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Chrysler to lay off engine plant workers
Sometimes even the companies that aren't in major trouble need to make tough decisions. Chrysler announced Wednesday
that it would lay off 100 of its 870 hourly workers at its 4.7L V8 engine plant in Detroit due to low production
numbers. Needless to say, as cool a marketing tool as a big engine is, it couldn't withstand high gas prices. To
Chrysler's credit, we're not talking 30,000 jobs, but the loss is a very real one to 100 workers in the Motor
City.
The news comes on the heels of another announcement last week that an unknown number of workers would be laid off from
three of its Kokomo, Ind. plants, mostly due to the phase out of the Neon.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
J T 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
"Chrysler announced Wednesday that it would lay off 100 of its 870 hourly workers at its 4.7L V8 engine plant in Detroit due to low production numbers. Needless to say, as cool a marketing tool as a big engine is, it couldnt withstand high gas prices."
Huh? The 4.7 is a BIG engine? It's the smallest V8 Chrysler makes - there are 2 larger ones, the 5.7 and 6.1 liter Hemis. If Chrysler is laying off workers that make the 4.7, then it's obvious that the larger Hemis are outselling the 4.7s, so that kind of flies in the face of the quoted statement about big engines not selling and not being able to withstand high gas prices, wouldn't you say..?
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JustJase 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
Is it really high gas prices causing this or the fact that most vehicles that offer this 4.7L V8 option also offer the 5.7L HEMI for not a lot more?
For example, on a Grand Cherokee Limited the HEMI costs $845 over the 4.7L. In the Ram and Durango, it's a heftier $995 upgrade. But who wouldn't pay that much for another 100hp?
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Gary 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
The Hemis are also built in Mexico, which presumably has MUCH cheaper labor costs. I wonder if the pricing differential between the 287 CID (if Americans have to learn the metric system, the terrorists have won) and the hemi is purely artificial?
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Bernie 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
I agree the pricing of the hemi makes it too attractive to pass up, and that has hurt sales for the 4.7L. I wonder if the move toward joint venture(w/Hyundai and Mitsu)and the revamped Jeep powerplant operation... both of which have gotten concessions on flexible production from the UAW... DCX isn't ridding itself of the old school and building for its future. The fact is any manufacturer that has an option will run like hell away from an inefficient inflexible UAW shop if it has a chance.
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