Delphi’s Harrison Thermal Systems division will provide climate control systems for a Volkswagen application that involves commercial vans and the automaker’s first sport-utility vehicle, the Touareg, unveiled at the Paris 2002 Mondial Auto Show in September.
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This is Delphi’s first thermal management business with Volkswagen in Europe.
The programme ranges from manually actuated base heater modules and rear- mounted passenger compartment compact modules to climate control systems and individually controlled temperature, air- distribution, and air-flow in four different zones.
Engineers from Volkswagen and Delphi developed an intelligent common-part- structure that offers a maximum of variants to be used in vehicle applications ranging from utility to luxury vehicles.
Delphi will manufacture several product variants to support this VW programme, including automatic and manually operated systems, modules designed for left and right-hand drive and heater-only options.
The product will also offer the opportunity to control passenger comfort in the driver position only, or individually in all other passenger positions.
The contract is worth more than $US220 million over its lifetime, according to initial customer forecasts.
Systems and components will be produced at various European sites including Ostrow, Poland, France, Italy and Hungary.
System performance and coolant cycles were tested at Delphi Thermal’s comprehensive test facilities in Luxembourg.
The units will be shipped to Volkswagen assembly sites in Hannover, Germany, Poznan, Poland, and a new facility in Bratislava, Slovakia, which will manufacture the sport-utility vehicle.
Delphi Thermal’s first-ever business with Volkswagen globally involves the company’s new compact variable compressor facility in Jaguariuna, Brazil, which supplies the VW Gol, Brazil’s long-time sales leader.
