Fiat now owns a big chunk of Chrysler. Officially. Soon after the Supreme Court gave it the go-ahead, the sale of Chrysler to Fiat was complete. Altogether, the deal took just 42 days. With a couple of signatures and a wire transfer Wednesday morning, the sale was official. Fiat gets most of Chrysler's assets and $6.6 billion in "exit financing" from the federal government.

This can be seen as a victory of sorts for the Obama Administration, which had hoped to get Chrysler reorganized quickly and efficiently. Supporters say that the new Chrysler Group LLC has a good chance of being more competitive out of the box, having shed much of its legacy labor costs and debt, and Fiat's expertise with small cars shouldn't hurt either.

Official statements by current Chrysler CEO Bob Nardelli and Fiat's Sergio Marchionne are pasted in after the jump. Nardelli congratulates employees on being a part of "a leaner, healthier and more robust company," and says goodbye at the same time. He will return to a position with Cerberus. Marchionne introduces himself as the new CEO, former Toyota exec Jim Press as Deputy CEO, and Robert Kidder as board chairman. He also promises that the world's sixth largest automaker will begin to show signs of improvement immediately.

In related news, the Obama Administration has announced the appointment of a new 'Compensation Czar' to oversee the salaries and benefits packages awarded to 175 major executives at seven of America's biggest companies that receive federal aid. According to the New York Times, Washington attorney Kenneth R. Feinberg will have "broad discretion" in determining what compensation packages executives are awarded, including the top 25 decision makers at General Motors, GMAC, Chrysler, and Chrysler Finance.

For its part, as it emerges from bankruptcy, Chrysler's union retiree trust (VEBA) will own 55% of the company, with Fiat getting a 20% share that can grow to a max of 35%. The U.S. and Canadian governments split the rest. If the Fiat-Chrysler deal is any indication, General Motors may see a quick exit from bankruptcy as well, even without a Fiat of its own to step in and help. Now they just need to get people into showrooms with cash in hand.

[Sources: Chrysler, The New York Times | Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty]

When it comes to dealership closings, there is a big divide between what General Motors, Chrysler and President Obama's auto task force want and what dealers and Congress want. The bankrupt Detroit automakers say that closing dealerships will save money, streamline vehicle delivery, improve brand image, and improve the health of remaining retail stores.

Some members of Congress aren't so sure that dealer closings will cure much for GM and Chrysler, and the legislative branch brought Chrysler's Jim Press and GM's Fritz Henderson before the Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday for yet another grilling. Broadly speaking, Congress tends to side with dealers because of the political influence of the dealer body, and because of the impact of dealership job losses in the districts/states that Congressmen and women serve.

According to The Wall Street Journal, committee chairman John D. Rockefeller (D-W. Va.) says that he doesn't "believe that companies should be allowed to take taxpayer funds for a bailout and then leave it to local dealers and their customers to fend for themselves with no real plan, with no real notice, with no real help." Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) added that he is introducing legislation that will force the Obama administration to require congressional approval to use TARP funds to obtain an equity stake in any company.

Press and Henderson told the dealers that they would need to ultimately close 3,400 dealerships. GM has so far announced 1,324 closings by the end of 2010, while Chrysler will shutter 789 retail stores by June 9. Over the course of the congressional proceedings, Automotive News notes that Henderson bowed to pressure to disclose the list of dealers GM is eliminating, although that list has not been made public yet.

Henderson calls bankruptcy "our last chance to get it right, to fix permanently those parts of the business that have diverted us from consistently building winning cars and trucks and the consumer experience to match." Dealers called the closings "hasty," and contend that the actions taken against them won't be nearly as effective as GM and Chrysler expect. Hat tip to Dave!

[Sources: Wall Street Journal; Automotive News - subs. req | Source Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty]

Chrysler has just announced that it will 'reject' some 789 of its dealerships by June 9 as it works to downsize through Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring. That represents a 25% cut in its dealer networks, leaving 2,392 Chrysler, Jeep, and Dodge dealers to carry on if the automaker is able to successfully emerge from bankruptcy with its new partner, Fiat.

