AN says Chrysler needs a small car, but not from Chery
Micro cars are the hot new(ish) segment across the pond right now, and any mass-market car company that isn't in on the business should be. Recall that Chrysler is having talks with Chinese automaker Chery to collaborate on a new car for said segment, focusing on the Hornet concept as a particular possibility (wouldn't that be nice?). However, especially considering the sale of Chrysler to Cerberus, an alliance is now not looking like a very good idea, says James B. Treece, the Asia Editor of Automotive News.
Treece says that reasons for this include Chery potentially taking all kinds of resources from Chrysler (such as capital invested in new projects and dealer resources, advisers on assembly methods, safety regulations and quality standards, and of course, time), then turning around and screwing Chrysler by becoming a competitor. Neither Chrysler nor the other domestic automakers needs another competitor.
Chery is likely to make higher demands on a partnership anyway as part of their
[Source: Automotive News]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Arnie 5:04PM (6/05/2007)
What is going on? Common sense has broken out! Unlikely to reach Chrysler though. They are probably immune by now.
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Don 5:52PM (6/05/2007)
Finally. Someone who sees the Chinese for who they are: thieves.
Chery will only suck resources away like Daimler did, and in the end will show up as a competitor using the Chrysler know-how they managed to steal.
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Owen 7:52AM (6/06/2007)
Totally agree, the number of companies that have partnered with the Chinese, only to get screwed in the end is staggering. Look up some cases from Xerox and Buick if you need proof. Some of the chinese car companies that exist today are little more than partnerships that started with US companies that were assimilated by the Chinese government shortly after they were up and running. And what can you do about it?... NOTHING. They can and have been doing whatever they want. Greedy US executives are the only reason that China has been the runaway success that they have been, anything to make the numbers look good for the investors.
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