Story: Manufacturing – an overview

Car assembly line (1st of 3)

Car assembly line

The General Motors factory at Petone near Wellington opened in 1926, and closed in 1984 when the company’s operations were consolidated at Trentham. At first the factory produced Chevrolet, Pontiac and Buick cars, then added Oldsmobile, Vauxhall and Bedford trucks. In the 1950s it began producing Holdens. All these vehicles were imported as ‘knocked-down’ components, and assembled in New Zealand.

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Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Reference: O.005642

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How to cite this page:

Ian Hunter, 'Manufacturing – an overview - Early 20th century manufacturing', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/25116/car-assembly-line (accessed 25 April 2024)

Story by Ian Hunter, published 11 Mar 2010