Auburn Hills reiterated that it will be "business as usual" with its entire dealership body throughout its bankruptcy proceedings, with plans to honor warranty and incentive payments "during the period that rejected dealers remain active."

According to information obtained by Automotive News, individual dealers will learn whether they are rejected or accepted via UPS letters delivered this morning. At that point, dealer owners will have 23 business days for a 'court review' of their individual cases.

The same memo that disclosed the planned UPS letter disbursement also details that after the 789 dealers are rejected, 80% of its remaining dealers will carry all three of the company's brands (that figure presently stands at 62%). According to that communiqué, Chrysler does not expect for many of those dealers to close just because their franchise contracts are being rejected – about 345 of those rejected operations are paired with other competing brands, and according to Chrysler executive vice president of sales, Steven Landry, fully 83 percent of the disenfranchised dealers currently sell more used vehicles than they do new ones.

Thanks to the protections afforded under bankruptcy, Chrysler will not be legally required to buy back any vehicles, parts, or tooling from rejected dealers, but the automaker says it will work to pair the disenfranchised with remaining dealers who may be willing to buy those assets.

Chrysler vows to contact the more than 3.5 million customers who have purchased cars and trucks through the rejected dealers to give them additional information on how to get their vehicles serviced.

If you're wondering if your local Chrysler dealers are earmarked for closure, a complete PDF list is available by clicking here.

Official press release after the jump.

[Sources: Chrysler; Automotive News - subs. req.| Image: Scott Olson/Getty]

Marking the first time in a long time that an Italian vehicle other than a Lamborghini or Ferrari has appeared at a U.S. auto show, Chrysler Vice Chairman Jim Press showed up at his company's press conference this morning in a Fiat 500. "We're not announcing anything," he made sure to say as he exited the vehicle and took his place on stage to start the presser, though the act speaks for itself. Chrysler's future hinges largely on whether it can broker a partnership deal with Italian automaker Fiat before the government's newly imposed deadline that arrives in less than a month. Before he began reciting reassurances that Chrysler's OK to the crowd of journalist, Press remarked, "Wouldn't that make a great company car." Indeed it would, Jim.

Here's a little pre-Christmas gift from us to you: Episode #108 of the Autoblog Podcast. It's just Chris and Dan this time around, but we wanted to get at least one more 'cast in before the holidays. It's 51 minutes of fireside chat, touching on the Top Gear/Tesla dustup, Jim Press and his optimism about Chrysler, Toyota's first-ever loss, and, of course, the bailout. Enjoy, and send thoughts and impressions to Podcast at Autoblog Dot Com.

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What American automaker best matches up with the uber-machines from the Germans? Lincoln... no, probably not. Cadillac? Getting warmer. How 'bout Chrysler, asks ChryCo. co-Prez Jim Press. After a quick review of Chrysler's current line-up, we're not really buying the comparison; but it's fun to dream, so we'll bite. The Sebring is roughly the size of the C-Class and 3 Series, but it's driving the wrong wheels to go head-to-head with BMW and Mercedes-Benz, so that would need a complete rework, to say the least.

The 300C is a very nice car with an appropriate engine up front, rear-wheel drive and a relatively attractive price compared to the Germans. That could work, but it's clear that Chrysler would need to pump lots more money into the car to keep it up to date with it's competition from Germany. Minivans don't equate very well to any Germanic rivals, especially since the R-Class from MB has been a major disappointment.

One possible area that Chrysler has over its supposed competition is trucks. The new '09 Ram may be a major step up from its predecessor, but we're not so sure we're ready to call it the Mercedes-Benz of pickups, which is pretty much how Press says he sees it. We're all for the idea of an American competitor for Mercedes and BMW, and we'd love to see the Pentastar emerge from its financial problems a leaner, more focused manufacturer. Still, we wonder if Chrysler should set its sights on cross-town rival Cadillac before jumping all the way to Germany.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd, Photo by Brendan Smialowski/Getty]

Chrysler's "sales bank," the loathed program in which the automaker continues to manufacture and stock cars regardless of demand, is supposedly back through the end of the year. Chrysler LLC co-President Jim Press delivered the news to dealers on Friday during a nationally telecast conference call when he mentioned that district managers will be calling dealers trying to offload 12,000 units of unassigned inventory.

