Cardboard shipping materials from various GM plants are recycled into sound-dampening material in the headliners of the Buick Lacrosse and Verano to help keep the cabin quiet.
However, operating margins contracted to 7.8% from 10% in the previous year quarter due to a combination of higher costs of materials and an increase in average retail incentive offered by GM.
At the new technical center near Shanghai, GM and its Chinese partners are jointly developing new cars based on GM components, including such high-tech elements as electric-car batteries, dual-clutch transmissions and lightweight materials.