Acquisition and disposals of business (Narrative) (Details) (USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended									12 Months Ended				12 Months Ended				12 Months Ended					12 Months Ended	3 Months Ended	2 Months Ended
	Oct. 31, 2011 Dealerships	Oct. 31, 2010 Dealerships	Oct. 31, 2009 Dealerships	Oct. 31, 2011 NC2 Global, LLC [Member]	Sep. 30, 2011 NC2 Global, LLC [Member]	Oct. 31, 2011 Blue Diamond Parts [Member]	Jun. 01, 2009 Blue Diamond Parts [Member]	Aug. 31, 2001 Blue Diamond Parts [Member]	Aug. 31, 2001 Blue Diamond Parts [Member] Ford [Member]	Oct. 31, 2011 Blue Diamond Parts [Member] Customer Relationships [Member]	Jun. 01, 2009 Blue Diamond Parts [Member] Customer Relationships [Member]	Oct. 31, 2011 Monaco Coach Corporation [Member]	Jun. 30, 2009 Monaco Coach Corporation [Member]	Oct. 31, 2011 Blue Diamond Truck [Member]	Jun. 01, 2009 Blue Diamond Truck [Member]	May 31, 2009 Blue Diamond Truck [Member]	Oct. 31, 2009 Continental Diesel Systems US LLC [Member]	Oct. 31, 2009 Workhorse Custom Chassis [Member]	Oct. 31, 2005 Workhorse Custom Chassis [Member]	Oct. 31, 2011 Manufacturing Operations [Member]		Oct. 31, 2010 Manufacturing Operations [Member]	Oct. 31, 2009 Truck [Member] Monaco Coach Corporation [Member]	Jul. 31, 2009 Engine [Member] Blue Diamond Parts [Member]	Oct. 31, 2011 Promissory Note [Member] Manufacturing Operations [Member] NC2 Global, LLC [Member] Installments	Sep. 30, 2011 Promissory Note [Member] Manufacturing Operations [Member] NC2 Global, LLC [Member]	Oct. 31, 2010 Promissory Note [Member] Manufacturing Operations [Member] NC2 Global, LLC [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Equity Method Investment, Ownership Percentage				100.00%	50.00%		75.00%	49.00%	51.00%						75.00%	51.00%
Long-term debt	$ 4,856																			$ 1,980	[1]	$ 1,986			$ 40	$ 40	$ 0
Debt instrument, principal repayment term (years)																									4 years
Debt Instrument, Number Of Installment Payments																									16
Business Acquisition, Percentage of Voting Interests Acquired						50.00%								50.00%
Consolidation, Less than Wholly Owned Subsidiary, Parent Ownership Interest, Changes, Net																								23
Business Acquisition, Preexisting Relationship, Gain (Loss) Recognized																								23
Acquired Finite-lived Intangible Asset, Amount											45
Acquired Finite-lived Intangible Asset, Weighted Average Useful Life (years)										9
Business Acquisition, Cost of Acquired Entity, Cash Paid													50				18
Business Acquisition, Cost of Acquired Entity, Liabilities Incurred													5
Extraordinary Item, Gain (Loss), Net of Tax, Attributable to Parent	0	0	23																				23
Business Acquisition, Purchase Price Allocation, Current Assets, Inventory												73
Business Acquisition, Purchase Price Allocation, Other Noncurrent Assets												1
Business Acquisition, Purchase Price Allocation, Current Liabilities, Other Liabilities												1
Variable Interest Entity, Qualitative or Quantitative Information, Ownership Percentage														100.00%
Business Acquisition, Cost of Acquired Entity, Purchase Price																	20
Business Acquisition, Purchase Price Allocation, Preacquisition Contingency Accrual																	2
Business Acquisition, Preacquisition Contingency, Amount																		16	25
Business Acquisition, Preacquisition Contingency, Amount of Settlement																		9
Goodwill, Purchase Accounting Adjustments																		(7)
Costs of products sold	$ 11,262	$ 9,741	$ 9,366															$ 2
Number of Dealcors	4	3	4

[1] Amounts include the borrowing of $100 million under the Asset-Based Credit Facility in November 2011, reflected as being due in 2017.