Quote:
Originally Posted by bsmith0404
Allison was supposed to be going into the Ram way back in 2015, but that’s when the Ram front end problems came to a peak and the NHTSA forced the buy back. At that point they put it all on hold. Actually surprised it’s taken this long to get it going again. TBH, I used to say a Cummins paired with an Allison would be the ultimate truck, but I’m so damn happy with my current Duramax that I wouldn’t give it up for a Cummins.
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There was a bucketload more than just the NHTSA "buyback" that caused that delay. The federal government's push to return manufacturing to the US, keep exports of jobs on the decline, and decrease imports of major goods from places like Mexico all were factors in what it would have cost "per truck" to ship the Allison transmissions to Mexico then reimport them as a finished vehicle. It may have been "business suicide" to try to open a transmission building plant in Mexico to support the RAM program and cause all kinds of blowback for Allison if they "shipped more jobs out of the US"...
There was (and is) a "whole 'nuther world" to consider when it comes to acquiring the parts and changing suppliers of major parts for a vehicle line.
No doubt "profit margins with the buyback looming over Fiat/Chrysler" was a major factor, but facing a "import tax increase" on parts and finished vehicles that the government threatened for political purposes to "grow our economy" also had a tremendous influence on the decision not to change transmissions at that time.