A bit off topic but Daimler AG got rid of Chrysler to Cerberus Capitol Management at a loss of $650 million USD. The corporation is now just Chrysler LLC. I have never been a MOPAR fan but I would drive the Dodge Challenger, but not buy it. After owning 2 Ford T-birds (pre retro makeover) and currently a Chevy Monte Carlo, I can't waste my money on another American made car. All three required new automatic transmissions, and leaked oil everywhere. My problem is being 6'2" and the Asian automakers make cars for midgets.
Chrysler News: Fiat keeping Viper Brand alive!
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no, 2008 is 1968..... we have 3 good years left before we are all forced to only go shopping on the used market.
This time, is all in the name of the great global warming haox.
yeah, old news.... likely posted here, but not in the right section.
But the problem with the previous American cars you owned/ and own.... it is that they are crap. Our cars today are on par, or better then the Japanese competitor... and there is a reason I prefer driving a manual
I'd rather be responsible for destroying a clutch... and be in control of how the power hits the pavement... but thats just me The T bird old generation was so wollowy, under powered, bad differential, .... ugly... poorly assembled that many are falling apart... however, the Monte Carlo is the FWD Chevy competitor to it... i guess to each their own.
Until 2012, I will continue to support the domestic auto industry... and maybe even then to some degree...
STOP THE PRESS
Chrysler forces employees into mandatory 2 week vacation to save money..... this is BREAKING news
The beginning of the end of Chrysler is at hand.... and the nation doesn't care
Mark my words... as legislation continues to break the domestic auto industry, our "one state recession" is going to infect the other north eastern manufacturing states... its going to infect the whole financial stability of the nation, and perhaps the world...
Chrysler forces employees into mandatory 2 week vacation to save money..... this is BREAKING news
The beginning of the end of Chrysler is at hand.... and the nation doesn't care
Mark my words... as legislation continues to break the domestic auto industry, our "one state recession" is going to infect the other north eastern manufacturing states... its going to infect the whole financial stability of the nation, and perhaps the world...
Chrysler to shut down all operations for 2 weeks in July
3/13/2008, 12:25 p.m. EDT
By DEE-ANN DURBIN
The Associated Press
DETROIT (AP) — Chrysler LLC is telling employees worldwide to take a mandatory two-week vacation in July.
Chrysler informed employees of the plan in an e-mail sent to employees that was obtained by The Associated Press. Chrysler spokeswoman Mary Beth Heilprin confirms the e-mail was sent.
Chrysler plans a corporate-wide shutdown the weeks of July 7 and July 14. Heilprin says some employees may be asked to stay on to work on special projects.
It's common for automakers to shut down plants in July, but this also would affect salaried workers.
Chrysler says the shutdown should help it boost productivity and efficiency. Heilprin didn't have any details about why the decision was made.
3/13/2008, 12:25 p.m. EDT
By DEE-ANN DURBIN
The Associated Press
DETROIT (AP) — Chrysler LLC is telling employees worldwide to take a mandatory two-week vacation in July.
Chrysler informed employees of the plan in an e-mail sent to employees that was obtained by The Associated Press. Chrysler spokeswoman Mary Beth Heilprin confirms the e-mail was sent.
Chrysler plans a corporate-wide shutdown the weeks of July 7 and July 14. Heilprin says some employees may be asked to stay on to work on special projects.
It's common for automakers to shut down plants in July, but this also would affect salaried workers.
Chrysler says the shutdown should help it boost productivity and efficiency. Heilprin didn't have any details about why the decision was made.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26422051/
DETROIT - Chrysler LLC is exploring strategic options for its Dodge Viper sports car business as the struggling U.S. automaker tries to raise cash to ride out a deepening U.S. auto downturn.
“We have been approached by third parties who are interested in exploring future possibilities for Viper,” Chief Executive Bob Nardelli said on Wednesday in a memo to employees.
“As the company evaluates strategic options to maximize core operations and leverage its assets, we have agreed to listen to these parties,” he added.
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The Dodge Viper is a low-volume V10-powered sports car, which was first produced in 1992.
