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Bipolar Mopar: A Struggle Called Chrysler Part II
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- čas přidán 21. 03. 2024
- A classic car connaisseur gives an overview of what started American luxury brand Chrysler's great decline, and how they tried and tried and tried to revive their once legendary name. We're talking about the ups and downs, like the aging K-cars, Lee Iaccoca's tenure, Bob Eaton's Daimler-Chrysler ideas, and the awesome bubbly Cloud Cars!
Hold onto your butts, because this is only part two of a two-part episode!
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edsautoreviews@gmail.com
Enjoy!
you could make a episode like this based on mitsubishi
Mitsubishi is the largest constructor of AC units and the second largest of elevators. They are doing fine. They just gave up on cars.
@@O-plaat Isn't that a separate company technically?
@@TheRealEmileyes and no. Are from the same conglomerate, but independent
Yeah, pretty similar fate, definitely a downfall... Now they're starting to make rebadged Renaults... I guess the Japanese engineers already committed harakiri when they've heard the new business plans...
But hey, at least they're staying in business, so I can keep my Lancer on the road longer if I need their official dealers for some reason (they already changed my Takata airbag activator in a recall).
@@MetalTrabant And Nissan's too
Stellantis just announced layoffs, 400 positions. Perfect timing for the video!
Saw that too, and was going to comment but you beat me to it. 👍
Saw that too. It's only the beginning of more to come
only white collar, salary, management as the company pushes for more of the EV production
Look at the bright side: all the crap car brands (IE: Opel, Vauxhall, Peugeot and Citrroën) are consolidated in that one company. If It goes the way of British Leyland nothing of importance is lost.
@@truthsayers8725It was the engineers. They told them all to work from home and had a zoom meeting to tell them they are done. I guess none of the top brass has the balls do it in person. Chrysler is dead.
To me, the fuselage era was the best.
I drove taxis in the 70s. We had coronets at yellow cab, furies at city cab, and my boss when the companies merged gave me a big 69 chrysler newport 4 door sedan to drive.
Kaiser/Willys survived in Jeep, where studebaker and packard were dead by 62, and nash/hudson/amc/eagle was gone by the early 90s.
And now it seems jeep may outlast chrysler.
Chrysler should follow their history when times are tough and not just for them but everyone in general. The K car, the Neon. Make a small affordable car when almost no one else is. A civic goes for over $30k in Canada! Make a $20k car and people will come.
Bring back the Dodge Colt!
Yes, we need affordable cars/trucks!! Pricing new Silverados... 50k plus... for a 4 cylinder turbo??
They'd be competing with the Nissan Versa and Mitsubishi Mirage, both start below $20k.
@@BobtheHobo324Yes, so almost no competition. I think the Versa is a fair car for the price but the mirage is like a cheap throw to the market. Even Chrysler can do better.
Ain't nobody gonna buy that
Cheers Ed. Amazing how some young Dutch bloke has so nailed this niche.
US problems with each Main Stellantis brand:
1. Dodge- MSRPs are to high now for the average dodge customer and the jump to EVs completely destroys Dodge’s V8 legacy alienating their customers and subpar new vehicles like the Hornet that don’t fit the current identity of the brand that they have not successfully changed yet.
2- Jeep- MSRPs are too high now for the average Jeep customer, for some reason someone at stellantis thought turning Jeep into a luxury brand was a good idea, also bad/ no entry priced models.
3-Ram- MSRPs are to high now for the average Ram buyer, the prices got so high chevy and ford seem cheaper depending on trim. Also lack of updates/refreshes with the increases in MSRPs.
3-Chrysler- No models besides mini van
ALL BRANDS NEED TO IMPROVE QUALITY AND RELIABILITY TO JUSTIFY INCREASES IN MSRPS OR LOWER PRICES
That is what I could see are some problems
Agreed. Jeep prices seem completely out of touch. Especially the Compass and former Renegade, which replaced a much cheaper Compass and Patriot
You nailed it.
The Hornet's a rebadged Alfa Romeo that comes very well-equipped; that's why the starting price is so high. They should try to make a base model of that that starts at a cheaper price.
Jeep has a loyal fan base, but they are getting too complicated for an offroad vehicle. Dodges decision to go electric is a huge mistake. I bought a Challenger R/T because it had a stick shift and a hemi. RAM might want to try to come back with a Luxury Powerwagon, their pick-ups are over priced but solid.
Thats what happens when u sell out to corporate overlords who have no passion. A bunch of eco fascists 😂😂 who just care about $$ the 300c discountinuation was a sin but I guess they want us to be cramped like animals in small shitboxes unless we pay 100k for their SUVs
Funny thing too, both the 300 and the minivan were built in Canada, so after the 200 died chrysler was only American in name lol
Because Canada isn't in America, right? What a dumb statement.
