Delphi Sells Composite Spring Business

December 6, 2001

Sacramento - It was a great idea conceived back in the 1970s as there were numerous attempts to develop plastic springs for automobiles. It's an ideal place to save weight and there is a corrosion issue as well. Since then there have been numerous attempts using various materials, but thus far no one has found a winner, and now Delphi Automotive Systems is throwing in the towel as well.

Yesterday Delphi announced that it would sell its Liteflex composite spring business to a new company being organized as Liteflex LLC. The new company will continue to develop the technology, which right now is based on fiber reinforced epoxy resins. The new company will work with the National Composite Center in Kettering, Ohio and attempt to develop the technology for other applications.