Chrysler and Chery quit talking about small car
Well, crap. For all of us who were eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Chinese-built Dodge Demon or the Chinese-built Dodge Hornet or the Chrysler-badged, Chinese-built Chery A1, fugetaboutit. It's officially not happening. Mike Manley, Chrysler's executive vice president of international sales and marketing, tells The Detroit News that talks between the two companies have officially ended. Manley cites economic troubles in both the U.S. and China as the main reason the two have decided to go their separate ways. While Chrysler CEO Robert Nardelli is in D.C. begging for government money, Chery has its own problems in China.
Then again, who knows what might happen after the whole bailout saga has ended? With a cash infusion, Chrysler could restart its partnership with Chery. Or, denied a government loan, Chrysler could find itself bought by the Chinese company.
[Source: The Detroit News]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Jj 1:06PM (12/09/2008)
I'm not sure if this is good news or not. Chrysler could really use a good small car to compete with the Fiesta, Fit, etc... but the car would have done more harm than good if it were a poor quality streotypical Chinese car.
Nissan would have been a far better partner. Why not a Versa based (but distinct) small car as a short term stop gap?
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Frylock350 1:09PM (12/09/2008)
Well at least Chrysler came to their senses with this issue.
If Chrysler needs anything from Nissan its the Altima platform. They could also use the Sentra platform for a new Neon, though I'd rather see them develop their own.
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Jake 1:11PM (12/09/2008)
FOr the record, Chery recently received a large bail-out loan itself to stay afloat, so it is probably not in position to be buying Chrysler. It isn't just the US automakers that are hurting and begging for bail-outs.
This is also going on in Europe. It just isn't a circus freak-show like it is here with our congress.
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tragedy 1:12PM (12/09/2008)
They're putting a band-aid on a bullet wound. They'll die anyway.
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Sea Urchin 1:23PM (12/09/2008)
Finally, Chrysler needs to use its onw brains and resources to make a great small car. Think Dodge Neon that is SAFER, reliable more efficient and nicer inside.
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MemphisNET 1:39PM (12/09/2008)
Reliability wasn't the problem with the 2nd gen car, interior was meh, but not bad, and Daimler obviously cut corners for NVH, but overall it was a good, if not great, compact.
Chrysler is still recovering from the German cost-cutting machine. The turn-around is coming! They just need to hang in for a couple more months.
Judy Zik 3:41PM (12/09/2008)
I wish they would invest in a homemade small car. I think they could have made something better than the other options. But the writing is on the wall. Cerberus has more than enough cash. If they had been willing to put their money where their mouths are Auburn Hills wouldn't have let so much of it's development staff go. The truth is they are happy to cash a government cheque but not willing to put any more of their own money on the line. Too bad because with some financial backing the designers at Chrysler could have built something cool like an all new Neon.
I don't personally see the Versa as Chrysler's savior. Nissan took almost as big of a sales hit last month as Chrysler. The Versa is a nice package but isn't holding up well in reliability ratings. it's 5 years old and Nissan has already cut the bottom out of it's price. I doubt a Versa cross dressing as a Dodge is going to be worth the price premium Cerbyler will have to charge to make a profit off a car they didn't make. Given how little money they invested in their rebage job of it for South America I wouldn't be expecting it to morph into anything resembling a Demon if it ever hits North American markets.
Craig 4:31PM (12/09/2008)
As long as they don't birth another PT Cruiser, they might be ok.
But I have fears they will release an ugly, unreliable, piece of crap.
MemphisNET 8:55PM (12/09/2008)
@Craig... seriously...
The PT was a gold-mine. The only reason they want it gone now is because it doesn't share parts with anything else in the fleet.
If anything they need more PT Cruisers, AND be free to update it once released.
Mark in Spokane 3:36PM (12/09/2008)
Assuming that Chrysler survives as an independent company, it definitely needs to partner with another automaker to get its hands on some car platforms. It really is a shame to see what's happened to Chrysler since the Stratus/Intrepid/300M days. Those platforms were far from perfect, but they were vastly superior to the mid-size platforms Chrysler is working with now. And the 300/Charger platform ain't gettin' any younger -- its great, but how much longer can Chrysler keep using it? And since the demise of the Neon, Chrysler really hasn't marketed a small car...
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Stan Man 1:29PM (12/09/2008)
Do a search on “Chery crash tests” and watch the videos. You’re safer riding a motorcycle than one of their crappy cars. Chery has been looking to partner with
another firm to help them get their cars crash worthy for the U.S. and other markets
with little success. They are a very shady bunch to do business with. If you do, get your money up front.
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MemphisNET 1:36PM (12/09/2008)
Why not use a Kappa car for the Demon, the Versa would be a good fit for the Hornet, and hey, Hyundai helped with the world engine, maybe they'd like to share some Accents! Three quality vehicles, all which would increase production for those partners, and give Chrysler some credible, affordable vehicles at least for a first generation.
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AntBee 1:42PM (12/09/2008)
Hurray! We didn't need any crap Chinese cars over here anyway!
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300Kid 1:48PM (12/09/2008)
Best news I've heard all day. Thank the car Gods and lets hope their talks are over for good. They already got something going with the Versa (hey it's already a "Dodge" in South America)....so I say keep going with Nissan.
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Ry 1:56PM (12/09/2008)
I thought Nissan was already going to build the production Hornet...
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JaysonAych 2:29PM (12/09/2008)
Dodge is already selling that rebadged Versa in Mexico...its proportions are pretty close to what would be needed for a Hornet...some different sheetmetal, and it would look the part. Seems like a good choice for that if Dodge wanted to do it.
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jpm100 4:29PM (12/09/2008)
I wonder what Sen. Shelby will say when his state's workers become a liability because they are not wage competitive with China.
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stas peterson 12:03AM (12/10/2008)
If the choice was a Versa or a Cherry I'm glad that Chrysler chose Versa. Nissan would rather pay with small sedans rather than money for the Titan replacemnents that Chysler will build for them. BTW, Nissan fans, How do you like having bought ORPHAN Titan trucks??
Actually its a Tiida/Tarzo,which is a Versa sedan version fort sale in South America, for the car one size below the Dodge Caliber. That is all that Chrysler really needs. The obsession on these pages with "A" and small "B" segment cars, is a leftover from the time when the only way to obtain high mileage was with shrinking cars below the size that made any sense, or that people truly wanted. They were more endured, than desired.
The only question is if the Chrsyler version will have a World 1.8 liter engine instead of the Nissan 1.8 liter motor. That wouild make sense as GEMA is a very low cost producer of I-4s and there is plenty of spare capacity in Chrysler. It would also serve to Chryslerrize, the cars and also probably cut costs too.
Hybrtidization allows larger vehicles to obtain the same high mileages. So no one but those who wish to condemn others, like most leftists, want tinier cars for the proletariat masses, while they are driven arround in government furnished limousines.
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RayCee 12:09AM (12/10/2008)
Hey, if you want to know about Chery, try this blog:
http://raycee1234.blogspot.com/2008/11/chery-automobile-car-company.html
I'm thinking it's best the Chrysler deal is off.
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GOT 7:45AM (12/11/2008)
Great news. Better to have nothing, than painted garbage.
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