A Fiat 500 Chrysler, in your future?
January 20th, 2009. According to an article in Forbes.com, the Fiat Group will acquire a 35 percent stake in ailing Chrysler from Cerberus Capital Management, but will not pay anything for it and will not commit to funding Chrysler in the future.
The International Herald Tribune (New Yoirk) reported that “Under the deal, announced by Fiat at its headquarters in Turin and by Chrysler in Auburn Hills, Michigan, Fiat would provide Chrysler with technology and vehicle platforms to build more fuel-efficient, small and midsize cars at its factories and sell them in North America. Fiat would also give Chrysler access to distribution networks in other parts of the world, particularly Europe.
“In exchange, Fiat would obtain access to Chrysler’s U.S. sales and distribution network, returning to the only global market where it does not compete. The Italian company is hoping that its Fiat 500, a hit in Europe, will prove successful in the United States, and it wants to introduce American drivers to its other main mass-market offerings, the Punto, Bravo and Panda, and its high-end brand Alfa Romeo.â€
Lorenzo Marchesini, our Italian Editor-at-Large, sees this as a positive development:
“Both Fiat and Chrylser would enormously benefit from the “small” car line up of Fiat (500 and Grande Punto, as well as the Multipla) not to mention the fact that Fiat has a line-up of bi-fuel vehicles that run on both natural gas and conventional fuel by the toss of a switch.
“Fiat cars have incredible (and I mean this positively ! ) reliability comparable to Honda; I own both a Honda Civic and a Punto each with well over 200,000 miles on the clock — the Honda with only very, very few problems, the Fiat Punto got there — 250 thousand miles — with no problems at all ! Moreover, FIATs are real fuel sippers.
“I look forward to the day when I can buy a 500 Fiat at a Chrysler dealership in the U.S.A. to supplement my 38 year old FIAT 500 Lusso (running strong and averaging 57 miles to the gallon) and several other Italian cars.â€
Forbes.com also reports that “The Italian firm could also increase its production capacity in the United States by piggybacking onto Chrysler’s plants and would obtain access to Chrysler’s dealership networks in a similar fashion, allowing it to sell its Alfa Romeo brands next to Dodge and Jeep models.”
While Marchesini cannot but agree with the Fiat distribution philosophy by using the existing network of Chrysler dealerships, he does not think the approach followed for Alfa Romeo is advisable. “Let’s hope that both Fiat and Chrysler management will understand that selling Alfa Romeos through Dodge and Jeep dealerships may not be compatible, as the current Dodge and Jeep line up has little to nothing in comon with the sportiness, sophisticated design and class usually associated with the grand touring Alfa Romeos.â€
I hope Chrysler understands and learns from the GM/Fiat mistakes. Alfa needs to be on its own as soon as possible, or possibly through selected dealership until it can be sold on its own, as Maserati did with Ferrari.
Nick
Electricnick.com
When Alfa Romeos were offered by Chrysler dealers in the early ’90s, the problem was that the sales staff, at least of my local Chrysler dealer, pushed these beautiful cars to the rear of the lot in an almost exclusionary fashion. The Fiat group should have learned by this experience that dealers need to be controlled contractually, with significant penalty for misrepresenting these cars. (Denver, CO)
This has to be good news for both companies. For Fiat/Alfa it opens up a market and gives them the mechanism to return to the US as planned for in 2010 and for Chrysler it finally gives the US a chance to buy some wonderful and range of stylish and modern cars. This is very good news!
The tendency to push the Opel brand to the back of the lot was also carried out by Buick dealers all over the US in the early 80 s.
That,and the complete lack of brand knowledge, killed any chance for GM to introduce a perfectly well built small car with a great engine (2 liter Rekord motor)
I agree with Pops remarks that Chrysler dealers (if they are still alive by that time) should not have anything to do with Alfa .and should be plagued with selling their own low quality boring line up.
Great news, we may even see some real cars from Chrysler finally ( I could trade in my 164S); here is a marketing plan: put Fiat and Alfa as sub brands very much like Scion and Lexus for Toyota and call it …. Fiat and Alfa, most younger generations don’t even know about these brands and we older ones can buy what the rest of the world is enjoying.
That’s good news that Chrysler will sell Fiats and I’ll be the first one to get a 500 Diesel. Sure hope it’s soon.
Frank
About time! The most fun car I have ever owned was a Fiat 124 Spyder. And Chrysler, please defer to the Italians on styling. No more PT Cruisers or cars that look like clown shoes or hearses please!
The dealers really need to be taught about the Fiats. Actually Chrysler should either scrap/phase out all their small cars and just carry the Fiats and only the large cars should be Chrysler/Dodge. Or they can sell that Caliber as a very base model and then the Fiats, then the large cars.
Fiat also has to really emphasize their Quality and their driving enjoyment in their advertisement.