Autoblog

Before Cerberus took over Chrysler, the Auburn Hills-based automaker announced that it would build a new axle plant in Marysville, MI as part of a broader plan to spend $3 billion on infrastructure upgrades. The new plant is under construction and scheduled to open in 2010, but the three headed dog's keen eye(s) on cash preservation has lead to talks with transmission maker ZF to somehow share the facility. It is unclear at this point what ZF, which is known for its transmissions but also produces axles for Mercedes, would get out of the deal, but the supplier would likely run the plant and get to build and sell axles for Chrysler, as well as other automakers, at the facility. The move to share the Marysville facility with ZF makes sense for Chrysler from a cash standpoint, and it could supply axles for one of the Pentastar's many collaboration projects with other automakers like Nissan. Regardless of whether ZF or Chrysler ends up owning the facility, the plant would still use the union workforce being abandoned from the soon-to-close Detroit Axle plant.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

Chrysler is looking to offload two of its axle plants in an effort to limit its in-house parts production. The automaker has already offered to sell both plants to American Axle & Manufacturing and Dana Corp. for $400 million, according to sources cited by the Wall Street Journal. Unfortunately for Chrysler, however, there hasn't been much interest in the offer. The move could also include the closure of Detroit Axle and the purchase of Chrysler's unfinished plant in Marysville. All of this is further proof that the Cerberus-owned automaker is making a serious attempt to pair down its production facilities and lessen its overhead.

[Source: Wall Street Journal, Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty]