Chrysler pulls out of UK

[HH-R]

I've only seen a couple of FIAT Chryslers about, the odd Ypsilon(?) and a Delta or two. They look alright, think the Ypsilon looks better than the MiTo.

 

Don't really mind the Neon either, they're comfy enough. My aunty had one, a 2 litre petrol automatic that she was advised to buy because it would be easier on fuel than the Fiesta she had. It wasn't easier on fuel than the Fiesta she had.

[Junkman]

How often does Chrysler pull out of Britain? I remember last time they did.

 

'Ah, but what about the PT Cruiser!' I here you all cry. Well I like that, too!

 

No, you don't.

[UltraWomble]

I have to say I really do like the Crossfire.

I quite like the PT and Neon too, though they seem to have mechanical bits made out of finest brie.

[Junkman]

though they seem to have mechanical bits made out of finest brie.

 

Kraft Velveeta more likely.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

Ok , they're shit, but I loved my 300C. By any measure of what a car is supposed to be the BMW I replaced it with is better. More refined,more economical, better quality, doesn't rattle,better equipped, more advanced in every way,but.......

Why,every time I see a 300, do I look longingly at it?

Because it's different ,that's why. In a carpark I sometimes can't find my car in the sea of black BMW estates, not just e61 5 series either, ALL black BMW estates for the last 10 years or so look the same.

My wife even said last week,why don't you just get another Chrysler, friends reckon that like owners resembling their dogs,the 300 was like me. Big,brash,fat, ( I'd say solid,reliable,dependable) incompetent ? Unreliable?

The important thing is it's different and even though I hate them I can see why people bought PT Cruisers too,even those weird Avenger and Caliber things were at least distinctive( fugly)

The new shape 300 was far to expensive to compete,but so far is holding its value quite well, maybe I'll get one in a couple of years although the VM engine hasn't got the balls of the old OM642 Sprinter donkey, especially if remapped like mine was.

I had a go in a Viper GTS in Kuwait last month and was more impressed than with , the admittedly passenger only, ride in an Aventador the same day. Simple basic barn door engineering that just works. There were loads of Chargers and Challengers out there too, so if we had 50p a gallon petrol here maybe Chrysler wouldn't have to give up.

Anyway in a few years I reckon there'll be more than just me on here with the 300 love, they're only going to get cheaper and they are the simplest rwd car made since the 900 series Volvo- what's not to like.

[Asimo]

The end of Chrysler in the UK is a grump and a grin.

Variety is good and one less brand means less variety so that is a grump but their current cars are grim and ain't going to be missed so that is a grin. The Chrysler company has been bailed out enough, looks like it is in its death throes. Their stylists have obviously left the building already.

 

Which is a shame, I liked some of their cars from ten years ago, Crossfire (too small inside for me or I would have bought one), the 300 C Hemi and the Grand Voyager padded van. And ten years before that, I was quite impressed by Chryslers I rented in the US, especially the Intrepid / Concord.

[Madman Of The People]

The Chrysler company has been bailed out enough, looks like it is in its death throes. Their stylists have obviously left the building already.

 

 

Don't worry, Chrysler isn't going anywhere.  Jeeps and Ram pickups are huge cash cows for the company and more than make up for lacklustre car sales.  And you'll still be able to buy Jeeps in the UK.  There's the upcoming Jeep Renegade, based on the Fiat 500X and is sure to be ideally suited to European tastes.  There's also a new upcoming model that will replace the horrible Compass and Patriot, aimed squarely at the Nissan Qashqai.  The Jeep brand still has plenty of kudos even if some recent models have been complete turds.

[MikeKnight]

If only there was a forum where people actually liked weird/rubbish/obscure cars, there used to be one called Autoshite if I recall.

 

There's rubbish, then there's American rubbish.

[inconsistant]

 

 

[xtriple]

I quite like a few of the Chrysler products! My wife really wanted a PT cruiser back in about 02 but we'd just bought the house and couldn't afford a new one. Love the Prowler but never seen one on the road and I nearly bought a 300C last year but I couldn't find a Hemi anywhere so gave up. Always like the Crossfire as well, not sure why I've never had one...

[cort1977]

Don't worry, Chrysler isn't going anywhere.  Jeeps and Ram pickups are huge cash cows for the company and more than make up for lacklustre car sales. .

This. From what I can understand the big three scarcely make any money from selling cars, all the profit is in trucks and crossovers. Chrysler as a brand is not in great health but the FCA corporation isn't doing too badly.

