The Midsized Lineup from A to J

Many of us are eagerly awaiting the public’s response to the new mid-sized Dodge and Chrysler, replacing the slow-selling Sebring and Stratus, which replaced the somewhat quicker-selling Sebring, Stratus, and Breeze, which replaced the Acclaim and Spirit … and things get hazy before that.

The JR occupy what used to be the B-body’s ground, and Chrysler used to be BIG there - with the Belvedere and its kin, the Coronet and its siblings, and even the Cordoba. They’ve been falling for quite some time in that market, and the AA to JA move hurt sales (even as it raised profits) - as did the high price of the JR (the JA wasn’t THAT much pricier than the AA, but the JR sure is!). Indeed, while the Acclaim and Spirit were apparently not profitable, and the Stratus/Cirrus/Breeze (JA) were, sales did fall; and the second generation Stratus/Sebring (JR) seemed to have lower sales and lower profits alike.

If the JS (assuming that’s the new name for the JR’s replacement) is brought in at a lower price than the JR, and if it looks like a 300M inside (the Chrysler version at least), and if the Chrysler looks like a Chrysler and the Dodge like a Dodge, it might just succeed. What I’d love to see is the Dodge Avenger coming in at $14,000, just like the Caliber and stripperd-down Camry (four cylinder stick). That would explain the lack of a Caliber sedan! (The Neon and Stratus are about the same size inside, so don’t think that’s a nutty idea. The Civic went into Accord territory, and the Corolla and Camry overlap quite a bit.)

The Chrysler Sebring, on the other hand, should start at $20,000 and be fully loaded. None of this “Plymouth is gone so we have a base model” rationalization, which kills the brands. Chrysler should be upscale. Dodge can sell an inexpensive family sedan; Chrysler should not.

One last note… they are setting up Dodge as bold and exciting, Chrysler as upwardly mobile, sophisticated, elegant. What’s missing of course is Toyota/Plymouth, otherwise known as “dull but reliable.” It does sell if you can get people to believe the “reliable” part. What’s more, it frees Chrysler and Dodge to be, um, Chrysler and Dodge. If Plymouth was around you could have very differentiated models -

Sebring - essentially a JS with everything, upgraded interior, better sound insulation, spring rates that come on soft at first and then get progressively harder, etc. Only sold with a V6.

Avenger - a JS built for speed, bold and sporty looking, with performance gearing and possibly a standard V6, and starting around $15,000.

Valiant - a JS with the four-cylinder (possibly with an optional V6), conventional styling, starting around $14,000 with few options and moving up to near-but-not-quite Chrysler turf. Simpler interior, cloth seats (no leather), less sound insulation and frills, but more value. Selling lots of Valiants allows the construction of Avengers and Sebrings; but, more to the point, it allows Dodges and Chryslers to have clear personalities. I think BMW has shown us how well a clear, focused brand can sell. Come to think of it, so have Honda and Toyota, though Toyota has strayed a bit more.

Oh, and some more advantages of Plymouth - Voyager returns, Town & Country moves up to Lexus-challenger, and the relatively inexpensive PT Cruiser leaves the upscale Chrysler lineup. I think it’s hard for people in America to take a “luxury” brand like Chrysler seriously when there’s a Chrysler on every other block, and the cheapest Chrysler is at or less than $14,000. Not only that, but we all know the PT is really a Plymouth, so what’s the point of faking it now? The 300 can get a base 3.5 liter engine, with a big Plymouth getting the 2.7s for gas mileage; the Plymouth can be another big family car, without all the electronics in the Charger and 300C (let’s call it, for the moment, a Savoy or Belvedere). I suspect a big family car at a low price would be a big seller.

But to do all that, they have to bring Plymouth back, and that would cost them, oh, a couple of hundred thousand dollars for lawyers and nameplates and such, as well as the rather more substantial cost of actually making variants of the JS, LX, and minivans. But when you consider the cost of advertisements designed to change market perception of a brand, the cost of bringing back Plymouth seems much lower than the cost of maintaining the status quo.

Besides, they can always say they changed their mind due to customer demand… and/or that it was all the fault of those bunglers who have left the building!

Wow…

The Challenger is simply amazing, and I have the web-hits to prove it. Viewership at Allpar has nearly doubled over the last three days, and nearly everyone seems to be coming in via Challenger links. The new minivans are attracting a good share of people, too - but most are coming in for the new and old Challengers.

They have to make this thing.

By the way, I’d like to thank Kash and moparbob for attending the show and reporting from it; hopefully we’ll have a bunch of photos and more commentary for next week, along with a great NASCAR article from Curtis Redgap and maybe some other stuff.

