[3] Dauch contributed $3 million to an 67,000-square-foot (6,200 m2) alumni center at Purdue University[3] and served as chair for the 2006 United Way torch drive.
[6] In 1993, Dauch headed an investment group that acquired five General Motors parts plants in Michigan and New York to form American Axle and Manufacturing.
[6] American Axle has become a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange, and has grown from its original five plants to 35 locations worldwide.
[7] The book narrates the story of AAM against the backdrop of nearly fifty years in the auto industry, from America's glory days to its massive decline in the face of foreign competition, the government bailouts, battles with unions, and the recent financial crisis.
Dauch died on August 2, 2013, of cancer in his home in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, according to the Oakland County medical examiner's office.