[Ghosty]

FCA doing well?

 

-The Alfa range is down to the Mito, Giulietta and 4C, out of which I see very few of the former two and none of the latter.

-Lancia (our Chryslers) is now Italy-only in Europe, and even then the Thema isn't their own car but a badge engineered 300C

-Fiat seem to be riding mainly on the 500 and its fugly variants - the Panda is pointless as it's in the same market as the 500, nobody buys Puntos, and there's a 500-branded crossover coming (good luck with that one)

Do Fiat still make car Doblos? I don't see many new Fiat vans, IIRC the current Doblo isn't very good?

 

There must be a lot of money in Jeep and Ram Trucks.

 

also: I just looked on the Ram website and in the US you can buy Ram-badged 2.4 litre Doblos and 3.6 litre Ducatos!

[Anglevan]

I had a 90's neon. It was a great car and did 50k in it over 2 and 1/2 years. Everything was perfect and was sadly missed when I did finally find a buyer for it.

These are mega cheap if you can find one and if I didn't already have a drive full of shite then I'd have another.

Place will be a duller place without chrysler.

Let's face it the world wants us all to be clones and drive the same VAG shite . That will be a dull place. ..

[Lukas]

Chrysler is gone for some years here now and nobody misses it. Well, except the Voyager-people. Because sales of the Voyager dropped since it is sold as a Lancia. Some Voyager-owners even remove the Lancia-badge and put a Chrysler on. 

 

The Thema and Delta is gone now too, only the Ypsilon and the Voyager on sale: http://www.lancia.at/at/

 

Fiat has a lot more models for now, but the number is declining too: http://www.fiat.at/at/modelle

 

And Alfa Romeo is down to the Giulietta, the MiTo and the 4C. http://www.alfaromeo.at/at/home

 

It´s looking sad for the italian car-makers. Without the success of the Fiat 500 and all it´s variants (Abarth, 500L, 500X), Fiat would be dead too I guess. 

 

 

 

Let's face it the world wants us all to be clones and drive the same VAG shite . That will be a dull place. .. 

 

There will be very few mass-manufacturers (Toyota, VW, Ford, maybe Renault-Nissan) with a huge model-range in the future, all other manufacturers that survive the next years will only produce special cars for niche markets anymore. Al least that´s what I think the future will look like. Almost 40% of all cars sold new every year in Austria are from Volkswagen/Audi/Skoda/Seat. So we are getting there. 

[tooSavvy]

Laser Wheels.....

 

As a SAVVY helmer, I cannot critique your $hiteist credentials.

 

The Chev AVEO, at the local parts desk, gives out FWB @ £17 against Proton dealer £60 (... Ford/Lotus ishness).

 

Yo 4 Chevvy.

 

 

TS

[Cavcraft]

TooSavvy: the only person in the known universe with a Masters in Babblefish.

[dollywobbler]

If only there was a forum where people actually liked weird/rubbish/obscure cars, there used to be one called Autoshite if I recall.

 

I liked the Neon. I weirdly even like the Grand Voyager. The PT Cruiser is best forgotten though. They seem to mainly be bought by people who would take a 'you don't have to be mad to work here, but I am!' sign to work. I quite like the Ypsilon though. Actually saw one the other day. Not really a Chrysler though is it? You can see why Merc decided to end their relationship with Chrysler.

[rml2345]

I'll be a bit disappointed to see Chrysler disappear. Okay, so they sold some utter dross but it was good value dross and if I needed a people carrier or a lairy looking saloon then they'd right up there. Just a shame that the market for both is quite small.

[Pete-M]

I'd rock a 300C.

 

It would have to be a V8 though, they give me a Hemi.

[Matt]

but it was good value dross

 

I think people expect too much for too little now though, they want good value quality.

[martc]

My avatars mate, Tony Blair (remember him?), bought a brand new Voyager very early on in his dictatorship. When it was pointed out to him that it had one of the lowest NCAP scores of any MPV ever he looked a little sheepish.

 

http://www.euroncap.com/en/results/chrysler/voyager/15497

 

It was probably a gift from George in return for future favours.

 

Do Fiat still make car Doblos? I don't see many new Fiat vans, IIRC the current Doblo isn't very good?

 

Have you seen what Postman Pat is driving at the moment? The GPO must be single handily keeping them afloat.

