In an unauthorized revelation on Friday, UAW officials disclosed General Motors’ plans to produce a small rear-wheel-drive vehicle architecture code-named Alpha.

The revelation came as the UAW publicized GM’s pledge to invest in future vehicles for 16 assembly plants — a pledge the union won this week during its contract negotiations with GM.

GM will build two body styles of the new Alpha vehicle, which will begin production in 2011. GM’s plant in Lordstown, Ohio, will assemble it.

GM has not unveiled a concept version of the vehicle, said a source familiar with the program.

“It’s an all-new architecture that does not exist in the portfolio now,” the source said. “It is in the compact area but bigger than the Gamma. It’s more like a small entry-level vehicle that would be more luxury-inclined, like a BMW used to be.”

The source would not say which of GM’s eight brands would get the vehicle. GM executives have previously said that Pontiac would be the brand of choice for “affordable” rear-wheel-drive cars.

News of the Alpha — along with other extensive details about GM’s product plans — were included in the UAW’s contract highlights. The union will distribute the highlights to its members this week in advance of the contract ratification vote.

If the UAW’s contract booklet is to be believed, GM also has big plans for its Gamma world car. The next-generation Chevrolet Cobalt car will switch from the Delta platform to the cheaper Gamma platform in 2010.

Lordstown, which produces the Cobalt and its sibling, the Pontiac G5, will produce the next Cobalt, too.

“Just like everyone’s replacement cars are getting bigger, Gamma gets a bit bigger due to all the safety requirements,” the source said. “The Gamma product would be a Cobalt replacement. It might go to other brands, but the main one is Chevy.”

According to the UAW highlights, GM also confirmed that it will build the Chevrolet Volt plug-in-hybrid at its Detroit-Hamtramck plant in 2010. GM plans to build a small seven-seat van in Hamtramck for export to other markets, the source said. The van — which will not be sold in the United States — will be a next-generation variant of the Opel Zafira.

DETROIT — Cadillac will get a small rear-wheel-drive car positioned below the CTS sedan, part of General Motors' aggressive plans to expand the brand's U.S. reach.

Plans for a baby Cadillac were confirmed after the UAW published a summary of its tentative labor contract with GM. The summary listed GM's plan to produce a vehicle based on a new architecture called Alpha. Several sources later confirmed to Automotive News that Alpha would be for Cadillac.

A less costly Alpha variant may go to Pontiac, a brand that GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz wants to revitalize with a new lineup of affordable rwd cars.

Cadillac also will:


Launch a CTS coupe and wagon in 2009.


Introduce a rwd sedan, expected in 2011, to replace the front-drive DTS and the rwd STS.


Consider a vehicle powered by a fuel-cell version of the E-Flex plug-in hybrid powertrain. The E-Flex powers the Chevrolet Volt concept.


Cadillac goes global
In 2011 General Motors will launch Alpha production in its Lordstown, Ohio, assembly plant, which produces the Pontiac G5 and Chevrolet Cobalt.

Alpha will be for Cadillac's entry-level model. According to a knowledgeable source, it will be aimed at the near-luxury segment once occupied by the BMW 3 series and Mercedes C class, when those nameplates were smaller and cheaper.

The larger 2008 CTS carries a base price of $32,990, including shipping.

The product plans outlined in the UAW document suggest that GM has resolved its internal debate over Cadillac's future.

Previously, Cadillac General Manager Jim Taylor had said he did not need a new entry-level car.

But Lutz favored it, arguing that it would help Cadillac in overseas markets.

The Saab-based Cadillac BLS — on the market in Europe — is not selling well.

More recently, Taylor has said he would welcome a baby Cadillac if it carries a premium price and if the brand gets a new flagship, too.

Alpha “is really critical to Cadillac becoming more global,” says one source familiar with GM's product plans.

“You'll see Cadillac really start to take shape.”

Cadillac may not be the only brand to get a product based on the Alpha architecture. Pontiac or GM's Australian Holden subsidiary might get a cheaper variant.

“I don't think anyone would want to see a degradation of the Cadillac brand because it's sharing with another brand,” says the source.

“If there is an offshoot product of Alpha, it'd be a re-engineered platform.”

The UAW's contract summary also revealed GM's plans to produce a U.S. version of the next-generation Opel Zafira in 2009. It probably will be badged as a Chevrolet.

The seven-seat people mover is code-named global Delta MPV7, and it will be assembled in GM's Detroit- Hamtramck plant. Hamtramck produces the Buick Lucerne and Cadillac DTS.