GM to give Chrysler some GMT900 love?
Last evening, a source privy to the talks between Chrysler and GM, revealed to the New York Times that the General may be sharing its GMT900 SUV platform with the American half of the German-American hybrid.
Since Chrysler doesn't have a large SUV in its line-up (the Durango doesn't make the cut), the rumored platform sharing could make a bit of sense – for Chrysler. As for General Motors, the automaker's turnaround plan is in full effect and the only upside we can see is that a little extra cash in the coffers certainly wouldn't do any harm, as long as it doesn't cut into their highly-profitable SUVs.
Talks between the two automakers have supposedly gone on for about six months, which leads us to believe that some partnership between the two automakers is forthcoming. Naturally, when the NYT contacted a spokesperson for Chrysler about the leak, the response was "no comment."
Ready, set, speculate...
[Source: New York Times via Jalopnik]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
eric 4:40AM (2/16/2007)
GM-badge engineered 4-door Ramchargers here we come! =D
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Marty Vance 4:54AM (2/16/2007)
Didn't anyone tell Chrysler about the backlash against huge SUV's? Why do they want one now? Why didn't they design the current Ram platform with the intent of spinning off an SUV variant?
This is a dumb move for Chrysler. Probably not a great thing for GM either, unless there's something in the deal that no one knows about yet.
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doug 5:40AM (2/16/2007)
Are they total idiots??? 1st of all, why would GM want to share its latest truck platform with a rival? If Chrysler wants such a large SUV, why can't they design one themselves? With all the other holes in Chrysler/Dodge's lineup - no small cars, no crossovers - and the general crappiness of their cars, why are they worried about getting another 10k sales with a huge SUV in a declining segment?
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A&W 5:33AM (2/16/2007)
It would make more sense if they agreed to share a crossover like the Acadia ect. or minivan since GM got out of the minivan business.
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Jason 6:29AM (2/16/2007)
Big SUV's are NOT the direction Chysler needs to be going right now. Don't they see the latest market trends? Who runs these companies?!
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RamSport47 8:11AM (2/16/2007)
'and the general crappiness of their cars
Posted at 5:40AM on Feb 16th 2007 by doug'
I take it that your "knowledge" of this comes from other people who probably do not like Chrysler products, because if you owned one, you'd know that line is total BS.
Let me tell you something else. GM and Ford do NOT want Chrysler to be out of business. That would not help the American auto industry at all. If you drive by any number of driveways with a Chrysler in the driveway, the second car is either another Chrysler or a Honda/Toyota. So if Chrysler is gone...sales aren't going to GM and Ford...they're going across the sea to the land of the rising sun
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Deezee 6:45AM (2/16/2007)
Chrysler must be paying HUGE to share that platform with GM. Thats the only explination for GM.
But why would Chrysler even want to get in that market? Are people not buying Durango's because they're not "big enough" lol. Come on.
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Avinash machado 7:02AM (2/16/2007)
Already Chevy trucks are also sold as GMC's with hardly any changes. Now I guess we will see Dodge versions also. Same truck with three different nameplates and competing with each other. Some might simply walk over to Ford instead.
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P to the C 7:53AM (2/16/2007)
This would be a great move for both companies. Contrary to popular belief, large SUV's still sell very well and make a lot of money, so having a viable vehicle in this segment would fill a current hole in Chryslers lineup and help GM earn some extra cash at the same time. If they do it, don't think this will simply be a rebadge. It wouldn't take much to reskin that platform and make it truly 'Dodge'.
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Frank 8:26AM (2/16/2007)
4. Are they total idiots??? 1st of all, why would GM want to share its latest truck platform with a rival? If Chrysler wants such a large SUV, why can't they design one themselves? With all the other holes in Chrysler/Dodge's lineup - no small cars, no crossovers - and the general crappiness of their cars, why are they worried about getting another 10k sales with a huge SUV in a declining segment?
