At a press conference yesterday, Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne told reporters that it may take two years or more for Chrysler to overcome its image as a company that builds sub-standard cars. We think he may have missed by a factor of ten. With market share shrinking by the month, no new products anywhere near completion, and an extremely wary buying public, the next two years could be a bloodbath for the company.
We were kind of perplexed when it was announced that the Ram brand would be split from Dodge. Now it makes some good sense to us. The company obviously anticipates serious erosion in their car sales and this move was most likely made to isolate the trucks from the bad press and negative feelings. While we think it is a move that makes some sense, it is hard to ignore the fact that buyers will still have to drive themselves to a Dodge dealership and wade through a lot of Dodge cars to see the Ram trucks.
We do not want to see Chrysler shut down and cost a large number of people their jobs. Hopefully with Marchionne’s leadership and planning, it won’t. But the company currently sits in the same position the mighty German battleship Bismark did when it was sunk. Their motors are dead, the rudder is broken, and the enemy is attacking from all sides. Brace youselves Mopar fans, it is going to be a rough ride.