Chrysler spokesman Todd Goyer said about 11 Viper cars are built daily at Chrysler’s Conner Avenue assembly plant in Detroit. Chrysler has sold 682 Vipers so far this year, up 111 percent from the previous year.
Like its larger competitors General Motors Corp and Ford Motor Co, Chrysler — majority-owned by private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management — has faced scrutiny over its ability to ride out a downturn in U.S. auto sales that many analysts expect to stretch through 2009.
All three U.S. automakers have been hit hard by the sharp decline in sales of pickup trucks, SUVs and vans that followed the rise in gas prices this year.
Chrysler said the decision on Viper is “a stand-alone strategic review, unique to Viper” and it has not set a definitive timetable for completion of the review.
Chrysler, which has retained Lazard as its financial adviser on Viper, had said earlier that it has identified about $1 billion in non-earning assets for potential sale to raise cash.
The company, which has released limited financial data since Cerberus bought it from Daimler AG about a year ago, ended June with $11.7 billion in cash and had earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization of $1.1 billion in the first half of the year.
DETROIT - Chrysler LLC is exploring strategic options for its Dodge Viper sports car business as the struggling U.S. automaker tries to raise cash to ride out a deepening U.S. auto downturn.
“We have been approached by third parties who are interested in exploring future possibilities for Viper,” Chief Executive Bob Nardelli said on Wednesday in a memo to employees.
“As the company evaluates strategic options to maximize core operations and leverage its assets, we have agreed to listen to these parties,” he added.
Story continues below ↓advertisement
The Dodge Viper is a low-volume V10-powered sports car, which was first produced in 1992.
Chrysler spokesman Todd Goyer said about 11 Viper cars are built daily at Chrysler’s Conner Avenue assembly plant in Detroit. Chrysler has sold 682 Vipers so far this year, up 111 percent from the previous year.
Like its larger competitors General Motors Corp and Ford Motor Co, Chrysler — majority-owned by private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management — has faced scrutiny over its ability to ride out a downturn in U.S. auto sales that many analysts expect to stretch through 2009.
All three U.S. automakers have been hit hard by the sharp decline in sales of pickup trucks, SUVs and vans that followed the rise in gas prices this year.
Chrysler said the decision on Viper is “a stand-alone strategic review, unique to Viper” and it has not set a definitive timetable for completion of the review.
Chrysler, which has retained Lazard as its financial adviser on Viper, had said earlier that it has identified about $1 billion in non-earning assets for potential sale to raise cash.
The company, which has released limited financial data since Cerberus bought it from Daimler AG about a year ago, ended June with $11.7 billion in cash and had earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization of $1.1 billion in the first half of the year.
So Cerberus is abotu to gut Chrysler.
Viper could never survive as its own niche brand. Without a dealer network, the economy of scale of the Chrysler brand for marketing and R&D it is as absurd an idea as expecting TVR to ever amount to anything again.
Besides which, they barely sell 600 cars a year at $90,000 - they would sell 10 maybe 20 at $250,000+ each... which is what a boutique Viper would have to sell for.
When this goes dow, expect lots of people to park their Vipers, as the remaining ones will become parts donors for the guys needing spares
Viper could never survive as its own niche brand. Without a dealer network, the economy of scale of the Chrysler brand for marketing and R&D it is as absurd an idea as expecting TVR to ever amount to anything again.
Besides which, they barely sell 600 cars a year at $90,000 - they would sell 10 maybe 20 at $250,000+ each... which is what a boutique Viper would have to sell for.
When this goes dow, expect lots of people to park their Vipers, as the remaining ones will become parts donors for the guys needing spares
which is what we've been saying since they bought them out...
It was obvious - but there was little indication of the timeline though.
They have had some success stories though - Cerberus turned Ducati around from a washed up, zero-quality, minimal sales, zero-profit Eyetalian junk bike builder into what it is today.
Then again, it's a lot easier to sell hot looking bikes for $15,000 a piece as millions watch the red rockets zip around race tracks of the world.
