Freightliner has officially acquired 100% of the outstanding stock of Western Star for a purchase price of $453 million.

Western Star will be integrated into Freightliner's vocational truck unit, Sterling Truck Corp. The Western Star brand will continue as a separate product line in the North American market. The addition of the range of Western Star trucks helps Freightliner offer a full product line to owner-operators and further expand the company's vocational truck offering.
John Merrifield, who has headed Sterling since Freightliner bought Ford's heavy truck line in 1997, will expand his responsibilities as the senior vice president of sales and marketing at Sterling to combined sales and marketing for the Sterling and Western Star brands.
Freightliner also gains control of heavy transit bus manufacturer Orion Bus Industries. The Orion products and brand name will continue in the market. Freightliner's vehicles group, which includes Thomas Built Buses, American LaFrance and Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp, will support the company.