I’ve been making small additions and changes along the way without announcement or fanfare, so every now and then you might want to check back to older pages…

We have now passed 1,100 pages at allpar (not counting forums, news, etc) and 500,000 viewers/month (based on unique IP addresses, perhaps not the most reliable method.)

According to Google Analytics, we have so far received 358,000 visits this month (not including forums), with 945,502 page views. That’s January 2006 alone! 75% of those are from new visitors. 49% were sent by Google, 18% typed in allpar directly (some no doubt due to the CNN article!), 10% from Yahoo, and the rest from MSN, individual sites, and other search engines. The top search keyword, unsurprisingly, is Dodge Challenger, though the Charger and Caliber are bringing in large numbers of people as well. We do seem to be doiing a lousy job of converting people to visit the rest of the site! 77% of visitors to the Challenger page fail to visit the rest of the site.

75% of visitors are from the US, 9% from Canada.]]>

History, some news, and taxes!

Hello everyone, from the other side of the holidays. HAPPY NEW YEAR to all and may God bless these United States.

I have sent Dave some new material I researched surrounding the corporate intrigues during the Detroit era in NASCAR. There was a definite period where the big factories were controlling the ebb and tide of the cars being raced. Mostly by redefining the term “stock.” It should be a good read if you enjoy some history. Dave hasn’t posted it yet, but maybe a gentle reminder or perhaps he is editing the material.

What is not stated, but certainly inferred about the story is the length of time Chrysler spent away from NASCAR racing. Certain companies got everything they wanted, but Chrysler always had to jump through some hoops to get admitted, let alone be allowed to compete on a level basis. Engineering wise, Chrysler, as usual was years ahead of everyone else but all for nothing because NASCAR didn’t want to play anymore.
It probably stemmed from the concept that Bill France, who WAS NASCAR, didn’t like the idea of not being able to control every single tiny facet of every single tiny thing that went on. Unlike the current situation where NASCAR controls EVERYTHING, thereby demeaning the sport, denigrading it to a sort of forumula type of racing where no real competition is allowed to exert itself above the equal of anyone else. Where it not for the manufacturers investments of millions of dollars, you can bet that the NASCAR vehicles would be built by the sanctioning body itself, making teams buy them from NASCAR. Along with every other possible phase of any sort of new technology, which we all know is notoriously lacking, especially in the engine area. We are still in 1960 with carburators and pushrods.

Noted with some interest the MOTOR TREND story about the possible comeback of the IMPERIAL. Perhaps this time, it might even stick, IF DCX continues to improve and constantly strive to be the best. Just as they must be looking at ways to make the 300 and Charger (wrong name for this car as it is) better than the current editions.

Please do not forget the FAIR TAX issue. It is looming large this year. Buy the book. Read the material. UNDERSTAND the tremendous implications for individual freedoms and the revitalization of America. This is the way that this country should have been raising money to support government since its inception. And in no way try to demean the program until you grasp the significance of it. It is a simple but tremendously stimulating way to change America without a revolution. Don’t listen to anyone else’s ideas until you have formed your own. Opinions differ, of course. Problems are going to be created, certainly. However, there has never been such a flurry and grass roots build up as this single program has created since the end of World War II. Forget politics and forget the politicians. You as a citizen of this country make the decisions on how it gets run. Do not bend or break in the belief that you as an individual cannot do anything when it comes to government. And this in and of itself is one of the most important lessons to be learned here. The elected officials who understand this program embrace the idea because they do not fear citizens taking charge. The rest seek to defeat, demoralize, and de facto want you to believe you CAN NOT do anything. Those politicians need to be turned out of office. With this program running like it is, they know their time may be limited because citizens DO run this country, not them. When we win this plan and make it the law of the land, we can also send the political fat cats back home putting people in their place who want to have a vitalized government run by good people for the good people.

Bunch of new stuff

You may be wondering why we sometimes get a *bunch* of revisions and new features all at once. Well, sometimes it’s just coincidence. Other times, it’s the fact that I’ve had to go on a trip with my trusty iBook - and then I can concentrate on reducing the huge number of e-mail messages in my “to do this week” folder, which is currently numbering about 250. That’s not even mentioning the “photos to add” folder or the “for Web, eventually” folder!
I’m going to try to devote less time to behind-the-scenes system stuff and more to getting rid of that backlog and adding all that material in the future. That’s what Allpar’s all about, and I’m sorry I’ve fallen so far behind.

Hope it’ll be a good 2006 - despite my oily, mis-piped boiler.]]>