volume as 10 million opportunities to prove what kind of company we are and to say thank you,” said GM CEO Mary Barra at the US event.