Posted on May 2nd, 2012 • by Bill Cawthon
Dan Knott, who took medical retirement from Chrysler Group just over two weeks ago, died in his sleep at about 2:15 on April 29, surrounded by his family, following a long battle with cancer. Knott was 51.
Knott’s medical retirement was announced April 13, ending his 24-year career with Chrysler.
In a statement, Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne said: “The Chrysler Group family is profoundly saddened today. Dan Knott was an inspirational leader, who cared deeply about the company and, most of all, his people. His passion for products shone through, and I will always remember how his child-like smile lit up the room when we talked about vehicles like the Viper or our Jeep brand. He made a huge contribution to Chrysler by improving our relations with suppliers with an approach based on honesty, transparency and accountability. Dan will be missed on a professional basis, and even more on a personal level. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. ”
Knott joined Chrysler in 1988 as a senior engineer. He became purchasing chief in December 2009. As Senior Vice President, Purchasing and Supplier Quality, Knott helped to dramatically improve the automaker’s supplier relations which had gone from being among the industry’s best to the industry’s worst.
When Knott’s retirement was announced, Neil De Koker, president of the Original Equipment Suppliers Association, said Knott improved Chrysler’s standing with suppliers “more than any individual that I know of in the history of OEM/supplier relations.”
Prior to taking on the purchasing duties, Knott played an integral role in the product development of the Viper, Jeep Grand Cherokee and the SRT lineup. [Story originally posted April 29, 2012. Updated with link to full Dan Knott bio, May 2, 2012.]
Posted on April 16th, 2012 • by David Zatz
Today, Allpar.com released an interview with Chris Theodore, in which he talked about the development of the PT Cruiser, resistance from within Chrysler, the true meaning of the initials “PT” (no, they don’t mean Plymouth Truck or Personal Transportation), and the Plymouth tie-in. Continue to the story… (The incorrect URL was provided earlier. It has been fixed.)
Posted on April 13th, 2012 • by David Zatz
Dan Knott, Senior VP of Purchasing and Supplier Quality, is taking a medical retirement after 24 years with Chrysler. Knott was Senior Vice President, Purchasing and Supplier Quality. Knott had “played an integral role in the product development of … the Viper, Jeep Grand Cherokee and the SRT line up.”
Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne wrote, “He has done an outstanding job in rehabilitating Chrysler’s relations with suppliers and, in so doing, enhancing our ability to offer more competitive products. I am proud to have worked with Dan in the last three years, during which time he confirmed on every occasion an extreme sense of professionalism and unwavering dedication to the restoration of Chrysler’s credibility. All of us at Chrysler thank him for his many years of dedication to this company and wish him and his family only the best.”
Scott Kunselman will take his place, from being Senior Vice President, Engineering; Kunselman joined Chrysler Engineering in 1985, through the Chrysler Institute of Engineering. Kunselman’s place will be filled by Mark Chernoby, who will also continue his Fiat-Chrysler Group Executive Council responsibility for Product Portfolio Management and serve as Product Committee Coordinator for the NAFTA region. Chernoby has been with Chrysler since 1985, advancing through the engineering ranks.
Posted on April 9th, 2012 • by David Zatz
While promising that any Trail Rated Jeep would be superior to all competitors in the segment, Mike Manley told Allpar that the system was not, as the old Willys and AMC Jeep standards were, a fixed set of criteria. Rather, Trail Rating varies in its standards by the segment, with criteria apparently based on the best competitors. Manley said:
For each segment, we have a series of measurements, processes, and standards that we know our Jeeps have to meet on the trail-rated end, so we can be comfortable that we are true to what Jeep means. And that changes by segment. Wrangler, for example, has a much tougher series of measures than Compass. So in each segment, our aim is to have the most capable vehicle in that segment. … you can’t get Compass to do what Wrangler can do for example. But you can have a trail-rated Compass.
He noted that when he first took charge of Jeep, the two largest customer concerns were the appearance and capability of Compass; he responded quickly with a restyling and Trail Rated Compass.
During the interview, Mike Manley discussed future Wranglers, the J8 and AAV, the future Jeep Liberty, and reactions from the Jeep community. Read more.
