General Motors Co. will invest $890 million at five factories to upgrade its V-8 engines to make them more fuel efficient, preserving or creating roughly 1,600 jobs. The automaker was to announce the investments Tuesday at the factories, including one in Canada, in St. Catherines, Ontario. The others are in the states of New York, Indiana, Ohio and Michigan. The spending, which has been in the works for a long time, will help GM meet government fuel economy standards that become fully effective in 2016. Spokesman Tom Wilkinson said the investments will help the company boost fuel economy of its pickup trucks, sport utility vehicles and high-performance cars. The new engines will have aluminum blocks and more efficient technology that injects fuel directly into the combustion chambers. The factories in New York and Ontario will make the next generation V-8 engines with aluminum blocks and direct fuel injection, while the other plants will make components for the engines. Meanwhile, General Motors has announced the opening of the Seoul Advanced Design Studio in the heart of the 2010 World Design Capital. The studio is based in the city's Gangnam area, which is considered not only the most exciting and stylish part of Korea's capital, but also one of the world's trendiest neighborhoods. “Our car designers get inspiration from life and Gangnam is a place where people worship design, style and fashion,” said Ed Welburn, GM vice president of Global Design.
