Chrysler to support nine-speed auto production

Chrysler Group LLC has recently announced that it will invest $19.6 million (S$24.2 million) in its Toledo Machining Plant in Perrysburg, Ohio, to increase capacity of the torque converter that it's machining for the nine-speed transmission. With this announcement, the company's total investments in its U.S. operations since June 2009 will increase to over $5.2 billion (S$6.4 billion).

The new torque converters will be paired with the next generation, fuel efficient nine-speed front-wheel drive transmission being assembled at Chrysler Group's Indiana (Kokomo, Ind.) Transmission Plant I.

"The new nine-speed transmission is a critical part of our strategy to meet fuel economy requirements over the next several years and Toledo Machining will play an integral role in bringing this transmission to the market," said Scott Garberding, Senior Vice President, Manufacturing, Chrysler Group LLC.

The investment will fund the installation of new equipment and tooling for additional machining and assembly capacity. Installation is expected to begin in the third quarter of 2014 and will be completed by the end of 2014.