Four contracts for aluminum wheels have been placed with Superior Industries Intl. Inc. by DaimlerChrysler Corp., concerning the 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee and the 2005 Jeep Liberty models. These are the first contracts for Superior with the Jeep product line.

Superior will produce two designs each for the 2005 Grand Cherokee and Liberty models. Production will begin over the next several weeks.

Superior is one of the leading suppliers of cast aluminum wheels to automakers, including DaimlerChrysler, Ford, General Motors, and many others.

According to Superior president and chief operating officer Steven Borick, two of these new supply programs were developed on "quick-to-market" schedules to meet model trim-line differentiation requirements on the vehicle lines. Borick said, "Chrysler Group gave us an opportunity to show them what we could do in a short period of time and we ran with it. I am proud of our team's performance on these programs and honored to have Superior as part of the storied Jeep vehicle nameplate."