Fiat boss lays out ambitious Chrysler road map

[Big Panda]

I'm not really sure who has their head up 'where the sun doesn't shine', but someone at Chrysler/Fiat DOES.

The Patriot, which has been one of their better sellers during all of this turmoil is being dropped in 2012. Oddly enough one of the ENVI vehicles IS a Patriot.

Maybe I had better just step away from this thread, as I'm REALLY as Hell and I'm not going to take it any more. Well, I suppose I have to until I find another employer........

[jwight]

Which is why I closed the post with "Never-the-less, the "new" Fiat/Chrysler has some 'splainin to do." The new guys have to explain it, but they are not the old guys that proposed the electric cars and as mentioned in the USA Today article, Fiat has little interest in electric vehicles. Nothing unusual here - new broom, etc.

[vwW12]

Originally Posted by jwight

Fiat made no promises to the US government about electric cars that I can find.

You know what, you are right! Looking at the website of the US Dept. of the Treasury, in a document entitled Obama Administration Auto Restructuring Initiative / Chrysler-Fiat Alliance and dated April 30, 2009, it says that Fiat gets 20% of Chrysler for no cash (now or ever), and in addition it can get an additional 15% in 3 blocks of 5% each for no cash (now or ever) if it meets these performance metrics:

introducing a vehicle produced at a Chrysler factory in the U.S. that performs at 40 mpg; providing Chrysler with a distribution network in numerous foreign jurisdictions; and manufacturing state-of-the art, next generation engines at a U.S Chrysler facility.

So you are 100% correct! For whatever reasons certain people in certain positions never actually demanded Chrysler produce an electric vehicle in exchange for Fiat pocketing up to 35% of the shares of Chrysler for zero cash outlay.

Can't say that Chrysler didn't offer to make an electric vehicle on the viability plan it presented to the Feds in February 17th, 2009.

But certain people in certain positions didn't actually write down in the electric car as a contractual requirement, even though the company offered.

Go figure!

[jwight]

Thanks for the link to the viability plan; Chrysler LLC Chairman and CEO Robert L. Nardelli presented that plan. He's gone and so are the electric car plans under the new CEO, Sergio Marchionne (also the CEO of Fiat.) Is it a foul? I'd say yes, except that a viability plan is just that - a plan. Plans and circumstances change. Maybe someone a Fiat is smart enough to avoid trying to launch a $40K electric (hybrid) car like GM apparently intends to do.