300C Bound For Magna Steyr Plant

Chrysler Group signs an agreement with Magna Steyr Fahrzeugtechnik AG & Co KG to use the supplier's Graz, Austria, facility to support production of the Chrysler 300C for markets outside of North America.

Magna Steyr will begin building rear- and all-wheel-drive versions of the Chrysler 300C Touring (wagon) and sedan in second-quarter 2005, while the high-performance SRT-8 and a diesel-powered model will join the production range in late 2005.

A Chrysler source tells Ward's Magna could produce as many as 8,000 of the vehicles annually depending on demand. Exact terms of the contract were not disclosed, although a Magna source says Chrysler has committed to building the 300Cs in Graz for the “lifecycle of the vehicle program.”

A Chrysler spokeswoman says the pact with Magna Steyr will not delay production of the 300C Touring, which will be sold only in markets outside of North America.

Chrysler's Brampton, Ont., Canada, plant — the home of Chrysler 300 Series and Dodge Magnum production — already has begun production of the 300C Touring model.

The pact will help the plant gear up for production of the Dodge Charger, which is slated to begin early next year.