Mercedes-Benz might dump its transmissions

Unlike many carmakers, Mercedes-Benz has traditionally built its own transmissions . It has even supplied them to others, such the slushbox that they sold to Porsche for the 928. Economic realities could soon cause that to change, as the team from soon-to-be Daimler AG investigates outsourcing transmission production to other companies. Mercedes wants transmissions that will help the fuel efficiency of their next generation A, B, and C-Classes, such as eight-speed dual clutch units. Rather than spend the resources developing its own. it might just purchase such a unit from a company like Getrag or ZF, according to a report in Auto Motor und Sport.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. req'd]