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Carmakers cutting costs by sharing parts

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1,639 views Aug 24, 2007

Carmakers cutting costs by sharing parts

As car manufacturers around the world strive to reduce costs, a new plan that would see rival labels sharing more parts is quickly gaining favor. Purchasing chiefs of several major carmakers have announced that such a plan is feasible and that they're open to it. "We are constantly talking to our competitors on what we can do together," said GM vice president of global purchasing and supply Bo Andersson at a recent industry conference.

The practice is already occurring, said Andersson, who gave his company’s new HHR wagon as an example. The six-speed gearbox in the HHR is shared with Ford and was originally developed for Toyota, reports Automotive News.

By sharing the costs of developing new parts, carmakers would be able to lower their costs as investment spending is spread across several different manufacturers. Also at the conference were purchasing chiefs of Toyota and Chrysler, who commented that they’d be interested in sharing parts with rivals.