US: Navistar International sues Ford again over diesel engine
Friday, February 29, 2008, AutomotiveWorld.com
Navistar International re-filed a lawsuit against Ford for breach of trust on 26 February in Cook County, Illinois, The Associated Press reports. This follows the two OEMs having failed to settle an extended dispute through mediation.
Following an amended counter-complaint filed against Ford on 2 May 2007 which sought damages for breach of trust, Navistar then filed a second lawsuit on 4 June. This time, the company sued Ford for breaching a diesel engine contract for its F-150 pick-up range.
As per the lawsuit, Navistar alleges that Ford intends to produce a 4.4-litre diesel engine for the F-150, and possibly other models, by late 2009 or 2010. This move, the OEM says, violates a contract as Ford had agreed that International, Navistar's principal operating company, would supply diesel engines for the pickup in North America.
"We maintain that the lawsuit is without merit and we are honouring commitment of the contract. We intend to prove that in court," the newswire quotes Ford spokesperson Kristen Kinley as saying. According to Kinley, Ford will fight the lawsuit at a trial scheduled for November.
According to a Reuters report in June 2007, Navistar claimed that development costs for a new-generation diesel engine had run into millions of dollars for International. Consequently, the suit seeks "at least hundreds of millions of dollars" in damages.
Published on Friday, February 29, 2008
Free e-newsletters
Our free E-Newsletter service is an excellent way of staying up to date with news and features from around the global auto industry.
