GVW Holdings to Sell Workhorse and Uptime Parts to International

[DriVer]

Media Release
For IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, contact David Feltman at GVW Holdings Inc., 847-681-8417.

July 5, 2005, CHICAGO, IL. -- Â* GVW Holdings Corporation (GVW) today announced it has signed an agreement to sell its subsidiaries Workhorse Custom Chassis, LLC and Uptime Parts, LLC to International Truck and Engine Corporation, operating company of Navistar International Corporation (NYSE:NAV). The acquisition agreement was signed July 1 and will be completed over the next 30 to 90 days.

Workhorse, located in Union City, Ind., is a major manufacturer of chassis for Class A motor homes, buses and walk-in trucks. Uptime Parts, located in West Chicago, Ill., and Reno, Nev., supplies replacement and aftermarket parts for the RV, truck and bus markets Workhorse serves.

International produces International® brand commercial trucks, mid-range diesel engines and IC brand school buses and is a private label designer and manufacturer of diesel engines for the pickup truck, van and SUV markets.
GVW will retain its remaining portfolio of companies, which includes Autocar and Union City Body Company (UCBC). "We intend to focus on growing these companies with the same innovation and imagination that has made Workhorse so successful," said Andrew Taitz, chairman and CEO of GVW Holdings. "The GVW business model has always been to create value in specialized niche automotive markets, and this transaction will allow GVW Holdings to offer more resources in support of that vision at Autocar and UCBC."

"In addition, Autocar and UCBC will continue to be close partners with Workhorse and International," said Taitz. "In fact, we are planning for Autocar to continue to assemble the Workhorse R Series diesel chassis and for UCBC to be a partner for integrated step-vans."

International will provide management oversight, strategy and administration for Workhorse and Uptime Parts, but both will operate as independent and wholly owned subsidiaries of International. They will retain their present management structure and there are no plans to reorganize, reduce or relocate facilities or staff. Workhorse products will continue to be sold through Workhorse certified up-fitters and dealers and marketed under the Workhorse brand.

International's scale and overall capabilities will provide opportunities to reduce material costs, build on Workhorse's premium product offering, as well as other efficiencies that may be integrated into Workhorse's operations. Otherwise, Workhorse and Uptime Parts will continue to operate with the entrepreneurial spirit that has driven their success to date, but with the assets and capabilities of a $9.6 billion company behind them. "International hopes to continue to fuel the passion and determination that Workhorse and Uptime Parts has demonstrated," said Tom Cellitti, vice president and general manager for International's medium vehicle center. "Their success in their chosen markets has been nothing short of remarkable."

Discussions with International grew out of Workhorse's desire to integrate International's VT 275 V6 diesel engine for Workhorse's new W42 commercial chassis for walk-in trucks, which go into production later this year. International saw Workhorse as a unique business model that would complement its existing products and markets. International does not currently compete with Workhorse in any market and this provides an opportunity to expand its reach into the RV and the Class 2 to 5 commercial markets.

[DriVer]

Media Release
For IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, contact David Feltman at GVW Holdings Inc., 847-681-8417.

July 5, 2005, CHICAGO, IL. -- Â* GVW Holdings Corporation (GVW) today announced it has signed an agreement to sell its subsidiaries Workhorse Custom Chassis, LLC and Uptime Parts, LLC to International Truck and Engine Corporation, operating company of Navistar International Corporation (NYSE:NAV). The acquisition agreement was signed July 1 and will be completed over the next 30 to 90 days.

Workhorse, located in Union City, Ind., is a major manufacturer of chassis for Class A motor homes, buses and walk-in trucks. Uptime Parts, located in West Chicago, Ill., and Reno, Nev., supplies replacement and aftermarket parts for the RV, truck and bus markets Workhorse serves.

International produces International® brand commercial trucks, mid-range diesel engines and IC brand school buses and is a private label designer and manufacturer of diesel engines for the pickup truck, van and SUV markets.
GVW will retain its remaining portfolio of companies, which includes Autocar and Union City Body Company (UCBC). "We intend to focus on growing these companies with the same innovation and imagination that has made Workhorse so successful," said Andrew Taitz, chairman and CEO of GVW Holdings. "The GVW business model has always been to create value in specialized niche automotive markets, and this transaction will allow GVW Holdings to offer more resources in support of that vision at Autocar and UCBC."

"In addition, Autocar and UCBC will continue to be close partners with Workhorse and International," said Taitz. "In fact, we are planning for Autocar to continue to assemble the Workhorse R Series diesel chassis and for UCBC to be a partner for integrated step-vans."

International will provide management oversight, strategy and administration for Workhorse and Uptime Parts, but both will operate as independent and wholly owned subsidiaries of International. They will retain their present management structure and there are no plans to reorganize, reduce or relocate facilities or staff. Workhorse products will continue to be sold through Workhorse certified up-fitters and dealers and marketed under the Workhorse brand.

International's scale and overall capabilities will provide opportunities to reduce material costs, build on Workhorse's premium product offering, as well as other efficiencies that may be integrated into Workhorse's operations. Otherwise, Workhorse and Uptime Parts will continue to operate with the entrepreneurial spirit that has driven their success to date, but with the assets and capabilities of a $9.6 billion company behind them. "International hopes to continue to fuel the passion and determination that Workhorse and Uptime Parts has demonstrated," said Tom Cellitti, vice president and general manager for International's medium vehicle center. "Their success in their chosen markets has been nothing short of remarkable."

Discussions with International grew out of Workhorse's desire to integrate International's VT 275 V6 diesel engine for Workhorse's new W42 commercial chassis for walk-in trucks, which go into production later this year. International saw Workhorse as a unique business model that would complement its existing products and markets. International does not currently compete with Workhorse in any market and this provides an opportunity to expand its reach into the RV and the Class 2 to 5 commercial markets.

[YosemiteBobR]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">International's scale and overall capabilities will provide opportunities to reduce material costs, build on Workhorse's premium product offering, as well as other efficiencies that may be integrated into Workhorse's operations. Otherwise, Workhorse and Uptime Parts will continue to operate with the entrepreneurial spirit that has driven their success to date, but with the assets and capabilities of a $9.6 billion company behind them. "International hopes to continue to fuel the passion and determination that Workhorse and Uptime Parts has demonstrated," said Tom Cellitti, vice president and general manager for International's medium vehicle center. "Their success in their chosen markets has been nothing short of remarkable." </div></BLOCKQUOTE>


You have to wonder just how they (international) intends to "reduce material costs". The era of the mussle cars went out with a solid built sturcture to a more lighter structure causing a new set of problems, when the change happened. Maybe that is a bad anology but you get the idea. I only hope that workhorse will not start reducing quality of an existing product but improve upon it. Still the "reduce material costs" worries me. If history repeats itself,plastic and composits will start taking the place of some materials. Time will tell.

[DriVer]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by YosemiteBobR:
You have to wonder just how they (international) intends to "reduce material costs". </div></BLOCKQUOTE>I read this as Workhorse being able to buy materials at the same price levels as a major automotive producer for example GM can buy bolts much cheaper than than a smaller producer because of the quantity of bolts that they buy. This will no doubt translate to less cost to buy automotive drivetrain components and suspension parts than Workhorse could have bought on their own.

If the materials to build cost less, this might mean that they will be able to allocate more their resources to R&D which is a very expensive and time intensive part of any business.

Let's keep our ears to the rail and see what happens!

[YosemiteBobR]

I sincerely hope you are right.