Selling Mopar Performance: be frightened
I am looking at Nardelli’s remarks about “monetizing some assets,” and the Wall Street Journal article on selling Mopar Performance and Chrysler Transport, as indicating that the cost-cutting plans will be expanded soon.
What really bugs me is that Chrysler needs investment and inspiration, not a trip to the chop shop.
With the exception of the ill-advised Aspen, their recent introductions are doing pretty well compared to their peers from GM and Ford. I think both the Caliber and Patriot would be delivering better numbers had Chrysler not launched the Compass, which was a totally unneeded vehicle. Had the launch of the Pacifica been handled differently, where the vehicle was positioned properly in the minds of consumers, I think it would have done better than it did.
And what’s being done to the PT Cruiser is nothing less than criminal. How can a company ditch a car the public loves even though it’s been largely unchanged for longer than just about any other light vehicle on the market? And, if they can’t come up with a legitimate restyle under Trevor Creed, why the heck aren’t they headhunting for a designer who can do the job?
However, Nardelli, and others like him, who are the flavor-du-jour in industrial CEOs, see that cost-cutting pleases Wall Street in the short term and know it’s easier than addressing the tough issues of fielding competitive products. I think Cerberus erred in tying Nardelli’s compensation to returning to profitability, which is comparatively easy to do. They should have tied it to growth, even if they promised him a billion dollars for every additional point of market share accompanied by increase in volume. In doing this, they would not only make money, they would increase the value of their new asset. But I am not sure the current pool of CEO “talent” includes anyone like that.
It does seem perplexing that Tom LaSorda’s background Immediately looks like a wise choice!
But know seems like a friendly face to reassure the rank and file workers, investors, and Mopar crowd!
thats a pity, because he appears to be the right man for the job, at the right time, having been (set aside) as he has been, it seems as though he must care greatly about the future of an independent Chrysler.
I agree with you assessment here, Because the common course for most CEO’s is to cut away the profitable parts, to allies and discardthe rest.
It sure sounds as though the mind of a 20 something percent “partner” in this Is simply continuing where they left off!
It sure looks like the same ole, same ole, frankly I won’t be convinced that there really is an Independent Chrysler.
Until I see SRT-4’s and Challenger’s, maybe even Charger/300 2 door convertibles on the lot, rolling down the streets.
I understand we are told “new”, Independent, lifetime warranty, there is evidence of newer technologies available, better economy and such. we should be hitting the ground running. I would bet Tom LaSorda would deeply desire to create an enduring Legacy of leadership and Innovations.
Rather then be a passenger in the back seat of an Old Mercedes, heading the the curves on the road ahead, knowing, the cars cars suspesion, can’t handle it unless it slows down!
Ahh, spell checker would have done wonders with that.
what????? sell off mopar? then who would build aftermarket parts for my beloved dodge chrysler and jeeps? and would me still refer to chrysler as mopar? this is so wrong! gm dosnt sell off goodwrench of ford didnt selloff motorcraft. so chrysler dont sell off mopar!!!!!
Oh man. I can’t believe this! First, selling off Mopar is just plain dumb. Instead of coming up with creative solutions Nardelli and company can only pull a page from MBA school 101 - cut, cut, cut. Never mind that we have far too many MBA degree holders running around making short term decisions such as this that almost never work in the long run.
We also seem to have part of MBA 101 they missed called “Brand Equity” and the Mopar name has a ton of it! Mopar = Chrysler product, and Chrysler product = Mopar. Note that Fords aren’t called “Visteons” or “Mortorcrafts”, nor is a GM product called a “Delphi” or “Delco.” Instead of wasting the heritage and value of the Mopar name, how about finding a way for it to become a solid revenue generator? Unfortunately all Nardelli is doing is looking at headcount. I fear he is going to do the same damage to Chrysler he did at Home Depot. This guy is a poor choice to run a corner news stand much less a company such as Chrysler. I work for GE and can fully understand why he didn’t get the top job. GE would’ve been run into the dirt on his watch.
Next, killing the PT is also…well, dumb! Virtually unchanged this car still out sells the HHR and is still a better driver. Add this to the fact that it’s the only car in the Chrysler product line that achieves above average quality and reliability ratings (from places such as Consumer Reports) and it becomes REALLY dumb. I own one and love it. Do a nice update it and I’d get another.
sell mopar?!?!?!?!??!!? chrysler, say it aint so…..
Chrysler launches more successful than GM’s?? Saturn Aura? CTS? Lambadas? Comon, even as a Mopar fan I can see that the Avenger and Sebring are duds vs the Aura and upcoming Malibu. Sorry but GM’s on a roll, far better than what Chrysler is doing at this point.
Actually Dakota, if you look at the actual sales, the Aura is on track to sell about 80-90K units this year. That is not all that much for a such a heavily advertised vehicle. Not to mention North American car of the year.
No one can really comment on the upcoming CTS or Malibu, or even the Enclave right now as they have just arrived on the market. One other thing is that the Ram admittedly with some high incentives is maintaing if not increasing its share of the full size truck market. Gm just cut production of its trucks up in Oshawa. That is not that great considering that those vehicles launched for the 2007 model year.
Actually Nick, GM now has “record” low-incentives among most of their products. The new Silverado, for example has a profit margin the Ram can only hope to have.
Also, most products that GM just discontinued were high-volume sellers… Uplander,montana, etc…. they are replaced by the Outlook/Acadia/Enclave which are way more expensive.
Dont expect miracles from Saturn, it isn’t a mainstream brand like Toyota, Chevy, or Ford. The Aura’s sales are pretty good for Saturn.. try naming 3 saturn dealers near your home… good luck.
GM is in a much better shape than Chrysler. Add that to the fact that GM’s leadership actually wants their company to last, instead of selling every part of it for a profit. Lutz and Wagoneer are much better leaders than what Chrysler has.
to the coment above. you mean what Chrysler HAD. the Ram is as i may have heard will be toyota tough. and the ram is more of a truck then the silverado, the chevy is a pretty boy truck. and many of these cars that Chrysler has released recently are pretty good sellers, i find it hard not to see a sebring or avenger or a nitro on a trip to the grocery store (no we dont drive by a dealer. And your forgetting that Chrysler has the Minivan, and it IS in demand, the new one does compete with toyota and honda. they both may claim epa near 25 but have fun getting that. cerbus is in teh business to make money and make Chrysler sucessfull again, and very profitable like it was during many of the daimler years.
AND yea i can name 3 saturn dealers within 50 miles of my home town. haha.
smalltownboy.
Simply, it is a shame ! MOPAR is the brand for Chrysler! Selling it is the total wrong way! Hopefully they recognize that shareholder value isn´t everything!