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Stellantis has announced that it will invest $99 million in three North American assembly plants for production of a new four-cylinder turbocharged engine. The company revealed that it will invest in the Dundee Engine Complex in Michigan, the Kokomo Casting Plant in Indiana, and the Etobicoke Casting Plant in Toronto.
The new engine that Stellantis are so heavily invested is a 1.6-liter, I-4 turbocharged unit with direct fuel injection and flexibility for hybrid-electric vehicle (HEV) applications. The engine is based on a model currently in production in Europe and is set to power two future North American HEV models. This will be the first HEV engine for the company in the region with production set to begin in early 2025.
Under the terms of the deal announced by Stellantis, Dundee Engine will be retooled and become the final assembly location for the new engine, this represents an investment of nearly $83 million,. The Michigan plant will continue to function as the center of production for the 3.6-liter Pentastar Upgrade for the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Jeep Grand Cherokee L, with the Tigershark 2.4-liter I-4 engine to be rolled out in the first quarter of 2023.
The final site of investment is at the Kokomo Casting Plant, one of the largest facilities of its kind in the world, where the engine blocks will be cast. Stellantis plans to invest more than $14 million to convert existing die cast machines and cells for the new engine.
Etobicoke Casting will produce the oil pan for the new engine. The company will invest nearly $2 million to support the development and installation of new tooling and equipment upgrades.
