Autoblog

DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler Group seems to be in no hurry to select a development partner for the new subcompact car the company wants to add to its lineup. According to a Reuters report, Chrysler Chief Operating Officer Eric Ridenour said Thursday that the automaker would name a partner "by the end of the year."

Ridenour suggested that the company is working through a short list of several "semi-finalists" at this point.

Chrysler has been looking for a partner to help share the cost of designing and developing the new small car, which will be marketed globally, not just in the U.S. Volkswagen has been widely rumored as a likely partner, but by the sound of Thursday's announcement it's far from a done deal. The new model will likely take styling cues from the Hornet concept that debuted in Geneva this spring (shown at right).

Chrysler would do well to get a move on - 2005 U.S. subcompact segment sales are expected to double by 2007.

[Source: Reuters]