DeLorean received a February 1969 promotion to head the Chevrolet Motor Division - he ended up streamlining the production line by delaying the release of the second generation Camaro (introduced April 1970) and a moratorium on product lifecycle management (later used with mass market automobiles where the automobile product marketed is restyled, rebodied, and/or facelifted every few years) with the Corvette and Nova (the Nova (X-body) received a midcycle refresh for the 1973 model year with a hatchback bodystyle - DeLorean proposed this for the Pontiac GTO prior to 1969 where its executives vetoed the proposal). During his tenure with Chevrolet he had oversight with the Chevrolet Vega subcompact where he assigned quality control inspectors until the Lordstown, OH assembly plant was taken over by GM (c. October 1971) where Chevrolet no longer operated the facility - GM corporate brass ended up cutting spending costs, laying off close to 1000 workers which resulted in the Vega tarnishing GM's reputation (from corrosion issues, reliability of the aluminum cylinder bores (which were unsleeved and consuming motor oil), overheating, and production speed (the Vega production increased when the work schedule has 73.5 automobiles produced within an hour where the United Auto Workers allegedly stated that workers sabotaged the cars on the assembly line including a March 1972 strike). The Vega was a response to imports from Toyota and Nissan (Datsun prior to 1984) until its discontinuation in 1977 (from the quality control issues, Asian import cars, and GM's H-Special line (Monza, Sunbird), along with its international T-platform (one of which was the Chevette - based on both the Opel Kadett redesign which was initially launched in Brasil in 1973 but powered with an Isuzu engine). Besides the Vega, DeLorean also had a role in the redesign of the Chevrolet C/K light truck, which dated back to 1968 where the cab and sheetmetal were redesigned with rounded corners with the use of a wind tunnel. This particular generation introduced in late 1972 (which continued until 1987 when the GMT400 became the replacement - the C/K designation for the 1973-era bodystyle was renamed as the R/V) is known as the rounded line (or square body) - this included the utility variants (Blazer, Jimmy, Suburban, Crew Cab, Chassis Cab (to 1989) which were produced until 1991) along with its continued production in Mexico (they continued to sell it as a short wheelbase with the updated front grille from the 1989-91 R/V series), Chile (1978-88), and Argentina (1985-91). DeLorean was also a fan of European sport sedans where he encouraged Chevrolet engineers to upgrade suspensions, brakes, and steering systems to international standards while maintaining ride quality - during his tenure the second generation Camaro which debuted in February 1970, along with a chassis redesign with the 1971 Chevrolet B platform (Impala, Caprice), and refreshing the GM A-body platform for the 1973 model year became standouts - the latter of which was European-influenced (exterior styling had rounded edges as opposed to the coke bottle lines with past GM products; this trend continued with the final generation of the GM X platform (Chevrolet Nova and its corporate clones by the 1975 model year where the aging X platform received a front suspension upgrade from the second generation F car).
