Financing Agreements - Additional Information (Detail) In Millions, unless otherwise specified		9 Months Ended									9 Months Ended	3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended						9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2011 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Senior Notes Due 2019 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Senior Notes Due 2019 Prior to February 15, 2015	Sep. 30, 2011 Senior Notes Due 2019 Prior to February 15, 2014	Sep. 30, 2011 Senior Notes Due 2021 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Senior Notes Due 2021 Prior to February 15, 2015	Sep. 30, 2011 Senior Notes Due 2021 Prior to February 15, 2016	Sep. 30, 2011 Senior Notes USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Maximum Revolving Facility	Sep. 30, 2011 Maximum Revolving Facility Letter of Credit USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Minimum Revolving Facility	Mar. 31, 2011 Revolving Facility USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Revolving Facility USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Revolving Facility Letter of Credit	Sep. 30, 2011 European Receivables Loan Facility USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 European Receivables Loan Facility EUR (€)	Sep. 30, 2011 Minimum Covenant Requirement Group 1 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Minimum Covenant Requirement Group 2 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2011 Covenant Requirement	Sep. 30, 2011 Covenant Requirement Group 2 CreditScore	Sep. 30, 2011 Minimum Prior to February 15, 2014
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Senior notes issued		$ 400			$ 350
Gross borrowings	750												0		0
Senior notes issued, interest rate		6.50%			6.75%
Maturity due date		Feb. 15, 2019			Feb. 15, 2021										Mar. 31, 2016
First interest payment date								Aug. 15, 2011
Current aggregate facility										300			500		100	75
Interest payment dates								February 15 and August 15 of each year
Maturity term of the facility													5 years		5 years
Net proceeds of the offerings								733
Available borrowing capacity													358		89
Underwriting commission								15
Deferred financing costs write-off												2			1
Deferred fee paid								2							2
Cash and cash equivalents paid for debt extinguishment								127
Deferred financing costs and original issue discount (OID), write off								51
Percentage aggregate principal amount that can be redeemed			10.00%	35.00%		35.00%	10.00%
Redemption Price			103.00%	106.50%		106.75%	103.00%														100.00%
Percentage aggregate principal amount that must remain outstanding after redemption				65.00%		65.00%
Previous aggregate facility													650
Fees paid in connection with the amendment of revolving credit facility												6
Pledged percentage of capital stock of material foreign subsidiaries													65.00%
Percentage of applicable commitment fee									0.625%		0.50%
Percentage of fronting fee														0.25%
Commitment fees description														Commitment fees are applied based on the average daily unused portion of the available amounts under the New Revolving Facility. If the average daily use is less than 50%, the applicable fee will be 0.50% per annum. If the average daily unused portion of the New Revolving Facility is equal to or greater than 50%, the applicable fee will be 0.625% per annum.
Utilized letters of credit													85
Weighted-average interest rate on the term loan debt	6.62%
Borrowing base collateral													443
Pro forma excess borrowing availability																	$ 125	$ 75
Fixed charge coverage ratio																				1.1
Debt covenants, description																			The incurrence-based covenants in the New Revolving Facility permit Dana to, among other things, (i) issue foreign subsidiary indebtedness, (ii) incur general indebtedness, which can be secured by the assets that previously secured the Term Facility on a first priority basis and (iii) incur additional unsecured debt so long as the pro forma minimum fixed charge coverage ratio is at least 1.11.0.
Debt covenants, dividend payment conditions																			Dana may also make dividend payments in respect of its common stock as well as certain investments and acquisitions so long as there is (i) at least $125 of pro forma excess borrowing availability or (ii) at least $75 of pro forma excess borrowing availability and the pro forma minimum fixed charge coverage ratio is at least 1.1:1.0.