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Viper is dead already.. Chrysler's just trying to make a badly needed buck. It's not a bad idea if they can get someone to buy it.. but it would be a lost cause, just like selling TVR to a wealthy Russian kid.
selling 2x as many vipers as last year isn't "dead"
Also, I've heard stories that Saleen want Viper...
Saleen making Vipers eh? That might not be a bad idea, although I can't even begin to fathom how much Cerberus will ask for the Viper "brand".selling 2x as many vipers as last year isn't "dead"
Also, I've heard stories that Saleen want Viper...
selling 2x as many vipers as last year isn't "dead"
Also, I've heard stories that Saleen want Viper...
They may as well be though - the Viper "brand" is partly the Didge heritage, and as I say, with an established dealer network, parts inventory etc etc the idea o fjust offloading that in its entirety and then somehow having Viper continue as a product has slim to no chance of surving.
I mean Saleen barely got by selling thousands of bodykit Mustangs - and the big Saleen is a superniche limited edition car with a very small following.
Viper can't really survive without Dodge - and probably the reverse is also true.
When folks go down to the local Dodge dealer, the presence of SRT/8 vehicles makes a difference - the real price of selling to the Krauts is now being paid
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selling 2x as many vipers as last year isn't "dead"
Also, I've heard stories that Saleen want Viper...
They killed it when they announced they would be no more new Vipers.
Now they are just selling the dead body to be revived. Ya hear me now?
Chrysler turns off engine for a month
Nick Bunkley, Detroit
December 19, 2008
CHRYSLER will close all 30 of its factories for at least one month, in response to plunging vehicle sales in the United States.
The company said the plants, which employ 46,000 union workers, would close this week and resume production no sooner than January 19.
Some will remain closed for several more weeks. Normally, the Detroit car makers close their plants for about two weeks at the end of the year. In addition, Ford said it would extend the holiday shutdown at most of its plants to a third week.
Meanwhile, worries that Chrysler could be forced to file for bankruptcy have spooked many car dealers into borrowing so much money from the car maker's lending arm that the company said it might need to suspend the loans.
Dealers have been requesting nearly $US60 million ($A86 million) a day from a fund used to finance vehicle inventories, and a total of $US1.5 billion since July. Chrysler Financial's chief executive, Thomas Gilman, told dealers in a letter last week that the requests were "troubling" and he urged them not to borrow more than "what's absolutely necessary for the operation of your business".
US car sales are at their lowest in 26 years. Chrysler's sales were down 47 per cent last month, compared with a 37 per cent decline for the industry overall.
Chrysler's chief executive, Robert Nardelli, told Congress this month that the company needed an immediate loan of $US7 billion to help it survive into the new year. Senate Republicans blocked aid to Chrysler and the other Detroit car makers last week, but the Bush Administration is expected to step in with some form of aid.
General Motors, which has said it needs $US4 billion this month to stay afloat and another $US14 billion after that, said last week it would shut 20 assembly plants in North America for at least part of the first quarter.
"People just don't want to buy cars," said Anthony Viviano, the chairman of Sterling Heights Dodge and Meadowbrook Dodge near Detroit. "Hopefully, by Friday, the President OK's this thing. We just have to calm everybody down."
Mr Gilman's letter showed dealers were feeling jittery along with their would-be customers.
"They don't know what to do. They're just running wild," Mr Viviano said.
Without access to financing, few Chrysler dealers would be able to order new vehicles. "Chrysler Financial finances 75 per cent of all vehicles shipped to US dealers, and we continue to support our dealer body with uninterrupted wholesale financing," said Chrysler Financial spokeswoman Amber Gowen.
Chrysler said its dealers, during a recent meeting at the company's Michigan headquarters, told executives that they had lost 20 to 25 per cent of their volume because consumers were unable to obtain loans.
"They have many willing buyers for Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge vehicles but are unable to close the deals due to lack of financing," Chrysler said in a statement.
In addition to leaving their plants idle, car makers have been trying to save money by cutting their workforce.
Last month, Chrysler cut about 5000 salaried jobs through a buy-out and early retirement program. By the end of this month, it is expected to have eliminated more than 1800 hourly positions.
