18 August 2001: The diesel engine scheduled for use in the European-built version of the Chrysler PT Cruiser from next year will be sourced from the Mercedes-Benz division of Daimler Chrysler.

The arrival of the diesel will strongly increase marketing options for the funky US vehicle, with the increasingly strong percentage of diesel use in Europe.

It will also mean that the value of European-sourced components will be considerably more than the 40% currently used in the Austrian Eurostar-produced vehicle, which went into production at Graz in July.

About 18,000 PT Cruisers will be built at the 100,000-unit capacity plant this year, and some 50,000 of the vehicles might yet be produced a year there. Investment in PT Cruiser production at Eurostar totaled E58 million while local supplier companies have invested another E84 million to produce windscreens, interior fittings, and sheet steel pressings. BB