Filed under: Trends
DCX kicks off Global Engine Manufacturing Alliance with Hyundai and Mitsubishi
DaimlerChrysler, Hyundai and Mitsubishi have banded together like the best of friends in the development and production of a family of four-cylinder engines dubbed the World Engine. The joint venture is called the Global Engine Manufacturing Alliance (GEMA) and yesterday Chrysler Group President and CEO Tom LaSorda cut the ribbon in Dundee, MI on the first of GEMA's five plants where 420,000 engines will be produced annually. A second Dundee plant is set to open in 13 months along with an additional two plants in South Korea and one in Japan after that.
Around 1.8 million engines will be produced by GEMA when all of its five plants are operational, allowing each
participating automaker to realize incredible economies of scale while offering the World Engine with more features per
dollar than competing powerplants. The new family of four-cylinders will include a 1.8L, 2.0L and 2.4L, all of which
benefit from dual variable valve timing and integrated intake manifold flow control valves. Engines sourced from the
new Dundee plant will initially appear in the Dodge Caliber, which includes the 2.4L that produces 170 hp and 165
lb-ft. of torque while also meeting ULEV II emissions standards.
[Source: DaimlerChrysler]
_opt_thumbnail.jpg)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Glenn Arlt 11:07PM (12/18/2005)
Interesting that DCX insist that their plant is "first" - idiots. Read http://www.autoindex.org/news.plt?no=907
to see that Hyundai introduced this engine (they call it the "Theta" series) in August last year, in South Korea, on the all-new Sonata. The new Sonata cars, both V6 and 2.4 litre four, have been on the market in our country for a couple of months. The four cylinder Sonatas are built in South Korea, and V6 cars are built in Alabama. Chrysler, get a life. Partners don't shouldn't credit away from other partners in a relationship, whether it is business or personal. But of course this is the organization (Chrysler) that made all kinds of promises to American Motors executives and workforce when it bought AMC in 1987 (to get Jeep and also the all-new robotized AMC Premier factory, in Bramalea, Ontario - now building Chrysler 300's) and reniged on all of the promises before the ink was dry. Of course, they got their comeuppance when Daimler-Benz did the "merger of equals". LOL. What goes around, comes around.
Reply
Dr. Woo 11:07PM (12/18/2005)
2.4L and only 170 bhp? Definitely not a European-market engine. True "world engines" would be small to avoid high taxes and fees in Europe, where engine size determines what you pay.
Reply
Glenn Arlt 11:07PM (12/18/2005)
Dr Woo, notice that the "Theta" engine is built in 1.8, 2.0 and 2.4 litre versions - the 2.0's will be the upper limit in countries where taxation increases dramatically on larger engines, as all other companies. Even Chrysler is finally doing this, but then it is not an American company any more, is it? In the UK, for example, the new Sonata four cylinder engine is 2.0 litres, not 2.4, but most people there drive stick-shift not automatic, anyway, so performance is broadly similar. (5 speed manual versus 4 speed automatic).
Reply
Larry 11:07PM (12/18/2005)
They all can keep there engine. Renault, Peugeot and Fiat will take care of them in Europe and GM and Ford will take of them here at home. GM and FORD are bringing out some preety nice engines in the Future that all have VVT. We would not consider them a threat.
Reply
jwhite 11:07PM (12/18/2005)
#1, GEMA being a seperate company created a few years ago by the three manufacturers to design and build the world engine and the plants. I believe this is actually the first GEMA plant, which is where DCX will source their engines from. The engine block design, which has been finished for some time, is and has been in production in a Hyundai plant in S. Korea for the Sonata as you pointed out. So actually I'd say that the report is very much correct.
From other sources, while all three manufacturers will use the same block design, the head designs and intakes may be unique to each manufacturer to get each manufacturer's desired attributes for the various makes and models in which it is used.
Reply
jwhite 11:07PM (12/18/2005)
Just to correct myself partially, I went back to very my info and it turns out the S Korea plant is a GEMA plant (or at least it is now) and counts as 1 of the 5. South Korea and Japan are already online. This is the first GEMA plant for North American production. So as of today 3 GEMA plants are online.
Reply
Barry Croft 11:07PM (12/18/2005)
I've sold every domestic product U.S has to offer. My father (rest his soul) worked for GM for 38 years, so I was born and raised on GM.
Now for the last 3 years I've been selling Hyundia's. There's a good reason for this!! Contact me @ croftbs@yahoo.com and lets talk about it.
Reply