Workers at the plants will be laid off during the down time, but a supplemental unemployment program ensures they will continue to receive most of their pay.
NEW YORK TIMES
Nick Bunkley, Detroit
December 19, 2008
CHRYSLER will close all 30 of its factories for at least one month, in response to plunging vehicle sales in the United States.
The company said the plants, which employ 46,000 union workers, would close this week and resume production no sooner than January 19.
Some will remain closed for several more weeks. Normally, the Detroit car makers close their plants for about two weeks at the end of the year. In addition, Ford said it would extend the holiday shutdown at most of its plants to a third week.
Meanwhile, worries that Chrysler could be forced to file for bankruptcy have spooked many car dealers into borrowing so much money from the car maker's lending arm that the company said it might need to suspend the loans.
Dealers have been requesting nearly $US60 million ($A86 million) a day from a fund used to finance vehicle inventories, and a total of $US1.5 billion since July. Chrysler Financial's chief executive, Thomas Gilman, told dealers in a letter last week that the requests were "troubling" and he urged them not to borrow more than "what's absolutely necessary for the operation of your business".
US car sales are at their lowest in 26 years. Chrysler's sales were down 47 per cent last month, compared with a 37 per cent decline for the industry overall.
Chrysler's chief executive, Robert Nardelli, told Congress this month that the company needed an immediate loan of $US7 billion to help it survive into the new year. Senate Republicans blocked aid to Chrysler and the other Detroit car makers last week, but the Bush Administration is expected to step in with some form of aid.
General Motors, which has said it needs $US4 billion this month to stay afloat and another $US14 billion after that, said last week it would shut 20 assembly plants in North America for at least part of the first quarter.
"People just don't want to buy cars," said Anthony Viviano, the chairman of Sterling Heights Dodge and Meadowbrook Dodge near Detroit. "Hopefully, by Friday, the President OK's this thing. We just have to calm everybody down."
Mr Gilman's letter showed dealers were feeling jittery along with their would-be customers.
"They don't know what to do. They're just running wild," Mr Viviano said.
Without access to financing, few Chrysler dealers would be able to order new vehicles. "Chrysler Financial finances 75 per cent of all vehicles shipped to US dealers, and we continue to support our dealer body with uninterrupted wholesale financing," said Chrysler Financial spokeswoman Amber Gowen.
Chrysler said its dealers, during a recent meeting at the company's Michigan headquarters, told executives that they had lost 20 to 25 per cent of their volume because consumers were unable to obtain loans.
"They have many willing buyers for Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge vehicles but are unable to close the deals due to lack of financing," Chrysler said in a statement.
In addition to leaving their plants idle, car makers have been trying to save money by cutting their workforce.
Last month, Chrysler cut about 5000 salaried jobs through a buy-out and early retirement program. By the end of this month, it is expected to have eliminated more than 1800 hourly positions.
Workers at the plants will be laid off during the down time, but a supplemental unemployment program ensures they will continue to receive most of their pay.
NEW YORK TIMES
One month, if we're lucky.
UAW owning majority of Chrysler in the new deal?
and.... nothing of value was lost
I wouldn't even bat an eye at chrysler eating a bullet, seriously, would not miss them, not their idiotic Jeep brand, their nonsense cheap ass dodge caliber, the ugly as hell nitro
chrysler was only good for about 4 years during the 1990's and that was because they were selling cars powered by mitsubishi engines (avenger= eclipse, intrepid = diamante) but then they somehow missed on a good thing by not releasing a proper americanized version of the evo III (which could have been named the dodge colt)
I wouldn't even bat an eye at chrysler eating a bullet, seriously, would not miss them, not their idiotic Jeep brand, their nonsense cheap ass dodge caliber, the ugly as hell nitro
chrysler was only good for about 4 years during the 1990's and that was because they were selling cars powered by mitsubishi engines (avenger= eclipse, intrepid = diamante) but then they somehow missed on a good thing by not releasing a proper americanized version of the evo III (which could have been named the dodge colt)
Dodge Viper SRT10 Will Live On
Auburn Hills, Mich., Jul 10, 2009 - Chrysler Group LLC announced today that production will continue for the legendary Dodge Viper SRT10.
