Oresnik's Chevy Truck Passes Million-mile Mark

Frank Oresnik's Chevy truck dubbed ‘old girl’humbling, all this interest."
recently passed the one million-mile mark thanks toOresnik passed the million-mile mark Feb. 8 in
an engine built in Flint.southeastern Wisconsin while on his way back home
"This engine is a real marvel," Oresnik said in ato Catawba, located in Price County, about an hour
telephone interview with The Flint Journal. "It keepswest of Rhinelander, reported MLive. "I won't say it
this truck going and going. I'm a complete booster ofwas relief ... it was exhilarating," he said later during a
the job your men and women did on my engine."stop in Gresham. "This truck has been so dependable
Officials at General Motors Corp. said the engine inover the years."
Oresnik's Chevy Silverado was manufactured at theOresnik said there has been some interested in
former Flint V-8 Engine Plant off Van Slyke Road,General Motors or Shell Oil buying the truck. But he
which ceased production in 1999 and was demolishedsaid he has interest in taking a roadtrip to Michigan
a year thereafter.and meeting workers who built the engine in Flint as
The durability of the engine is not surprising to V-8well as those who assembled his truck in Pontiac.
workers. Actually, some of them are still building saidJohn Crabtree, Flint Engine South's plant manager,
engines at Flint Engine South, a plant situated on thesaid in an e-mail that Oresnik would not be
same General Motors property. "They were gooddisappointed if he visited some of the "greatest
engines," UAW Local 659 shop chairman Joe Ledfordengine building talent in the world today."
said of the V-8 that powered Oresnik's truck. "That's"I was extremely proud to be the plant manager of
all we've ever done is build engines."the V-8 plant," Crabtree concluded. "Whether we're
Oresnik has been in the news for quite a while now.talking about the eight cylinders that we built then,
He hit the one million-mile milestone in southeasternthe world-class six cylinders that the same workforce
Wisconsin with a National Public Radio audiencemakes today, or any engine that GM needs for
listening in and a camera crew filming. "I can't tell youtomorrow. ...This is just another reminder that our
how much fun it was," Oresnik noted. "It was reallyFlint South team is always up to the challenge.