Navistar, Delco Remy form venture to rebuild engines

CHICAGO — Delco Remy International, a maker of automobile starters and alternators, has formed a joint venture with Navistar International to rebuild engines and provide parts for medium-duty trucks.

Magnum Power Products, the newly named company, will be the designated remanufacturer of certain International brand diesel engines and private-label brand engines designed and built by Chicago-based Navistar, the world’s fourth-largest truck-maker.

Delco Remy’s Power Investments subsidiary — which has been remanufacturing Navistar engines for 16 years — will provide the remanufacturing expertise while Navistar will provide the technical and engineering support, the companies said.

Magnum Power Products will focus on rebuilding Navistar’s V-8 diesel engine products, the 7.3L V-8 turbo diesel Ford Power Stroke brand and the International brand T444E direct injection V-8 diesel engine.

Magnum will also provide related engine components such as cylinder blocks, connecting rods, crankshafts, cylinder heads, water pumps, and high-pressure fuel pumps.

Production of Navistar’s 7.3L V-8 diesel has grown from 126,000 units per year in 1994 to nearly 300,000 units in 1998.

“Market demand for the V-8 product has challenged us to increase production nine times in the last four years and has created a significant opportunity for this remanufacturing joint venture,” said Daniel Ustian, Navistar group vice president and general manager of the engine division.

Anderson, Ind.-based Delco Remy is a former General Motors Corp. division that went public last December.

Power Investments president Michael Jarvis has been named chairman and president of Magnum.