Originally slated to cease production in December 2009, the Chrysler Group Conner Avenue Assembly Plant - the exclusive home of Dodge Viper production since 1995 - will continue to build the V-10 powered sports car. Chrysler Group is no longer pursuing a sale of the Viper business assets.
"The Dodge Viper has successfully captured the hearts and imagination of performance enthusiasts around the globe," said Mike Accavitti, President and Chief Executive Officer, Dodge Brand. "We're extremely proud that the ultimate American-built sports car with its world-class performance will live on as the iconic image leader for the Dodge brand."
Introduced as a concept car in 1989 at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, the Dodge Viper was designed and engineered to test public reaction to the concept of a back-to-basics, high-performance, limited production sports car.
The reaction was so overwhelming that customer orders began to flow in even before the auto show was over. Chrysler Corporation immediately decided to determine the production feasibility on transforming the crowd-pleasing Dodge Viper show car into a limited-production sports car in no more than three years.
In May 1990, after months of intensive study and testing, Chrysler Corporation announced that the Dodge Viper, powered by an aluminum V-10 was a "go."
Dodge Viper production began in May 1992 at the New Mack Assembly Plant and was moved to Conner Avenue in October 1995. Viper V-10 engine production transferred from Mound Road Engine to Conner Avenue Assembly in May 2001. In 2008, Dodge introduced the all-new, fourth generation Dodge Viper SRT10. With more horsepower, more torque and more than 30 exterior and interior color combinations, the latest Viper gives enthusiasts the performance they expect on the track and off, with more factory customization options than before.
For 2009, the Dodge Viper SRT10 offers outrageous power, with an 8.4-liter, 600-horsepower (450 kW) V-10 engine contributing to blistering acceleration (0-60 mph in less than four seconds, 0-100-0 mph in the low 12-second range), setting an American sports car benchmark.
To date, more than 25,000 Dodge Vipers have been built.
Auburn Hills, Mich., Jul 10, 2009 - Chrysler Group LLC announced today that production will continue for the legendary Dodge Viper SRT10.
Originally slated to cease production in December 2009, the Chrysler Group Conner Avenue Assembly Plant - the exclusive home of Dodge Viper production since 1995 - will continue to build the V-10 powered sports car. Chrysler Group is no longer pursuing a sale of the Viper business assets.
"The Dodge Viper has successfully captured the hearts and imagination of performance enthusiasts around the globe," said Mike Accavitti, President and Chief Executive Officer, Dodge Brand. "We're extremely proud that the ultimate American-built sports car with its world-class performance will live on as the iconic image leader for the Dodge brand."
Introduced as a concept car in 1989 at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, the Dodge Viper was designed and engineered to test public reaction to the concept of a back-to-basics, high-performance, limited production sports car.
The reaction was so overwhelming that customer orders began to flow in even before the auto show was over. Chrysler Corporation immediately decided to determine the production feasibility on transforming the crowd-pleasing Dodge Viper show car into a limited-production sports car in no more than three years.
In May 1990, after months of intensive study and testing, Chrysler Corporation announced that the Dodge Viper, powered by an aluminum V-10 was a "go."
Dodge Viper production began in May 1992 at the New Mack Assembly Plant and was moved to Conner Avenue in October 1995. Viper V-10 engine production transferred from Mound Road Engine to Conner Avenue Assembly in May 2001. In 2008, Dodge introduced the all-new, fourth generation Dodge Viper SRT10. With more horsepower, more torque and more than 30 exterior and interior color combinations, the latest Viper gives enthusiasts the performance they expect on the track and off, with more factory customization options than before.
For 2009, the Dodge Viper SRT10 offers outrageous power, with an 8.4-liter, 600-horsepower (450 kW) V-10 engine contributing to blistering acceleration (0-60 mph in less than four seconds, 0-100-0 mph in the low 12-second range), setting an American sports car benchmark.
To date, more than 25,000 Dodge Vipers have been built.
