Yesterday, Chrysler/Fiat’s new CEO Sergio Marchionne presented the 5-year business plan he hopes will save Chrysler, and bring Fiat back to the US market for the first time in nearly 30 years. The company presented its plan during a live, seven-hour-long marathon webcast, which was notable for two things: first, a virtually unprecedented willingness to discuss future product, and, second, the conspicuous absence of New Chrysler’s much-ballyhooed ENVI electric-vehicle division.
What happened to the Dodge EV? Can we expect some innovative green tech from Marchionne’s new Dodge product future? The depressing reality, after the jump.
November 4th, 2009 was a big day for the New New Chrysler (which had only just been New Chrysler since Cerberus bought the company from Daimler back in the not-so-distant past of 2007), and Sergio’s team totally blew it.
To be fair, yesterday’s business plan did shed a lot of light on the company’s product future (which was its stated goal) but notably absent from the company’s Dodge product roadmap (below) was the Dodge EV sportscar. The darling of Old New Chrysler’s ENVI line of “forward thinking” concept vehicles, the Dodge EV was said to be a “go” for production in 2010.
You can see for yourself where the Dodge EV concept is headed, below …
…nowhere.
There is simply no mention of the EV, no mention of a new, sporty car, and no plans to even introduce a new small Dodge until the 2013 calendar year. What I do see, however, is a new FULL-SIZE CUV (read: SUV) and a new Dodge Viper street-racer under consideration for 2012 and beyond.
That’s right: Marchionne’s plans to drag Dodge the brand back to relevance in the 21st Century don’t include efficient new EVs and lightweight technology from partners like Lotus, Alcoa, and others, but rather consist of bigger CUV/SUVs and an all-new Viper.
Marchionne also plans to divide the current Dodge brand in two: a Dodge brand for “sporty, youth-oriented cars,” and a Ram brand with a new focus on over-the-road semis and new heavy-duty trucks.
OK—so there’s is no spectacular new Dodge EV hyper-exotic halo car coming in 2010, but as I’ve always expressed that was a diversionary con to begin with and never had any legs. The real problem here is that Marchionne and his bunch don’t seem able or willing to see the writing on the wall. Consider what they’re proposing:
- no new small cars until 2013
- more brands to spend marketing/ad dollars on — not less
- bigger cars, trucks, and CUVs — not smaller, more efficient cars
And that’s just Dodge! I still have Jeep, Chrysler, and Fiat rants to rant about!
Maybe, though—just maybe—there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and someone within Chrysler realizes what a horrible bunch of pseudo-ideas all this bogus market posturing and purposeless re-branding really is. I hold on to this hope because, tucked away inside the webcast’s online slide show, Autoblog editor John Neff found this:
It’s a picture of a black sheep with a racing stripe. Somewhere inside Dodge, hidden, there is at least one person who understands that Chrysler without ENVI is a dinosaur, and Dodge without the Ram is a sheep. A follower. So, while the Ram brand will at least continue producing class-leading clean diesel engines (that’s something, right?) the only thing that will separate the New New Dodge from the competition will be some hastily added racing stripes.
Think I’m kidding? Old New Dodge Nitro and New New Dodge Nitro, below.
Bigger cars, bigger trucks, bigger wheels, and lots of bitchin’ racing stripes = our tax-dollars at work.
Image Credits: Chrysler, via Autoblog and The Truth About Cars.
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About Jo Borras
I’m pretty convinced Fiat’s ownership of Chrysler will be the deathblow to the once-great American company.
I’m pretty convinced Fiat’s ownership of Chrysler will be the deathblow to the once-great American company.
Wow – they plan to market vehicles that people might want, instead of things that greens yell about and no one wants to buy. Go figure.
Wow – they plan to market vehicles that people might want, instead of things that greens yell about and no one wants to buy. Go figure.
@James
That must be why the Prius and Fusion hybrid are flying off dealer lots while full-size pickups and SUVs get parked for 100 days or more.
@James
That must be why the Prius and Fusion hybrid are flying off dealer lots while full-size pickups and SUVs get parked for 100 days or more.
This is really amazing. It’s like admitting that you’re clueless about how to run an automotive company in the 21st century. They might as well plan on producing giant boat-like cars with 460 cubic inch engines that get 12 miles to the gallon on the highway. Does this mean that Fiat is trying to kill off Dodge? It is some bizarre scam? After all, this doesn’t even reflect what Fiat does with its cars.
This is really amazing. It’s like admitting that you’re clueless about how to run an automotive company in the 21st century. They might as well plan on producing giant boat-like cars with 460 cubic inch engines that get 12 miles to the gallon on the highway. Does this mean that Fiat is trying to kill off Dodge? It is some bizarre scam? After all, this doesn’t even reflect what Fiat does with its cars.
@Carbon Buildup
This is part 1 of a 5-part series I’m doing. Part 5 is a possibly paranoid, possibly dead-on explanation of what, exactly, Fiat is up to.
@Carbon Buildup
This is part 1 of a 5-part series I’m doing. Part 5 is a possibly paranoid, possibly dead-on explanation of what, exactly, Fiat is up to.
It looks like Dodge is going to continue making gas guzzlers. They are going to lose out big time.
It looks like Dodge is going to continue making gas guzzlers. They are going to lose out big time.
Jo, The Dodge diesel is built by Cummins, not Dodge.
Jo, The Dodge diesel is built by Cummins, not Dodge.
Chrysler: the worst american ugly gas guzzlers made.
Fiat: the car company americans only know from the nightmarish disasters of the 1970′s. The only thing that made your fiat finally stop breaking down was the fact that the car rusted out and had to be junked.
Oh yeah…….. this is going to go just great!
Unless we hear about innovative successes like Ford’s Fusion, forget it.
Chrysler: the worst american ugly gas guzzlers made.
Fiat: the car company americans only know from the nightmarish disasters of the 1970′s. The only thing that made your fiat finally stop breaking down was the fact that the car rusted out and had to be junked.
Oh yeah…….. this is going to go just great!
Unless we hear about innovative successes like Ford’s Fusion, forget it.
If that product pipeline belonged to a Pharma, I’d have dumped it long ago.
If that product pipeline belonged to a Pharma, I’d have dumped it long ago.
The ENVI is the ONLY car I would have considered buying from Chrysler because it was Electric. I guess I’ll just stick with my Hyundai Genesis coupe!
The ENVI is the ONLY car I would have considered buying from Chrysler because it was Electric. I guess I’ll just stick with my Hyundai Genesis coupe!
I think you guys are ignorant to the fact that these cars are the ones that are actually selling NOT PRIUS OR ANY OTHER ELECTRIC CAR. Yes, Fiat had a bad reputation in the 70s, but a lot has changed. Gas Gusslers?? Most of dodge’s cars get over 25 mpg including the V8 hemi’s provided in the Charger’s, and Challenger’s! You get HP and MPG! You also have the avenger that gets 31 mpg and has almost 300 hp! If you guys want a slow ass car that gets 40 mpg then get a toyota or another foreign make!! I would much rather have the dependability of a dodge then a Toyota or Honda because if you guys haven’t noticed there have been recalls on half of the cars they make. Dodge is doing it right.