FCA - Good or Bad

"CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever" (carsoffortlangley)
09/15/2017 at 14:43 • Filed to: None

So, do people here think that FCA has ruined Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep, saved them or simply have staved off the eventual bankrupcy?

As much as we like to mock Sergio (lol). I am of the opinion that without Daimler, they were in a tail spin regardless. FCA helped stave it off, just like Mercedes before them and now it is time for a new champ.

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Or, maybe you think that Sergio has fucked up. Give me your opinion!

DISCUSSION (21)

Aaron M - MasoFiST > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 14:54

Yeah, I’m not sure what was there to ruin, exactly. The cars that actually had value propositions are still there, and most of the dead ones were garbage. We also got Alfa Romeo and Fiat models which had a reason to exist (and the 500L).

Mach-inator > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 14:55

I think Daimler really screwed Chrysler over. Fiat saved them from bankruptcy but lacks the funds to do any significant improvements so they haven’t showed as large as an improvement as someone like GM has. Their products really have improved a lot since the late 00's, but then, so has everyone else.

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > Aaron M - MasoFiST
09/15/2017 at 14:56

Yeah, people who hate on FCA seem to forget the Prowler, PT Cruiser and Aspen. (To name a few)

Aaron M - MasoFiST > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 14:58

I looked up the Magnum (killed in 2008) myself. The one Chrysler product I really wish still existed.

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > Aaron M - MasoFiST
09/15/2017 at 14:58

I kinda wish (don’t hate on me!) That the Caliber SRT still was around, or at least something like it.

for Michigan > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 15:01

Like the K-car before it, the PT Cruiser was a huge success for Chrysler. It was only later in it’s unnaturally long life that it fell out of favor with the general public.

Aaron M - MasoFiST > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 15:01

I get that...though the Caliber broadly was such hot garbage. I’d say the Caliber SRT’s spiritual successor was probably the Juke Nismo.

Quadradeuce > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 15:01

Not that Chrysler was in great hands previously..but they are certainly in a better position. Not great, but better.

I think Fiat has improved the styling of Chrysler’s portfolio. I personally think that Chrysler as a brand will be gone before long. It will be just Dodge and Jeep. I’m actually surprised that the Pacifica wasn’t branded as a Dodge.

DaftRyosuke - So Long and Thanks for All the Fish! > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 15:04

I mean they mostly just pushed back the inevitable bankruptcy. They upgraded a lot of shit and kept them interesting for the general Public, but otherwise, unless they pull something amazing out of their ass, they’re gonna be dead eventually.

Mergio Sarchionne > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 15:07

Doing the best I can. You try running this shit.

Rust and Dust - Oppositelock Forever > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 15:12

You can almost file the Prowler (and PT Cruiser) along with the SSR and the last Thunderbird; the US manufacturers early attempts at “retro styling”.

The Aspen was just a Chrysler branded rebox of the Durango. The US big 3 were reboxing everything until the 2007/2008 collapse and bailouts.

As much as I hate to do this, the PT Cruiser was an absolute success for Chrysler when it launched. The dealer markup on those things for the first year or two was obscene (and people gladly paid it), demand far outpaced availability (even if they were/are shitboxes). (I just defended the PT Cruiser, I’ll be committing seppuku after publishing this reply.)

As for the initial question, I don’t know that FCA really staved off anything more so than delayed. Sergio has been trying to sell the company to anyone that’ll listen, and I still think it’s too early to tell if Fiat/Alfa are going to last in the US. Fiat’s market share has declined year-to-year since 2012, and Alfa has had some well documented reliability issues, and rather low sales numbers.

shop-teacher > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 15:13

First off, when Daimler “merged” with Chrysler, Chrysler was the most profitable automaker in the world at the time. They were making buckets and buckets of cash. Daimler raided Chrysler for its cash, cost cut their products into oblivion, and then offloaded the corpse to Cerberus. What was initially touted as a merger of equals, ended up with one tying the other to a tree and bashing it in the head with a shovel.

That leads to to FCA. No, they didn’t ruin Chrysler, but they don’t have what it takes to save it either. It’s the blind and broke leading the blind and in-debt.

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > shop-teacher
09/15/2017 at 15:14

Really? I actually admit I don’t know much about pre FCA due to my age (25).

I agree, they can’t be saved by Fiat.

shop-teacher > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 15:58

That’s understandable. The mid-late 90's was a high water mark for Chrysler. They had a lot of great designs, and were making lots of money. Although even then, quality control was still a problem for them. Daimler at the time was on the ropes. They used Chrysler’s cash to develop new platforms to save Daimler.

P5guy now GTIguy > shop-teacher
09/15/2017 at 16:11

This might be due to my age as well (22) but to me it seems like Chrysler (all of its subrands included) cannot make a vehicle that isn’t garbage no matter who the corporate owner is.

shop-teacher > P5guy now GTIguy
09/15/2017 at 16:27

Quality control has without a doubt been a long standing problem for Chrysler. They would have been in muuuuuuuch better shape if they hadn’t been taken over by Daimler, but whats done is done. I laughed very hard when Fiat first took them over, because I heard several people insist that Fiat, of all companies, would finally be able to straighten those quality control problems out.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
09/15/2017 at 23:03

With how much daimler fucked them over, I think Fiat is prolonging the enevitable. chrysler doesn’t have much to offer, Dodge and Jeep are doing well, but the next time gas jumps are in the same shit hole as before.

plak424 > Aaron M - MasoFiST
09/16/2017 at 08:37

Except that the caliber SRT actually had performance vs being a styling package.

Aaron M - MasoFiST > plak424
09/16/2017 at 13:22

That’s not entirely fair, given the suspension changes, but I can say Nismo RS so you get the hp boost and LSD as well. Nonetheless, the important difference between the Juke Nismo and the Caliber SRT4 is that the Caliber SRT4 is a car I’d never drive.

plak424 > Aaron M - MasoFiST
09/17/2017 at 08:18

Lol you got that right. Its hard to find a car as ugly as an SRT4 caliber. But they also have 300 hp with a lsd from the factory so I guess they’re ok.

Aaron M - MasoFiST > plak424
09/17/2017 at 20:03

Honestly, if I wanted an ugly car with 300hp, it’d be an HHR SS. Not 300hp stock but the Chevy stage kits were warranty friendly.