Hyundai Team Up With Partners For Launch Of World Engine

Hyundai Motor Company, DaimlerChrysler AG and Mitsubishi Motors Corporation have announced their new series of world engines will be built and developed in the alliance's new North American production facility in Dundee, Michigan.

The plant will be jointly operated by the Chrysler Group (a unit of DaimlerChrysler AG), Hyundai and Mitsubishi.

Standing on a 245-acre site, the Dundee, Michigan plant will build the alliance's world engine, a new family of fuel and emissions-efficient all-aluminium powerplants in 1.8, 2.0 and 2.4-litre capacities.

The final agreement for the 245-acre Dundee site is still subject to several government approvals, as well as approval by the supervisory boards of DaimlerChrysler, Hyundai and Mitsubishi.

In May 2002, the three companies announced they had entered into a joint venture, titled Global Engine Alliance LLC, with Hyundai taking the lead role in the design, development and engineering of the world engine family.

The first Global Engine Alliance partner to manufacture the engine will be Hyundai, which will begin production in 2004 in Asan, Korea independently of the Global Engine Alliance. The engine will also be manufactured by Mitsubishi in Japan.

Total annual Global Engine Alliance production is estimated at over 1.5 million units. The joint venture could provide the highest-volume engine family in the world. Because of the high volumes and shared development costs, the three partners will enjoy impressive economies of scale, taking advantage of worldwide sourcing.

All three companies bring a special emphasis from their respective production systems to the world engine project. The project uses the resources of the three companies in a unique working structure termed Cross-Functional Team Participation where each partner takes the lead in a specific area for the plant development plan and implementation, including plant layout, production processes and workforce strategy.