By Mike Boyer
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Ford Motor Co. Monday said it will invest about $200 million in its Sharonville transmission plant as part of its first collaboration with rival General Motors Corp. to develop a more fuel-efficient, six-speed, front-wheel-drive transmission.

The Sharonville investment, the second by Ford there in the last five months, won't mean new jobs but it will protect about 250 of the 2,200 now employed there.

"It's a bright spot for Sharonville, especially if it means more work is behind it,'' said Thomas "Whitey'' Klein, president of United Auto Workers Local 863 at the plant.

Ford has designated the 2.4-million-square-foot Sharonville plant, once slated for closing in the mid-1980s, as a center for gear machining as it moves from four-speed to six-speed transmissions on its vehicles.

Taking on such a project alone would have cost either company as much as $1 billion, said Tom Stephens, GM's group vice president for powertrains. By working together, Ford and GM will reduce development time by several months and save roughly a quarter-billion dollars, he said.

Ford and GM have sold each others' parts and had other minimal business relationships through the years, but this marks the first time they have joined on such a broad program.

The companies are making the move because "six-speeds are the future,'' said Dave Szczupak, Ford's vice president for powertrain operations. "They help to optimize power, smooth operation and fuel economy.''

Ford and GM say the new six-speed automatic gearbox should produce 4 percent better gas mileage than today's four-speeds.

The transmission will start production in 2006 for 2007 model year Ford "crossover" vehicles and GMC SUVs. The companies didn't specify which of their models would get the new gearboxes.

"Today, less than 1 percent of all cars are equipped with six-speed transmissions, but by 2010, up to 15 percent of all U.S. cars will be equipped with six-speeds,'' Ford spokesman Joe Koenig said.

Last November, Ford announced a $155 million investment at the Sharonville plant to make gears for a new rear-drive six-speed automatic transmission. It will appear on cars next year.

Hamilton County and Sharonville city officials approved a 10-year tax abatement for that project, saving the automaker up to $1.3 million in annual personal property taxes. Ford's 2004 property tax bill for its Sharonville property is $515,700.

Although no abatement has been approved for the new investment, Koenig said the company is discussing its needs with officials.

"This investment couldn't be made without the relationship we have with the county and Sharonville officials,'' he said.

Ford and GM announced in 2002 that they were going to collaborate on the design and engineering of the new transmission. The giant automakers said they would produce the new gearbox separately.

GM said it would invest $350 million to produce the new transmission at its Warren, Mich., plant. Ford said it would spend $370 million at its Sharonville and Sterling Heights, Mich., plants.

Sharonville will cut gears on a new machining line and ship them to the Michigan plant, where the transmissions will be assembled.

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E-mail mboyer@enquirer.com. The Associated Press contributed.