Ford truck production cuts cause International to idle diesel engine plant

In the auto industry, the carmakers themselves are just the tip of the pyramid when it comes to jobs. Far more people are employed by all the companies that provide components and services to the likes of Ford, GM, and Chrysler. When the big auto companies are in trouble, far more than their own employees are affected. The latest case in point, is International Truck and Engine which is a division of Navistar. Navistar currently supplies the 6.4L diesel V8 for Ford's Super Duty pickup trucks. The combination of the collapsing housing bubble and rising fuel prices has caused Ford to drastically cut production of those big trucks. If Ford isn't building trucks, they don't need engines for them and as a result Navistar is closing its Indianapolis engine plant until at least July 16. Chances are, that plant and many others will be seeing a lot more downtime in the foreseeable future.

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