Hans-Georg Harter Named ZF Sachs Group Executive

FRIEDRICHSHAFEN, Germany, Nov. 27 -- Effective January 1, 2002, Hans-Georg Harter will take over as Group Executive of ZF Sachs AG in Schweinfurt, Germany.

ZF Sachs AG is a wholly-owned division of international automotive industry supplier ZF Friedrichshafen AG. Harter is a member of the Board of Management ZF Group and former Group Executive of ZF Passau GmbH in Passau, Germany, ZF's off-road driveline and axle systems division.

Dr. Manfred Schwab will join the Board of Management ZF Group when he succeeds Harter as Group Executive of ZF Passau GmbH on January 1st.

The new executive appointments are subject to approval by the ZF Sachs AG and ZF Passau GmbH supervisory board. Decisions will be finalized during December 2001.

According to ZF Friedrichshafen AG CEO Dr. Siegfried Goll: ``As the former head of Off-Road Driveline Technology and Axle Systems division, Hans-Georg Harter takes over at ZF Sachs with a proven track record of success in a very competitive industry sector.''

As a member of the Board of Management ZF Group, Harter will be responsible for ZF Sachs activities in four business units: Powertrain, Chassis, Rubber-Metal (Boge), and Commercial Sales. Hermann Sigle will remain in his position as Vice Chairman of ZF Sachs AG.

Harter has served in several different positions at ZF Passau since joining the company in 1973. He has been Vice President since 1990 and Group Executive of ZF Passau GmbH since 1994. Harter is also responsible for ZF Group marine business unit and corporate production technology.

Dr. Manfred Schwab has served in a variety of positions at corporate and division since 1985. Since 1996 he has been Vice President of Commercial Vehicle / Special Transmissions division in Friedrichshafen.

ZF Friedrichshafen AG is a global automotive industry supplier for driveline and chassis technology. The company has a total workforce of 55,000 employees at 117 locations in 22 countries. Combined revenues for the group (ZF Friedrichshafen AG and ZF Sachs AG) totaled EUR 8.6 billion (USD 7.6 billion) in 2000. ZF is the third-largest automotive industry supplier in Germany and number 15 worldwide.

With sales of $ 1.2 billion in 1999 and sales of $ 1.8 billion in 2000, the ZF Group in North America expects annual sales of over $2 billion by the year 2002. ZF Group North American Operations is headquartered in Cincinnati, OH and operates 14 production sites, with 4,500 employees in the region. ZF Sachs has six locations including a Technical Center, located in Troy, Mich., and posted sales of $ 390 million with 2,750 employees in North America.