Posted at 5:40AM on Feb 16th 2007 by doug
First off this is a rumor. So speculating at this time is just that - speculating. Chrylser has the ability to make one off the Ram platform and they have had proposals before. They could never make the business case for it. Even Ford could have the Expedition and the Excursion at the same time. It seems there is only so much room in this market. And GM has done a good job of creating it and holding it.
Chrysler has a small car the Caliber, it's a little bigger than most, but they have always done that, each of their segment cars have always offered more room than the competition. And we all know they are working on the B segment Hornet - just know know who will build it yet. Also they have a crossover - the Pacifica, one of the first. My guess is they won't push to heavily in that area becuase of their minivans - and why should they? Ford and GM have left that market.
As for "the general crappiness of their cars" - certaintly their interiors are not good but from the recent DCX press release -
"The Chrysler Group also made more progress in the field of vehicle quality in 2006. Internal measurements show that the quality of the division's vehicles is better than ever before, a fact which is confirmed by external quality studies: The Chrysler brand ranked in the top ten in the 2006 J.D. Power Initial Quality Study.
All three Chrysler Group brands also made gains in the 2006 J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study, showing that customer perception of quality continues to improve as new vehicles replace older models in the product range."
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SherbornSean 8:28AM (2/16/2007)
The point of the discussions is to allow Chrysler/Dodge to continue to offer large SUVs without the $B+ expense of developing a platform.
Smart move for DCX to cut engineering costsso they can focus on their mainstream products. Smart move for GM as they can run their factories more efficiently at higher volumes. Win-win.
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Icon149 8:34AM (2/16/2007)
upon second thought this does make a lot of sense. This is a declining segment, so it is stupid for DCX to spend time and money engineering a new model, and GM is probably facing shrinking sales. This keeps the GM factories going, gives DCX something to fill a gap, and while it will cannibilize sales of Chevy and GMC branded vehicles, it will also hurt sales of Ford Expeditions and the jap offerings in this segment. And at least the general is making something off everyone of those shiney new Dodge Ramburbans
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Gardiner Westbound 8:46AM (2/16/2007)
Let me see if I have a good grip on this. Mercedes Benz is concerned about allowing its Chrysler subsidiary to share the parts bin because it fears the Mercedes brand will be diluted, but it's OK for GM!
Come to think of it, Ford and GM share the same 6-speed auto transmission now - and they're both lousy, poor shifting units; so why not share truck platforms? Or, why not go all the way and put a Dodge badge on a Suburban? Because people won't buy either of them, that's why!
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G.M. MCWHERTER 2:48PM (2/19/2007)
G.M.'S PLANNING TO BUY CHRYSLERSEVERAL OFFERS ALREADY BEEN MADE..
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Craig 8:58AM (2/16/2007)
Did someone forget to tell Chrysler that they have the Jeep Commander to rebadge?
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Radix 9:01AM (2/16/2007)
#11 agreed 100%. Most people can t look beyond the domestic hating to see the positives from this. If it said Toyota is giving Honda their platform they'd be all over it.
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jim 9:04AM (2/16/2007)
Hey man, will that thing have a Hemi, man
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Scott 9:16AM (2/16/2007)
"Come to think of it, Ford and GM share the same 6-speed auto transmission now - and they're both lousy, poor shifting units."
Really? That's strange considering GM supplies transmissions for other companies such as BMW.
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Howard Kerr 9:44AM (2/16/2007)
The Japanese are savvy enough to do something like this..."share" a vehicle when it means increased sales for one maker and zero development costs for the other. Surely no one forgets the "sharing" between Honda and Isuzu?
Does DCX need a vehicle in this market niche? I don't know the sales numbers well enough to say they are shrinking. However, these are the MOST profitable vehicles currently built in North America. And while I drive a foreign-branded car, I'm beginning to think I would rather see GM-DCX get this sale instead of Toyota or Nissan.
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carguy 11:40AM (2/17/2007)
Just what Dodge/Chrysler really need - more slow selling SUVs in their product portfolio!
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