New Venture Gearwas anautomobileandlight trucktransmissioncompany that was started in 1990 as the first-everjoint venturebetween any of theBig Three U.S. automakers.General Motors and Chrysler Corporation were the participants. Operation and management of Chrysler's New Process Gear plant inSyracuse, New York,and GM's underutilized Hydramatic transmission plant inMuncie, Indiana,were shifted to New Venture Gear Company.[1]
| Industry | Vehicle Transmissions |
|---|---|
| Predecessor |
|
| Founded | 1990 |
| Founder | |
| Defunct | August 20, 2012 |
| Fate | Dissolved |
| Successor | Magna Powertrain |
| Headquarters | , |
| Parent | Magna Powertrain |
History
editFounding plant histories
editHydramatic Muncie
editIn 1902, Thomas W. Warner formed the Warner Gear Company inMuncie, Indiana,to manufacture automobile parts, steering, and transmission gears. In 1919, General Motors purchased the T. W. Warner Company, including its land and buildings. In 1920, GM reopened the plant under the name Muncie Products to manufacture transmissions and steering gear for theirOakland,Pontiac,Oldsmobile,Chevrolet,andGMCTruck divisions. In 1932, GM closed the Muncie Products plant and consolidated operations to other divisions in response to thefailing economyof the Great Depression.
The Chevrolet division reopened the plant in 1935 to build car and truck transmissions.World War IIhalted non-military vehicle production and the plant was converted to serve the needs of the U.S. military until the war ended. The 1950s and 1960s saw expansion and growth. In the 1970s and 1980s, GM swapped the plant to many different GM divisions, ending with Detroit Diesel Allison in 1984 and GM Hydramatic in 1986.[2]
New Process Gear
editIn 1888, Thomas W. Meachem founded the New Process Rawhide Company inBaldwinsville, New York.In the late 1890s, New Process Rawhide moved operations to Syracuse after a fire. In 1913, Thomas W. Meachem reorganized New Process Rawhide with one of his partners, Artemus Vosburgh. The company was renamed New Process Gear to reflect the new corporate direction. In 1954, after a succession of owners includingWillys-Overland,[3]New Process Gear became a subsidiary of Chrysler Corporation.[4]
New Venture Gear
editIn 1990, the Hydramatic Muncie plant owned by GM and New Process Gear owned by Chrysler formed a joint GM–Chrysler venture called New Venture Gear.[5]
GM exit
editIn February 2002, General Motors sold its minority 36% stake in the New Venture Gear company toDaimlerChryslerand the Muncie Transmission plant reverted to GM control.[6]GM changed the plant name to "Manual Transmissions of Muncie."The T.W. Warner Muncie plant closed in mid-2006 after a century of operation and the property was turned over to Delaware County Indiana. The GM Muncie Transmission plant was demolished soon after turnover to the county.[7]The Syracuse New Process remained with New Venture Gear.
In 2004,Magna Internationalpurchased 80% of New Venture Gear from DaimlerChrysler and put it underMagna Drivetrain.[8]Magna purchased the remaining 20% interest in 2007.[9]The New Process gear plant remained property of DaimlerChrysler. Chrysler then leased the facilities to Magna.[10]This lease arrangement made it difficult to compete with the European manufacturing operation Magna directly purchased located inRoitzsch, Germany.[11]A downturn in Jeep demand combined with DaimlerChrysler not replacing the Dodge Neon sharply curtailed demand for the Syracuse New Process Gear plant production. In 2009, design and engineering services were moved toTroy, Michigan,and Magna International announced its intent to close the Syracuse plant.[12]The Syracuse New Process Gear plant had been planned for closure in November 2011, but was pushed back to the first quarter of 2012.[13]
After 124 years in operation, on Thursday, August 24, 2012, New Process Gear ended production and closed their doors for the last time.[14][15]
Transmissions
edit
The Muncie, Indiana, plant under New Venture Gear produced theNV5600,NV4500,NV3500,andNV3550light truck transmissions.
Transfer cases
editThe Syracuse New Process Gear plant produced transfer cases for all of the "Big Three" —Ford,Chrysler,andGeneral Motors.The NV247all-wheel drivetransfer case, sold by Chrysler'sJeepdivision as the "Quadra-Trac II," the manual transaxle for the Dodge Neon and PT Cruiser (T-350), and manual transaxles for European-export Chrysler minivans (T-650 and T-750) were the bulk of the plant's last years of production.
