| **Discontinued Operations**                                                 | 3 Months Ended                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         |
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| **Discontinued Operations [Abstract]**                                      |                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   |
| Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations, Disclosure [Text Block] | Discontinued OperationsIn the first quarter of 2013, the Company completed the idling of the Workhorse Custom Chassis ("WCC") operations. At January 31, 2013, the operating results of the WCC operations, which were previously included as part of the Truck segment, are reported as discontinued operations in the Consolidated Statements of Operations for all periods presented. Also in the first quarter of 2013, certain operations of the Monaco recreational vehicle ("RV") business ("Monaco") were determined to be held-for-sale. At January 31, 2013, the operating results of these certain operations of Monaco, which were previously included as part of the Truck segment, are reported as discontinued operations in the Consolidated Statements of Operations for all periods presented. WCC and Monaco were not material to the Company's Consolidated Balance Sheets or Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows and have not been reclassified in the respective financial statements.The summarized activity in the Company's Consolidated Statements of Operations for discontinued operations is presented in the following table:  Three Months Ended January 31,(in millions)2013 2012Sales and revenues, net$34 $43    Loss before income taxes$(9) $(14)Income tax benefit— 5Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax$(9) $(9)We generally use a centralized approach to cash management, financing of our manufacturing operations, and general corporate related functions, and, accordingly, do not allocate debt, interest expense, or corporate overhead to our discontinued businesses. Any debt and related interest expense of a specific entity within a business is recorded by the respective entity. |

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| - Definition
The entire disclosure for the facts and circumstances leading to the completed or expected disposal, manner and timing of disposal, the gain (loss) recognized in the income statement and the income statement caption that includes that gain (loss), amounts of revenues and pretax profit or loss reported in discontinued operations, the segment in which the disposal group was reported, and the classification (whether sold or classified as held for sale) and carrying value of the assets and liabilities comprising the disposal group. Includes all disposal groups, including those classified as components of the entity (discontinued operations).
+ References
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