GMC Envoy supplier seeks reimbursement from GM

From the "stuff rolls downhill" file comes Inalfa Roof Systems and the Envoy XUV. An area many people don't realize about the auto industry is when a model fails, it takes much more than the parent company down with it. Inalfa Roof Systems developed the sliding roof that was used in the XUV and per GM's over-inflated production estimates of 112,000 XUVs a year spent $5 million to open a factory near the Envoy assembly plant. By December of 2004, the writing was already on the wall and Inalfa was forced to shut down the plant and move production to its main factory in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Word from Automotive News is Inalfa is in talks with GM for some reimbursement for the millions that was incurred on the XUV. This case also poses the question: Do automakers owe suppliers anything if a model fails in the market?