Model nomenclature
editThe model numbers of the transfer case consists of the manufacturer, the number of speeds/gears, the strength (1–7), and a number from 1–9 describing the type. The following table delineates the format:[16]
| Manufacturer | Number of speeds/gears | Strength | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| NP = New Process Gear NV = New Venture Gear |
1 = One speed (high range) 2 = Two speed (high and low range) |
1 (low) to 7 (high) | 1 = Part-time 4WD 2 = Full-time 4WD 3 = Electronic shift 4 = Not used 5 = Torsen-type differential 6 = Computer-controlled multi-plate wet clutch 7 = GeroDisc 8 = Not used 9 = Viscous coupling |
Models
edit| Model | Full-Time High | High Lock | Low range | 2WD | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 119 | Yes | No | No | No | Yes (Viscous) |
| 125 | Yes | No | No | No | Yes (Open) |
| 128 | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes (Open) |
| 129 | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes (Viscous) |
| 136 | |||||
| 147 | Yes | No | No | No (GeroDisc) | |
| 149 | Yes | No | No | No | Yes (Viscous) |
| 203 | Yes | Yes | 2.01:1 | No | Yes (Open) |
| 205 | No | Yes | 1.96:1 | Yes | No (Locked) |
| 207 | No | Yes | 2.61:1 | Yes | No (Locked) |
| 208 | No | Yes | 2.61:1 | Yes | No (Locked) |
| 219 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes (Viscous) |
| 228 | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes (Open) |
| 229 | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes (Viscous) |
| 231 | No | Yes | 2.72:1 | Yes | No (Locked) |
| 233 | No | Yes | 2.72:1 | Yes | |
| 236[17] | Yes | Yes | 2.72:1 | Yes | |
| 241 | No | Yes | 2.72:1 | Yes | No (Locked) |
| 241OR | No | Yes | 4.0:1 | Yes | No (Locked) |
| 242 | Yes | Yes | 2.72:1 | Yes | Yes (Open) |
| 243 | Yes | No | Yes | ||
| 244 | Yes | Yes | 2.72:1 | No | Yes (Open) |
| 245 | Yes | No | 2.72:1 | No | Yes (Clutch) |
| 246 | Yes | Yes | 2.72:1 | Yes | |
| 247 | Yes | No | 2.72:1 | No | No (GeroDisc) |
| 249 | Yes | No (Pre 96), Yes (96+) | 2.72:1 | No | Yes (Viscous) |
| 261 | No | Yes | 2.72:1 | Yes | No (Locked) |
| 263 | No | Yes | 2.72:1 | Yes | |
| 271 | No | Yes | 2.72:1 | Yes | No (Locked) |
| 273 | No | Yes | 2.72:1 | Yes | No (Locked) |
References
edit- ^"COMPANY NEWS; Joint Venture Planned By G.M. and Chrysler - New York Times".The New York Times.February 7, 1990.RetrievedMay 9,2013.
- ^"Muncie Chevrolet Plant Architectural Drawings, 1918–1920"(PDF).Bsu.edu.RetrievedMarch 7,2017.
- ^"MoparWiki".Moparstyle. Archived fromthe originalon May 26, 2012.RetrievedMay 9,2013.
- ^Central New York (December 22, 2011)."Last day for 300 New Process Gear workers; here are three who've moved on".syracuse.RetrievedMay 9,2013.
- ^"All-Wheel Drive Revolution? New Venture Gear leads a shift in AWD technology".Ward's AutoWorld.Archived fromthe originalon December 26, 2004.RetrievedJanuary 3,2006.
- ^"GM Drops Its Stake in New Venture Gear".Ward's AutoWorld.Archived fromthe originalon January 20, 2005.RetrievedJanuary 3,2006.
- ^"New Process Gear and New Venture Gear History".Allpar. September 29, 2004.RetrievedMay 9,2013.
- ^"History of Magna International Inc".Magna International.Archived fromthe originalon November 11, 2010.RetrievedDecember 21,2010.
- ^"Magna Completes Acquisition of New Venture Gear"(PDF).New Venture Gear.September 29, 2004. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on April 1, 2007.
- ^"New Process Gear, Inc. | Company Profile from Hoover's".Hoovers.RetrievedMay 9,2013.
- ^"Magna Completes Purchase of New Venture Gear".Geartechnology. December 22, 2003.RetrievedMay 9,2013.
- ^Hannagan, Charley (February 5, 2009)."New Process Gear plans exit strategy".syracuse.Archived fromthe originalon March 11, 2009.
- ^Dennis Nett / The Post-Standard (November 10, 2011)."New Process Gear in DeWitt plans to remain open into next year".syracuse.RetrievedMay 9,2013.
- ^Central New York (August 20, 2012)."New Process Gear stops production this week after 124 years".Syracuse.RetrievedMay 9,2013.
- ^Hannagan, Charley (August 20, 2012)."New Process Gear stops production this week after 124 years".syracuse The Post-Standard.Advance Media New York.RetrievedJune 6,2017.
- ^"SAE TopTec: Innovations in Four Wheel Drive/All Wheel Drive Systems".by Dr. Brad DeLong.Archived fromthe originalon April 3, 2013.RetrievedDecember 21,2010.
- ^"NP236 Transfer Case".Midwest Transmission Zumbrota MN. 2010.RetrievedJune 6,2017.
External links
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