[Jammer]

OK, I got the full scoop in a new email. There are a lot of news links in this, I hope nbobody sees it as spam.




Chrysler Expected To Kill Models, Bring Italian Vehicles Ashore
Wave Goodbye To Dodge Grand Caravan, Jeep Compass, Others
Posted: Oct, 27 2009
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_by: Reilly Brennan, AOL Autos_
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At a media event next Wednesday, _Chrysler_
(Chrysler Cars, New Chrysler Car Models - AOL Autos) is expected to announce massive changes to its
brands, including
the termination of popular models and the introduction of Italian vehicles
courtesy of their new owner, _Fiat_
(Fiat for Sale) . The Wall Street Journal reported on the
forthcoming changes via
inside sources with access to the plans.

Key to Chrysler's strategy will be the reduction of underperforming models
within their Chrysler, _Dodge_ (Dodge Cars, New Dodge Car Models - AOL Autos) and
_Jeep_ (Jeep Cars, New Jeep Car Models - AOL Autos) brands and the introduction of
Fiat and _Alfa Romeo_ (Alfa Romeo for Sale)
models to the U.S. market. Fiat hasn't sold a car in the U.S. since 1984; Alfa
Romeo left our shores in 1995.


Going Away

Chrysler is expected to announce the death of the following models next
week

_Chrysler PT Cruiser_
(2010 Chrysler PT Cruiser Overview) _Chrysler Sebring_
(2010 Chrysler Sebring Overview) _Dodge Avenger_
(2010 Dodge Avenger Overview) _Dodge Caliber_
(2009 Dodge Caliber Overview) _Dodge Grand Caravan_
(2010 Dodge Grand Caravan Overview) _Dodge Nitro_
(2010 Dodge Nitro Overview) _Jeep Commander_
(2010 Jeep Commander Overview) _Jeep Compass_
(2010 Jeep Compass Overview) _Jeep Patriot_
(2010 Jeep Patriot Overview)



