Having learned from the sales bank debacle of the past, Chrysler is now throttling back production to draw down inventory levels. Sales of the PM/MK platform cars – Dodge Caliber and Jeep ComPatriot twins – are down roughly 23 percent compared to last year. Part of that is due to a move away from fleet sales, but whatever the cause, the 3,400 workers at the Belvidere assembly plant will get a two week vacation starting Monday. It's a great time of year to take a trip, enjoy some of the last warm days before winter tightens its grip, or just get out and rake the yard. By the time the line starts back up again, the backlog of unsold vehicles will be reduced, and the looming catastrophe of UAW contract talks will be looming.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
sk @ Oct 5th 2007 10:19AM
Chrysler should consider to cancel those cars anyway. They hurt the Jeep and Dodge brand
2o6 @ Oct 5th 2007 10:36AM
Well, the Patriot makes sence.......the compass doesn't. The Patriot is mildly capible, and kinda makes sence. People really don't use their big SUV's offroad anyway. It's a cute-ute that's mildly capible. It also looks decent as well.
Josiah @ Oct 5th 2007 10:48AM
The Caliber makes sense, the Patriot makes sense (as it's actually off-road capable), the Compass does not.
What I find amusing is the the domestic brands move 'away' from fleet sales. Who's going to supply the fleets with cars now? Foreign automakers. So not only will GM/Chrysler's sales be hurt by this move away, foreign brands will gain sales and it probably still won't hurt their 'image' which is the reason why the 'big 3' are moving away from them.
Irony at it's best.
Message to GM/Chrysler/Ford, keep the fleet sales, just make better products quicker and for less money and with better warranties (see Hyundai)
the friendly grizzly @ Oct 6th 2007 9:50AM
Maybe with more import makes in the rental fleets getting the crap kicked out of them, with the attendant squeaks and rattles, and mechanical faults developing, folks will call them all the names they call the domestic makes?
I've driven plenty of Corolli on rental, and if anything they show just as much damage as any domestic from being in rental fleets.
Chris @ Oct 5th 2007 10:57AM
Poor Comp-ass. Not even a dirt field can give it "off-road cred." Maybe it's me, but that totally looks photoshopped. The front wheels aren't moving, the rear wheels are "hidden", and it looks like there's no driver. Not to mention a single piece of dirt on that ugly thing.
Mike @ Oct 5th 2007 11:09AM
Drove a '07 Patriot a few weeks ago. Looked at the 5-spd and the CVT. Both were 4x4 (not trail rated version). One was pretty stripped down, the other was the $25K option model.
I liked the way it handled, did a few U turns on the road, parking etc. Felt solid. It's not a speed demon, but I had no trouble merging into 65+ MPH traffic. The CVT is a little odd, but it performed very well (there were some software updates to counter some of the complaints I'd heard online).
For the price, it really felt like a value (you can easily get one for under $20K with some good options). If the inventory is stacking up it might be a good time to go back and see if they will deal a bit.
SPG @ Oct 5th 2007 11:36AM
It sounds like most of us are agreed.
The Compass does not make sense.
A crossover (tall wagon really) with the Jeep name?
The Patriot is at least somewhat capable and does return to that Cherokee esque styling but I'd not shed a tear if they were both yanked off the market.
psarhjinian @ Oct 5th 2007 12:01PM
The Compass isn't that bad, but it doesn't suit the Jeep brand. That being said, a lot of people do like the way the Compass looks and I do see more of them on the road then aI do of the Patriot (bear in mind: this is in Canada, YMMV). I personally like the Compass; I wish it'd been dropped about a two inches and absolved of any truck responsibilities at all.
The problem with all of these is that they really are unforgivably cheap inside:
* The door lock holes that seem to be drilled through the top of the door with a dull drillbit. (I noticed this first off)
* The plastic flashing that's visible just about everywhere
* The way bits of the dash (airbag cover, glovebox) don't seem to have been made in the same factory.
Now, go look at a Honda Fit or Toyota Yaris. They both cost a lot less and, while using hard plastic, do a much better of of making it look decent. If you are going to cheap out, don't do it where people can see it when they first walk into the showroom. There's a problem when more-than-a-half-decade older PT Cruiser looks and performs better than the Caliber.
It's a shame, but this is the legacy of what Mercedes did to Chrysler. Not that Chrysler was exactly top of the world, but the pre-Mercedes products (the LH and LX--yes, the LX was mostly done before the merger--cars, PT,SRT-4, and Viper) are much better for their period than the ones that were designed during Mercedes' reign (the Aspen, Sebring/Avenger, Caliber/ComPatriot).
Kumar @ Oct 5th 2007 1:29PM
All three (or two after the compass dies) need a diesel engine.
Too bad Chrysler doesn't think anyone wants one.
JUSBEEZ @ Oct 5th 2007 1:42PM
Do the workers still get paid for these 2 weeks?
cooperaaaron @ Oct 5th 2007 2:22PM
Thanks to the United Auto Workers contract, Belvidere workers still will receive much of their pay during the shutdown. But the more than 2,000 workers at suppliers near Chrysler and the truckers who deliver parts to the plant likely will feel the effects either through corresponding shutdowns or reduced work hours.
Check out rrstar.com, the local newspaper under the Buisness section.
Adam @ Oct 5th 2007 3:35PM
Leave it to the new LLC!
These guys never learn.
I am a supplier to this plant & these guys have worked OT on Saturdays (3 shifts) for the past 30-40 weeks. Now they realize they have excess inventory. Why not slow down the OT & run a normal schedule? My guess is that some of the folks making the OT decisions get bonuses or benefit from the double or triple time. Guess what happens when no one minds the store!
howard @ Oct 7th 2007 2:47AM
Adam; your people should know to put back the ot for a rainy day. When i was in the work force for Lockheed any ot went into a special account and was ear marked for lay offs , strikes, or special occassions. wddings out of town, christmas trips etc. We continued to live on my basic pay for 40 hours.
Ames Tiedeman @ Oct 5th 2007 5:41PM
These two vehicles are crap. They should shut the plants for good.
Rick Lyon @ Oct 6th 2007 9:49AM
Two weeks from assembling two of most horrible looking cars is indeed quite the vacation!