Chrysler, Fiat reach partnership deal

[sabra]

Source: USA Today

Chrysler says in a statement today that it has reached a partnership agreement with Fiat.

President Obama, in announcing his auto bailout plan today, gave Chrysler 30 days to finalize a deal with the Italian automaker as a prerequisite for receiving any federal funds.

Chrysler, in its statement, says that by providing the U.S. car company with product and platforms, technology cooperation and global distribution, Fiat "strengthens Chrysler's ability to create and preserve U.S. jobs; gives U.S. consumers more choices for environmentally advanced vehicles; gives its dealers more of the products they need to be successful; helps stabilize the supplier base; and allows Chrysler to pay back government loans sooner."

Read more: http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2009/03/chrysler-fiat-r.html

[NickB79]

1. If they can get a few of the smaller Fiat models in the US, they might actually survive

Fiat makes some nice compact and subcompact cars that get excellent fuel economy, which Chrysler has been sorely lacking from it's line-up.

[liberal N proud]

2. Not if they are like the Fiats that once were sold here

I remember some of those things, you could buy them real cheap because they were junk, Fix It Again, Tony



It is my understanding though that Fiat is one of the top European car companies when it comes to quality.


http://www.autonews.com/article/20090227/ANA06/902279961

[leftinportland]

5. I had one of those 'things'

A 1972 blue Fiat 128 - bought it new for less than $3,000 and I loved it. The Fiats were one of the first front wheel drive vehicles sold commercially. As long as I kept it tuned it caused no problems. I kept seeing it on the freeway after I sold it - it had a good life....

[Duppers]

3. A deal they were trying to make with the Japanese

to build electric cars just fell through.

Why would they have thought that the Japanese would gain anything by partnering with them, I don't know. The Japanese don't want to help any competitors.

[vinylsolution]

4. Now this IS good news....

... But can you imagine how Chrysler's macho marketing department would sell this?



Uuuuh, Hemi? V8? Rear-wheel-drive? Nope....

50mpg turbo-diesel, what's that?

[liberal N proud]

6. Take no offense but that resembles a sardine can

[damntexdem]

9. The Dodge Cram?

It would be fine if Americans would go for something sustainable like this. But between American auto marketing and American auto consumerism, it may turn out to be a Fiatsco.

[muriel_volestrangler]

10. Fiat also own Alfa Romeo and Lancia

There's a better chance of selling more sporty, upscale (than the standard Fiats) Italian cars in the US, I'd think.

[CatholicEdHead]

14. Mini-Hemi under the hood with a faux air scoop?

[Buns_of_Fire]

18. Memo to Design Team: Fins. It needs fins. Sincerely, Marketing

:-)

[cosmicone]

7. FIAT stands for

Fix It Again Tony.

Horrible workmanship and poor designs have plagued Fiat for decades. (In other words, they were a better fit for GM hahaha)

[regnaD kciN]

13. Actually, we had a Fiat while living in Europe, and it was an excellent car...

They have a very good reputation in the rest of the world. I always theorized that the guy responsible for allocating product was a member of the Italian Communist Party, and made sure all the lemons were sent to America. ;-)

[Stinky The Clown]

16. "Tony"?

Ha ........... ha ............. ha

I'm sure no ethnic slur was actually intended.

Would it have been any worse to say "LeRoy"?

[MorningGlow]

20. No longer, apparently

If Jeremy Clarkson on Top Gear likes the new Fiat 500 Abarth--and it costs less than a quarter of a million bucks (or pounds) and is "the size of a shoe"--it's got to be good.

It's cute. I'd buy it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXALDprqcuc

[damntexdem]

8. Did Fiat command Chrysler to sign?

Oh, well -- fiat lux!

[tomreedtoon]

11. Odd how quickly THAT got resolved.

I can only assume Anti-Christler was holding out for a big bailout so they wouldn't have to change anything. Now we'll see how much Bob Hope's rickety old car company is willing to modernize.

[Igel]

12. Of course.

Look at it this way: Assume you're a store clerk working on commissions and a customer's trying to haggle you down. You want to keep the price up, and since you're both still haggling you know the customer wants it.

You could work out a compromise, but your boss comes along and says, "TRT, I want to talk to you in my office before I go to lunch. Just sell the damned thing. You have 2 minutes to close or you're out of here." The customer hears this.

How much bargaining power do you have?

Stupid question. You have precisely no bargaining power. However much power you had 20 seconds before was sucked away from you by your boss and handed to the customer on a silver platter because it suited your boss. He has his priorities, and knows that he won't incur any penalties.

You can close the deal immediately and do better things with the next 1.5 minutes of your life or you can haggle for two minutes knowing that the deal will close on the same abysmal terms. So you walk into your boss's office and the secretary, who watched you haggle for 20 minutes, quips, "Odd how quickly *that* got resolved."

[mzmolly]

15. PHEW!

:)

[steven johnson]

17. Chrysler and Fiat tie-up faces tough road to reality

Fiat is not exactly a financial or engineering powerhouse.

Fiat has not been required to contribute cash or assume debt to partner with Chrysler, but the U.S. automaker has said the contributions of small car technology and other benefits would be worth up to $10 billion to Chrysler.


Fiat Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne had said at a news conference on Friday that final terms of the partnership would end up being dictated by the U.S. authorities. He said Monday that talks with the auto task force had been "tough but fair."
Analysts said Fiat likely would have to spend some money on Chrysler, with bankers or bondholders eventually seeking some sort of guarantees from the healthier of the two, Fiat.
That is a worrying prospect for Fiat investors because the Italian automaker has already seen its debt rating cut to junk on concern about its deteriorating financial position.


http://www.reuters.com/article/innovationNews/idUSTRE52T5HU20090331

[Mudoria]

19. When I was young guy I always wanted one of these: the Fiat X 1/9