How the Delphi Bankruptcy Impacts MINI

alpinamike May 26th, 2006 Link

Yes, they do supply, but is it an american product or somewhere else, we will have to ask MINIUSA about this one?

-alpinamike

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Tom May 26th, 2006 Link

Free Upgrades to better Struts and Springs for Everyone!

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flyboy2160 May 26th, 2006 Link

i thought the dampers were sachs; at least my 2003 mcs dampers are. does delphi own sachs?

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GSKChicago May 26th, 2006 Link

I would presume that MINI/BMW has received certain levels of assusrance from Delphi with regard to being able to manage supply, etc.

Companies like BMW and MINI do not sit idle and expect that a single supplier is going to follow through without a contingency plan. If we have access to Delphi news, I guaranty MINI does as well. MINI may even have auditors go on site to Delphi (and many other suppliers/vendors) to verify financial security, etc. It’s not an uncommon practice.

I’m speaking as a banker that asks questions like this of my clients when I am lending them money – what contingincies do you have in place if “X” supplier cannot keep up with your demand? How long will it take you to move to a new supplier if that happened? Questions like these. I would assume that MINI has asked those and a zillion other questions to be sure they can flip a different switch of supply if need be.

Just my initial off the top of my head thoughts.

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Rawhyde May 26th, 2006 Link

GSKChicago has a good handle on the situation. I once worked at a brake drum/rotor foundry. We were a Tier 2 or 3 supplier, and we had to undergo these site visits and audits. It’s even worse for a Tier 1 supplier.

I also wouldn’t be so quick as to disparage the quality of the Delphi strut. This part is made to the automaker’s exact spec. If MINI’s spec is good, the part will be also.

Rawhyde

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Alan May 26th, 2006 Link

Just because you’ve been audited and passed doesn’t mean you can have your workers go on strike and still produce parts. Having a second supplier is also a good thing, but it takes time for second suppliers to suddenly make more parts, and MINI/BMW likely doesn’t have any more (or less) clout with Delphi then GM does, so if something goes wrong they’re going to have problems.

MINI has had many supplier issues before, though all the ones we have heard about are options, the lack of spacecloth seats for a while most recently. I wouldn’t think this will have a huge impact, but even with planning and contingency there could be problems that the customer detects such as delays or a switch to a slightly different strut. I also highly doubt MINI would air their laundry about supplier problems in public.

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cristo May 27th, 2006 Link

I have the old style (stiffer) 2/03 build SS+ struts on my MC. When they wear out, I’m hesitant to replace these with the softer ones available since the change to softer shocks in 5/03, so I’ll probably be going for aftermarket adjustable shocks at replacement time.

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Ivor Biggun May 27th, 2006 Link

Delphi USA has been trouble since October, so it’s unlikely that things are not in hand to protect supply from European arms of the conglomerate. Even if things do go bad in the States I think the Chapter 11 regulations will allow all their customers to make alternative arrangements, and of course the company has the option of restructuring or selling parts of the business to other suppliers. The sheer volume of MINI business available to suppliers right now would be an attractive proposition to many who are looking to expand in that side of the market.

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Bilbo Baggins May 27th, 2006 Link

cristo,

I also had an early ‘02 MCS with the stiffer shocks and was worried about the change but I can tell you this, the change is a good one.

I now have an ‘06 MCS and I can tell you that the only changes they made were to alter the compression and rebound damping slightly to soften the initial impact of things like potholes or expansion joints. Otherwise the handling is just as crisp as it was before. The anti-sway bars and springs are unchanged.

I’ll let you know shortly about the Auto-X handling, but from what I have seen or read it is just as good as before. So, no worries.

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isellum May 27th, 2006 Link

From what I remember from the plant tour the only parts that come from America were tires. This does not mean Delphi does not have plants in other parts of the world.

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