Chrysler to reach international minivan milestone

This week, Chrysler will sell its 750,000th minivan outside North America, shortly after celebrating the 25th anniversary of the versatile vehicle. 
 
Introduced to North Americans in 1984, the Dodge and Plymouth minivans were not brought to Europe until 1988; meanwhile, the Renault Espace, originally developed by Matra in conjunction with Chrysler’s SIMCA, gained dominance in European [...]

Merger on hold! Feds not backing play, investors backing off

Plans for an Election Day merger agreement between General Motors and Chrysler hit a snag Thursday when the Bush administration ruled out funding for it. Without the federal funding, the private investors with whom the automakers had been talking are not interested in the deal.
Citing three people with direct knowledge of the talks, Reuters reports [...]

Nissan doesn’t want to use cash for Chrysler alliance

According to unnamed sources with knowledge of the discussions, Nissan Motor Co. does not want to use its $4.6 billion in cash to acquire a 20 percent stake in Chrysler. The Japanese automaker would prefer a share swap, similar to the cross-ownership alliance it has with French automaker Renault.
Nissan is profitable but wants to keep [...]

Nissan looks for stake in Chrysler as GM looks for outside cash

Alternatives to a Chrysler-GM merger are arising as the proposal is meeting resistance from the investment community. Cerberus and General Motors don’t have enough cash to make the deal work. One analyst says the merger would need an additional $10 billion or more to make it work and notes there is still a significant risk.
The [...]

Renault-Nissan steps into the Chrysler game

Renault and Nissan have, according to Detroit News, offered to buy 20% of Chrysler. Nissan would pay its part with cash on hand while Renault would borrow to pay its share. There are already links between Nissan and Chrysler (with Chrysler to sell Nissan small cars and Nissan to sell Chrysler pickups). According to the [...]

Renault not in discussions with Chrysler

French automaker Renault today told Reuters it was not talking to anyone about buying Chrysler’s Jeep Division from Cerberus Capital Management. People familiar with the situation had said the private equity firm was in negotiations to sell the automaker, in whole or in pieces, to Renault or General Motors.

“There are no discussions. We are focusing [...]

Financial roadblocks in road to Chrysler-GM merger

 Cerberus and General Motors Corporation are reported to be in a rush to the altar for their automotive operations but they are encountering issues with who is going to pay for the wedding and how much those payments might be.
Even though bankers like JP Morgan Chase & Co., which is a major player in the [...]