General Motors has decided to make 2021 full-size pickups without a certain fuel management module due to the continuing shortage of microchips. As a result, those trucks will get about one mile less per gallon of gas, which means they will burn more fuel to travel the same distance, releasing more carbon emissions into the atmosphere.
The trucks affected are models using GM’s 5.3-liter EcoTec3 V8 engine (including versions with six- or eight-speed automatic transmissions), according to Reuters, who first reported the decision. These include the popular Chevy Silverado and Sierra in GMC.
The module is what makes the brand “Active Fuel Management” or “Dynamic Fuel Management” systems that GM promotes on these trucks, which deactivate some of the engines’ cylinders to increase fuel consumption. A company spokesman said Reuters that the decision will affect the average fuel consumption of GM’s fleet, but that it will have no ‘major impact’.
GM decided to make the trucks without the fuel module so as not to affect production. Ford had earlier announced that it would briefly reduce production of its ultra-popular F-150 pickup due to the shortage of chips. Car manufacturers are partly dealing with a lack of semiconductors because they originally lowered their forecasts on how much they would need if sales suffered a blow in the early stages of the pandemic last year. The increase in demand for consumer electronics has only increased the scarcity.