After 50 years, GM shuts down cold-weather testing facility in northern Ontario

General Motors is permanently closing its Kapuskasing Proving Grounds for vehicle cold weather testing.

The North American automaker has started “winding down operations” at the 272-acre facility located just west of town on Government Road (Highway 11), according to a spokesperson by email.

When asked for GM’s reason behind closing the facility after more than 50 years, GM Canada communication director Natalie Nankil replied: “Our testing and validation processes prioritize continuous improvement, and we have evolved our testing capability to validate our technology at the component, system, and vehicle level.”

Nankil said a small number of employees are being impacted.

The facility opened in 1973 and has been used by the company for cold weather durability testing in evaluating GM’s full suite of vehicles from full-sized pickups to electric vehicles.

According to GM’s website, its property hosts a 3.6-kilometre test track and 30 cold cells capable of reaching temperatures of -45 Celsius. Vehicles were tested seven days a week, 24 hours a day.