[sierraman]

I could see Fiat going the same way. If they cock up the 500 as people have said they would be finished.

[Slappy]

I will miss the Lancias Chryslers simply because they did look a bit odd, and different is good in my eyes, but they should have been marketed as Lancias. It made more sense that way.

 

Having caught the SMMT vehicle sales figures for last year, and in comparison to 2013 JEEP appear to be in good shape in the UK, I think sales were up 75% which was a pleasant surprise. Can't recall seeing the Chrysler ones, but they wouldn't have been anything near as high.

 

If you want to see where FIAT make their money though, well they do pretty well in eastern Europe still, and when I went to Turkey back in October the influence of the Tarkas is still very much prevelent. Doblos are built there, and many many people drive them. I believe they're also the best selling group in South America too, so it's not like they're floundering all around the world, but some platform refreshes wouldn't do them any harm as they can't live off the 500/Gamma chassis designs forever.

 

And pray for a decent Giulia...

[Lukas]

In the US, the new Cherokee is a big hit, based on the Fiat Bravo. And the Jeep Renegade will sell too, same platform as the Fiat 500X. Coupling with Chrysler was the best thing Fiat could do. They both benefit from another. At least that´s what the papers are writing. 

[Junkman]

No idea on how well they have sold, maybe they just need to go the way of the UK car industry and produce specialist stuff.

The Charger, Challenger, Mustang and Corvette are icons and supposedly really good nowadays. If they just produced these (base models and muscle car types) they'd surely be worthy again. I don't know anything about car markets or economics etc.

You can't keep a multi-billion, 100,000 employee corporation afloat by building a few shit cars for a handful of rednecks getting a hard on when their car can be driven fast for a quarter mile and then either implodes, or wraps around a tree, because the quarter mile straight was followed by a slight bend.

 

Let's not forget, that since a quarter century, the US vehicle industry is making money not by building cars, but lorries.

As a consequence, relatively little money was invested in car R&D and design. The only thing that still sold domestically built cars in the US market, was price.

Thus, US cars morphed into heaps lacking any quality whatsoever and looking like they were designed by 5-year-olds. They are genuinely dreadful and thus will make superb Futureshite. If you don't believe me, have a look at this:

 

 

However, at least in their home market, they are dirt cheap.

 

So if the septics want to resume proper passenger car production without having to invest a fortune, or without having the luxury of overseas dependencies doing the work for them, it's not a bad idea for them to merge with a European car maker.

 

As to why Chrysler is pulling out of the Yookay: Well, nobody bought their cars. Easy, eh? And why did nobody buy their cars? Because there is no point. Long gone are the times, when driving a US car in Europe was a statement. Now they are just naff and extremely overpriced as soon as they leave their home country. Their high retail prices in Europe are in stark contrast to the aforementioned total absence of quality, or any other real redeeming features, while I'm at it.

 

So get ready to rejoice. There is a terrible early 21st century yank in your future!

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

I recall the advert for that horrid little Lancia turd, voiced over by an American with a bad cold.

 

"Lugshury. You desire. It. And now. You can. Possess. It.

 

 

These shitboxes will be in scrapyards in 2-3 years time, hot on the heels of the last ever CityRover.

[UltraWomble]

There's rubbish, then there's American rubbish.

Yes, but we dont take the piss out of Eddy because he likes automatic yank barges so lets not diss anyone who happens to like something different but a little bit shonky.

 

Doesnt this look a lovely place to wait for the RAC to arrive?

[inconsistant]

In the US, the new Cherokee is a big hit, based on the Fiat Bravo. And the Jeep Renegade will sell too, same platform as the Fiat 500X. 

 

I had to read this about 4 times and it still sounds deeply wrong. I gave up caring about pop music when I realised it wasn't being made for people like me, I think I've just had the same realisation about new cars.

 

This is a Fiat:

 

This is a Jeep:

 

(to scale, obvs.)

[carlo]

Just had a look at that new Lancia Thema, what a fuckin travesty.  If you can't maintain a semblance of engineering integrity then what's the point?  And when was marketing Italian cars with American badges or American cars with Italian badges ever going to work?

 

I presume Lancia is being kept alive in Italy only through patriotic sympathies, wasn't its main car the Ypsilon an old Autobianchi design?  

 

Sometimes marques really do need to die and fresher ideas take over.

[Lukas]

The Voyager is produced until 2017. From 2017 onwards, the only Lancia on the market will be the Ypsilon.