What's Going Away
When Chrysler's plans become apparent next Wednesday, more than a few
models are expected to hit the chopping block. When reached for comment,
Chrysler representatives told _AOL Autos_ (AOL Autos - Research, Find and Buy New Cars and Used Cars) that "since the
story relates to future products we can't comment." We expected that, of
course.
Nevertheless, insiders have confirmed to us a wave of products that will
die either by year's end or at the end of their current production run. The
list of production models going away is listed at the right.
Why Kill Models?
With market share at a dismal 8.3% at the end of September, it's difficult
see the wisdom in the elimination of brands. Furthermore, in aggregate
these models represent millions of points of contact with customers. Why walk
away from that?
The truth is that few of the products on this list are worth saving.
Chrysler's product portfolio in America has been inconsistent and out of pace
with the rest of the industry.
"The _Caliber_ (2009 Dodge Caliber Overview) ,
the _Avenger_ (2010 Dodge Avenger Overview) , the
_Commander_ (2010 Jeep Commander Overview) , as
well as the _Compass_ (2010 Jeep Compass Overview) ,
_Patriot_ (2010 Jeep Patriot Overview) , and
_Dodge Nitro_ (2010 Dodge Nitro Overview) triplets,
are vehicles that really failed to endear themselves to the American
consumer, and the automotive media and quality analysts were never bullish on
them, either," said Chris Paukert, executive editor of _Autoblog.com_
(Autoblog — We Obsessively Cover The Auto Industry) . "As none of these are exactly long-time, storied
nameplates, I don't see many mourning their passing."
Except their owners, of course. The way that Chrysler deals with the death
of these products will be critical. Should you find yourself in possession
of one of these vehicles when the announcements become official, you
shouldn't panic. Chrysler will honor its _warranties_
(Extended Warranties, New and Used Car Extended Warranty Information) with owners and supply parts for a reasonable
amount of
time. While the models might be going away, don't expect they'll forget about
your car payments, of course. Your resale values will likely be affected,
though; market logic follows that fewer buyers will see the value in buying
Chrysler products after they've been discontinued.
New Models Coming
In the automotive business, the speed at which you refresh your model
lineup is your lifeblood. It's the same way that all the experts tell you to
get your _oil changed_ (Oil Changes) every three
months -- in the car business, those refreshes and redesigns need to happen
every four years or so. When you wait much longer, as Chrysler has, customers
walk away and fast-moving competitors take the lead. As Chrysler slowed
the rate at which it brought _new models_ (Cars, New Car Models - AOL Autos) to
bear, its U.S. sales dropped; in 2008 U.S. sales fell 30% from the
previous year but in reality the entire decade underperformed the company's real
potential. No year in the past decade came close to the sales they saw in the
1990s; in 1999 Chrysler sold over 2.6 million cars. In 2009 they are on
pace for about half of that.
_
Gallery: See Dodge Grand Caravan_
(2010 Dodge Grand Caravan Pictures)
The problem a few years back continues to be a problem today: Chrysler
really doesn't have much new stuff to bring out. The new Grand Cherokee is
expected to arrive next year as a 2011 model and the Dodge Charger and Chrysler
300 will receive a redesign at the same time. Other than that, though, the
pipeline is dry. Meanwhile, other companies are hot to refresh and
redesign new models. Ford recently announced a company-wide goal to be 90%
refreshed by 2012.
So, what's Chrysler's solution? Instead of begging for new products,
they're simply going to borrow them.
Fiat builds and sells a number of exciting products in Europe and Chrysler
could do a lot worse than simply bringing them over. And that's exactly
what they're going to do. Fiat is expected to bring a few of those to the U.S.
in short order to help Chrysler stay afloat.
Expected to arrive in the U.S. will be the Alfa Romeo Mito, Alfa Romeo
Milano and the Fiat Cinquecento (the ultra-exclusive Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione
actually already went on sale late last year). A few new programs, in
cooperation between Fiat and Chrysler, will bear fruit for the company on both
shores further down the road. As an example, a mid-size sedan under
development by Alfa Romeo could provide a next-generation replacement for the
outgoing Dodge Avenger and Chrysler Sebring.
Of course, it's not a simple copy and paste procedure to sell cars in the
U.S.; the models from Europe would need to meet U.S. safety standards.
Beyond that, the expensive task of actually marketing these vehicles would be a
massive undertaking, especially in the case of a brand like Alfa Romeo
which, in America, carries more baggage than a luggage cart.
Drastic Times, Drastic Measures
In 1998, Mercedes-Benz acquired Chrysler, and although the "merger of
equals" sounded like a great idea, the reality never rang true. The relationship
ended in a divorce. Unlike most domestic partnerships, however, love
probably never brought the two together in the first place. The dreamy, 90s
concept of massive efficiencies of scale wafted through the executive ranks in
Germany and Detroit and produced one of the auto business's worst
partnerships. Both Mercedes and Chrysler were worse off in the end.
So, why should we expect anything different with Chrysler's new owner,
Fiat? After just 42 days of bankruptcy earlier this year, the Italian
conglomerate took over (they now own 20% of Chrysler Group LLC with an option to buy
up to 51%). Cynics might say that history will repeat itself, but this new
chapter looks to be different.
_
Gallery: See Chrysler PT Cruiser_
(2010 Chrysler PT Cruiser Pictures)
"Mercedes really couldn't use anything they got out of Chrysler," said Jim
Hall, an analyst with 2953 Analytics in Birmingham, Michigan. "The water
really didn't flow from America to anything of value for Mercedes. But now,
Fiat gets the company for a song, gets them the volume they need to maintain
critical mass purchasing and the ability to sell Jeep around the world.
It's win, win. The problem is bridging the next two years."

Even with these bold announcements to come next week, Hall's warning is
prescient: it will be a good while before we'll actually see these models hit
the showroom floor. Until then, Chrysler just needs to hold on and wait
for the tide to come in.

The decision to cut models, tighten their (Italian leather) belt and hope
for a brighter tomorrow is the best decision they could make right now,
even if it's unpopular.




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