TRW Puts Mario Andretti in Driver's Seat To Promote Light Vehicle Steering & Suspension Business
27 January 1998
TRW Puts Mario Andretti in Driver's Seat To Promote Light Vehicle Steering & Suspension Business
STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich., Jan. 27 -- To further underscore its
drive for innovation and performance, TRW announced today it has again teamed
up with legendary racing driver Mario Andretti to promote the company's
steering, linkage and suspension product lines.
Andretti -- who is regarded by many as the "greatest race car driver of
all time" and exemplifies leadership, dedication, innovation and performance
-- will participate in various TRW Steering & Suspension marketing and
promotional efforts, including automotive industry shows and customer events
on a worldwide basis. Terms of the four-year contract, which began January 1,
1998, were not disclosed.
"I am pleased to expand my association with TRW, which has a world-class,
winning team," said Andretti, who knows firsthand the importance of superior
steering and suspension systems, having seized more than 100 major career
victories in auto racing. "I have been extremely impressed by TRW's
revolutionary Electrically Assisted Steering systems and look forward to
showcasing this world leader's other significant product breakthroughs in
steering, linkage and suspension."
Andretti, who served as a spokesman in 1997 for TRW's Electrically
Assisted Steering (EAS) products -- which include Electrically Powered
Steering (EPS) and Electrically Powered Hydraulic Steering (EPHS) systems --
will continue representing this global product line. He also will represent
the company's passenger car steering products -- a full line of hydraulic rack
and pinion steering systems -- and its linkage and suspension modules and
systems.
Considered one of the most versatile and accomplished competitors in the
history of motorsports, Andretti is the first driver to win Indy Car races in
four decades and the only driver to ever win races in five decades. His
skilled and versatile driving has produced some of motorsports' most legendary
accomplishments. Andretti is a four-time Indy Car National champion, 1978
Formula One world champion, 1969 Indianapolis 500 winner and 1967 Daytona 500
winner. He was named Driver of the Year in 1967, and 25 years later he was
named Driver of the Quarter Century (1992).
TRW's Electrically Assisted Steering (EAS) systems are modular,
ready-to-install units that provide automakers and consumers with significant
performance and economic advantages. The company is currently supplying EAS
systems for Ford and Chrysler electric vehicles in North America and has
secured a European contract to supply the technology this year. By 2010, TRW
estimates that one out of every three cars produced in the world will be
equipped with some form of electrically assisted steering.
Providing steering systems for one in four cars worldwide, TRW is the
world's leading supplier of automotive power rack and pinion steering and
suspension systems. The company's Passenger Car Steering Systems unit
annually produces more than 9 million power rack and pinion steering gears
worldwide and about 400,000 integral power steering systems for commercial
vehicles.
A full-service supplier with total suspension systems engineering
capability, TRW's Linkage & Suspension Systems group offers a broad range of
modules that can decrease weight, improve fuel economy and reduce assembly
time and costs. A leading producer of steering linkages, control arms,
stabilizer links, radius rods and suspension ball joints, TRW annually
produces more than 40 million ball joints and is the leading supplier of
fiber-reinforced plastic stabilizer links (producing more than 3 million a
year). The company, which offers a variety of innovative processing
technologies, also is one of the largest manufacturers of vacuum die-cast and
thixoformed suspension components.
With 123 facilities and operations in 23 countries, TRW is one
of the largest independent OEM automotive suppliers in the world. In 1997,
the company's automotive businesses recorded sales of $7 billion, nearly
65 percent of TRW's total $10.8 billion in sales. Based in Cleveland, Ohio,
TRW also provides advanced technology products and services for space and
defense markets worldwide.
SOURCE TRW