AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — In yet another announced cutback, DaimlerChrysler AG said it reduced output of minivans by 18 percent this week at its Windsor, Ontario, assembly plant.
The announcement was the latest cutback recently at DaimlerChrysler as the automaker faces increasing pressure from Wall Street to stem financial losses. Standard & Poors cut the automaker's long-term credit rating this week, which will force DaimlerChrysler to pay more to borrow money.
For minivans, the outlook isn't bright. Sales are sluggish and inventories are running high. Friday, the company said its sales for November were down 5 percent, with sales of minivans reporting a surprising drop of 16 percent, despite the introduction of all-new models with heavy advertising and some incentives.
"We have adjusted our production schedule to have three shifts working for four days rather than five," said DaimlerChrysler spokesman Trevor Hale of the plant in Windsor, located across the Detroit River from Motor City.
Hale told The Detroit News that the Windsor plant would be idle Friday to reduce a 77-day supply of minivans. The plant usually builds 7,350 minivans a week, but with the one-day closure, weekly output will drop to about 6,000 vehicles, Hale said.
Last week, the company announced it will idle one plant the week of Dec. 11 and five plants the week of Dec. 18.
Last week, Chrysler idled three plants and 13,600 workers in Detroit, Toledo, Ohio and Ontario to cut inventories. In November, it closed seven plants for a week — a move that surprised DaimlerChrysler chairman Juergen Schrempp and eventually led to the ouster of Chrysler president James Holden.
This week, the Newark, Del., plant and the St. Louis North truck plant in Fenton, Mo., will be idled. The following week, the Pillette Road plant in Windsor, Ontario, will be shut down; the week of Dec. 18, plants in Detroit, Belvidere, Ill., Fenton, Mo., Toledo, Ohio, and Brampton, Ontario, will not operate.