"International markets" is a phrase only a US company would ever dream up.

How about anti gravity? Is anyone working on that?

I would hate to work as a marketing writer for a US automaker, trying to sell "new" technology in a market where the technology has been for sale several years. But then again most US drivers have no clue.

"International markets"

Does this mean all the transmissions will be shipped overseas?

"International markets" is a phrase only a US company would ever dream up.

That's not going to "mesh" well.

Thanks, but I think I'll keep my CVT

Chrysler certainly is talking a good game. I hope they can get these things done.

They face more resource and capital constraints than the bigger companies. But that may lead to doing more with less.

IMO they have little choice except to bet - as they are here - that there will be a profitable, near-term market for evolving vehicles. That is, vehicles that steadily get better mileage through mechanical refinements in engines, transmissions, and weight.

If the market shifts quickly to EVs and/or a variety of advanced hybrids I can't see how they can survive.

Rafael
I worked with Chrysler International on various projects. The "International Markets" means outside the United States. Chrysler has made several attempts to make their vehicles more attractive in Europe by adding equipment that is popular in Europe like diesel engines. This particular diesel engine will not be sold in the US per the current plan.

I think the 6 speed dual clutch transmission has a future in one form or another. Automakers have to be careful introducing something different to the buying public in the U.S. Buyers want dependability at the top of their list.

@ DS, rca -

I know what the phrase means, it just highlights how insular Chrysler's thinking is. There's the US and then there's "everyone else", as in the "here be dragons" found on medieval maps. Other places have names, too.

That is all part of growing up as a people. There was the U.S. and everyone else and then a global market came along.

For much of our early years, America thought of itself as self sufficient. Then we became needed to settle world conflicts. Now we are part of a global economy. I think this trend will continue as events unfold.

The Japanese firms helped achieve a reputation for quality in its foreign markets by the simple expedient of building a year's production in its domestic market. They worked out the bugs of a first year model, and before releasing it as a new car to its foreign customers.

Chrysler is doing the a similar kind of effort. Only it is reversed to fit Chrysler. Chrysler is overwhelmingly a US North American auto maker with a tiny presence in Europe. So it is introducing its new products in Europe to "debug" them, and measure their acceptance.

The dual-clutch automated manual transmission capacity it has installed, is sufficient for half its total annual production. Add its share of the GM, BMW, 2-mode hybrid capacity to its present CVTs capacity, and there is essentially all its capacity incorporated in modern high efficiency transmissions.

Chrysler is investing in its product and Cerberus has not started a no R&D, asset stripping mode, as all thought. That does not mean that they won't; but I offer the current evidence that they have not done so to date.

An axle modernization venture is already producing lightweight, stronger axles for Mercedes and itself and that is sized with a capacity for its entire annual vehicle production.

The modern V6 for both Chrysler and Mercedes are having their tooling bought and installed in new factory facilities, even now. These will replace all their present V6s and many of their V8s. they will start appear in the 2009 or 2010 model years.

Under Daimler they did the same with their I4 (and I3) World engines shared with Kia and Mitsubishi, in the last three years. These all alloy lightweight high featured engines provide the requisite features for conventional, hybridization,(Atkinson cycle mode), and positioned for the addition of HCCI partial diesel operating mode.

Cummins a diesel leader, is preparing a line of T2B5 diesels for Chysler's truck lines. The 2007 Dodge Ram diesel was the first compliant T2B5 diesel; with technology required in the 2010 model year; fully three years early.

So all their IC engines and entire drive trains, are or will be modern state-of-the-art within two years.