Dealers left the call gasping for air, recalled the summer of 2006, when Chrysler had nearly 650,000 units in the sales bank. At the time, there was a 91-day supply of vehicles. Today, with about 400,000 units in inventory, the automaker is sitting on a 117-day supply. While Chrysler claims repeatedly that they only make cars that dealers order, and have reduced production to match market share and plunging sales -- down nearly 28 percent this year -- stocks are still up. Why? According to a second report by Automotive News, Press clarifies his statements to the trade pub, saying that the vehicles being hoisted onto retailers were all ordered by dealers and later canceled due to dealerships that have closed, unsold vehicles from sales promotions, fleet customers that backed out or buyers that weren't able to secure financing. Despite the fact that dealers supposedly ordered these vehicles with the intention of selling them, we fail to see how pushing 12k in unsold product doesn't constitute a "sales bank" program.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. Req.]

The automotive world is abuzz with rumors and speculation regarding a possible Chrysler merger, and with good reason. It appears Cerberus, which owns 80.1% of Chrysler LLC, may be ready to wash its hands of the auto industry, and either General Motors, Nissan, or some other entity altogether could take the Pentastar off the private company's hands. Optimistic Chrysler Vice Chairman Jim Press told reporters at a recent Society of Automotive Engineers' conference that Chrysler would "be around", and that everyone should stop paying attention to wild speculation by the news media (Is he talking about us?). Press went on to say that Chrysler has adjusted the size of its business to meet the current economic realities (read: downsized) and that the negative cash flow has largely stopped. The affable vice chairman even joked that Chrysler's $11 billion in cash reserves could be a big reason that other companies are interested in shacking up with the beleaguered automaker.

Press' public words regarding a possible merger were the first from a Chrysler exec, but he sure didn't provide much in the way of details. That's not surprising, considering the sensitive nature of what could be ground-breaking negotiations for the auto industry. That means the wild speculation will continue, as the fate of thousands of workers and scores of Mopar minions hang in the balance.

[Source: The Detroit News, Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty]

Chrysler has unveiled a few plans for the future and, rather than using past successes to carve the path, will adapt its course according to the changing market. While speaking at the recent Western Automotive Journalists' dinner, Chrysler President Jim Press touched on the need to generate brand identity amongst Jeep, Dodge and Chrysler. While each brand currently has a core theme, Jeep – off-road, Dodge – volume and performance, Chrysler – affordable luxury, there have been many recent deviations, such as the conglomeration that is the Jeep Compass. Press hopes to put an end to that trend and focus the company's aim at the automotive enthusiast. Toyota can keep the automotive appliance title, Press wants Chrysler to appeal to drivers rather than consumers.

Nevertheless, actions speak louder than words and Press backs up his claims through the current curtailing of vehicle production and the scheduled release of seven new vehicles come 2010. Like other manufacturers, Chrysler is aggressively pursuing alternative powertrain configurations, particularly electric drive. In case no one has noticed yet, 2010 will be a big year for the American automotive industry. It will be the point when the roller coaster ride reaches its end and some folks end up with motion sickness while others get a rush of adrenaline. Hopefully Chrysler can find themselves in the latter category.

[Source: Car Tech]

If you have a Dodge Ram in the driveway and someone claiming to be Jim Press calls you asking if you're satisfied with your truck, it just might be him. Chrysler recognizes that it has a customer service problem, and the Pentastar is going to extraordinary lengths to correct it. Its top 300 executives and directors are participating in a program called "Customer First" that puts a priority on -- you guessed it -- the customer. The executives, even guys named Nardelli, Press, and LaSorda, are responsible for at least one customer call per day, and all execs will man at least one shift at Chrysler's customer call center.

The Pentastar elite are also partaking in a three month competition to see who can generate the most sales. We don't know what the prize is for the winner, but whomever claims top sales should get something really, really good. Like a lifetime supply of Chrysler Sebrings.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]