Behold, the next-generation Chevrolet Colorado. Sort of. General Motors has yanked back the sheets on what the company is calling a show truck at the Bangkok International Motor Show. Despite the ‘show’ label, the mid-sizer is poised to go on sale in Thailand later this year packing a 2.8-liter turbo-diesel engine, though there are no firm details as to what we can expect in terms of either power or efficiency. GM did say that the Colorado won’t leave buyers lacking for enough towing capacity, though. Odds are we can expect tricks like the 20-inch wheels and body-color tonneau cover to be nixed as the truck makes its way closer to production.

Still, the vehicle is plenty sharp and looks to have the mechanical guts to give the global Ford Ranger a run for its money. But will GM offer the Colorado we see here in the States? That’s a tough question. The automaker has made it clear that the Shreveport, Louisiana plant that manufactures the aging Colorado/GMC Canyon isn’t long for this world, though we have heard rumors that the automaker isn’t planning on killing the pickup all together. Here’s hoping we’ll see this truck or something similar in the States sometime soon. Hit the jump for the full press release.

General Motors has announced that the automaker is stopping production at its Shreveport, Louisiana assembly plant next week due to a parts shortage caused by the ongoing tragedy in Japan. The facility is responsible for building both the GMC Canyon and Chevrolet Colorado pickup trucks, though GM says that it currently has enough vehicles manufactured to meet consumer demand for the time being. In an issued statement, GM doesn’t make mention of exactly which parts are being delayed due to the earthquake and tsunami events, but as Kicking Tires points out, however, both trucks are available with a five-speed manual transmission built by the Japanese manufacturer Aisin.

As of right now, there’s no indication as to when the Shreveport facility will resume operations. No other U.S. manufacturing plants have been shuttered as a result of supply problems from Japan so far, though some have scaled back production slightly. Hit the jump for the full press release from GM.

You think there were a lot of special editions of the Bugatti Veyron? The Europeans ain’t got nothin’ on muscle cars when it comes to low-volume derivatives. And for its part, Chevrolet doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. Just the opposite, in fact… at least, that is, according to the latest reports.

Word has it that Chevy is planning on rolling out a new special edition Camaro every six months for – hold on while we take out our trusty old Autoblog abacus – two each year! The new ZL1 that debuted in Chicago is said to be the first in a long line that is expected to be followed by a new Transformers edition for the upcoming sequel Dark of the Moon. After that we should see run of 500 replicas of the Camaro SS Convertible that’s set to pace the Indianapolis 500, and then a limited-edition Camaro Synergy that’ll offer buyers a V6 with all the performance bits you’d expect from the V8.

If the reports prove accurate, that ought to take us through the end of next year. Beyond that, Chevrolet reportedly plans on tapping in to other historic Camaro variants for future specials. Have a thought or two on the subject? Tell us what special Camaro you’d like to see next – you never know who might be listening.

General Motors is using the phrase “Dare to Compare” as part of a campaign pitting its vehicles directly against competitors. In a new video you’ll find after the break, the Chevrolet Cruze lines up against theHyundai Elantra… the now-outdated 2010 Hyundai Elantra.

While the Cruze 1LT (why not the base LS?) indeed performs quite well against the previous-generation, base-model Hyundai sedan, we would prefer to see it go wheel-to-wheel with the 2011 Elantra. Apples to apples and all that, right? As it stands, Chevrolet has dared to compare itself to an older version of a car that has since improved greatly. Hardly seems like a fair fight…

For those wondering about the dollars and cents, the 2011 Chevrolet Cruze 1LT starts at $18,175 (the base Cruze LS starts at $16,275). By way of comparison, the base 2011 Hyundai Elantra GLS starts at $14,830 and the 2010 model started at $14,145.

It’s not that the Cruze isn’t a fine car… but ya know, the new 2011 Cruze is quite a bit better than a lot of older cars… including the Cobalt this Elantra once competed with. Click past the jump for the clip.

With fuel prices anticipated to rise, General Motors anticipates increased demand for the Chevrolet Volt. To stay ahead of the game, the automaker reportedly plans to double production capacity for the plug-in hybrid.

Production was originally pegged at 10,000 this year and 60,000 next year, but if the increased capacity comes to pass, those figures could increase to 25,000 this year and 120,000 units next year. This strategy depends on parts availability, however, and if the outsourced parts necessary to build more Volts can’t be ramped up by OEM suppliers, the plans could be cut short.

As has been reported, in addition to the Volt itself, GM is evaluating possibilities to apply the car’s gasoline-electric drivetrain to a range of additional products across different GM brands.