Navistar cuts off Ford Super Duty truck diesel supply
Ford introduced their 2008 Super Duty F-Series trucks to much fanfare a few weeks ago, and one of the most important elements of any big truck is a good diesel engine. Ford has been using diesels built by Navistar for a long time, but they have never had as good a reputation as the Cummins or Duramax diesels used in Dodge and GM trucks. The 6.0L V-8 in the last generation of the Super Duty caused Ford a lot of problems and they sued Navistar last month to recover some of the warranty costs they incurred on that engine.
Now Navistar has responded by halting production of the new 6.4L engines for the new trucks. Ford is claiming that Navistar has not shared in the warranty costs and has not negotiated in good faith. They have held back money from payments to Navistar to cover those warranty costs and that is why engine production was halted. Navistar has been building 400 engines a day and they go into seventy five percent of all the Super Duty trucks. The diesel gets better fuel economy and has a higher towing capacity than either of the available gas engines in the trucks. Ford has a stockpile of engines and may be able to go as much as four weeks before production is affected.
[Source: Automotive News - Subscription required]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Schmeltz 8:33AM (2/27/2007)
Seems to me that Navistar is biting the hand that feeds it here. If they (Navistar) shipped some crap previously, it is their obligation to stand behind their engines as well as their customer, (Ford), and assist in the warranties. Soon Ford may shop for a new diesel company, or make their own.
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