And the Chrysler 200 was not a true American car.It was built from a stretched fiat platform that the dodge dart sit on 😂
@@jermainec2462and I'm pretty sure the first gen 200 was a Mitsubishi platform leftover from the Avenger
@TA_Plus_Hemi thats Japanese... 😅😅 i dont think that car ever been american
On a similar note there hasn't been an Italian-made Lancia since 2014, when the Mk3 Delta was discontinued
I honestly think a new PT Cruiser would save Chrysler.
Hey, that would be an interesting idea for the "What if..." series.
Chrysler had such a large innovative and diverse product portfolio back in the 90s. Starting with the LH cars, Neon, Cloud Cars, the Ram pickup, third gen minivans, second gen Dakota and Durango plus the new Jeep Grand Cherokee, second gen Wrangler and the successful Cherokee etc. Now they barely have a product portfolio to speak of.
Because they werent owned by a garbage overlord
Stellantis is truly a multinational corporation. It’s French/Italian/American, with German and British brands as well. And the whole corporation is headquartered in the Netherlands (surprising Ed didn’t mention that part).
A rootless international clique.
I worked for one of Chrysler's parts suppliers until recently and the unending frustrations with their inability to schedule supply deliveries, coordinate their own supply chain, and make any decision in a timely manner made it obvious the company was in terminal decline. It was clear that nobody in the driver's seat (pun intended) at Chrysler was looking at anything but the projected sales figures for the next quarter and not making needed changes to parts procurement that would have actually saved them money and maybe earned them more attention from FIAT.
We did get a chuckle over the merger into Stellantis, since many of us thought it sounded like a toothpaste brand.
Well...At least they brought back the square steering wheel in the new Airflow...Thanks, Ed, for this most-informative and entertaining overview of Chrysler!
I use to have a 1960 imperial with the square steering wheel.
@shawnn6926 Cookie?
@@vincedibona4687 cookie?
They are not doing the airflow it’s been canceled
They are not doing the airflow it’s been canceled
Ed thanks for last week's thumbnail
My dreams are still haunted by a Lee-IacocCar
My winter beater is a 2004 PT Cruiser I have owned for over 15 years, probably spent about $1k over the years on parts and maintenance. Still peppy and has always been great on icy/snowy roads. I also use it like a station wagon during the summer hauling mowers & such when needed.
I see Chrysler PT cruisers everywhere I had a neon for 11 years and it never left me stranded alongside the road I couldn't find a older Chrysler vehicle because my neon rusted out from all the salt that they put on the roads and I bought a Toyota let me tell you what I've never in my life I've driven Chrysler vehicles for the last 24 years never put over 5 grand in a vehicle I will never buy another Toyota ever again!
The PT Cruiser was too low in the front and became a snow plow. Terrible winter vehicle.
@@burningblue1254 I don't know I see them everywhere never heard of anyone complaining about them in the snow
@peachyclean93 my ex wife had one. With snow tires it made a hug difference but the low front valence acted like a scoop. Other than that it was a great vehicle. Lots of room, great gas mileage. She loved it.
First, you need to know how to drive in the winter which you obviously don't @@burningblue1254
It's sad, Chrysler is supposed to be like Buick or Mercury (RIP)
Now they're on life support, it probably has 2 years left.
It's even more sad when one knows that Walter P Chrysler was the head of Buick before he tried out making his own brand.
The final nail... as it were, is this little thing called "Stellantis."
Not to mention the DOOMING over at the Dodge fanboy table now that the Challenger is dead and Charger went EV. I don't personally hate the new Charger, the retro style is spot on but they really should have given the option between the new EV drivetrain and a good ol' Hemi
I wouldn't have written the I.C.E's obituary as quickly as Dodge has.
I get that EVs are ultimately going to be the future of cars as battery technology improves and motors and control electronics get more efficient but I don't think it's wise to put one's eggs in the same basket especially when technology is evolving so fast.
Heck, I would've just lopped off two extra-cylinders and added a turbocharger to make a V6 Hemi.
They also have gas engines.
I believe a gas version is coming next year.
People are commenting that they are going to have a gas version but that is just a straight 6 turbo which is not the same, I think most people will go buy a mustang or corvette instead, also I have a feeling the price will be too high and it will be competing with a BMW M4 around the same price which people will go to because of the luxury name and reliability will probably be similar or better then dodge.
Also RIP 392 Wrangler
Looking at those short clips from the "Imported from Detroit" ad was so heartbreaking.
Chrysler presented some interesting concepts during the 00s namely the Imperial, ME12 but Daimler doesn't allow Chrysler to do so as they thought those cars will overshadowed their S-Class and SLR McLaren. There are many missed opportunities for Chrysler.
Sergio Marchionne worked very hard to put Fiat and Chrysler, et al on a solid financial footing; he was a money guy who knew what needed to be done for the long-term success of the brand(s). Unfortunately, his untimely passing changed everything. His vision is sorely missed.
Damler Killed Chrysler,, then left it for dead, Walter P is spinning in his Grave
Doesn't matter who killed who. US cars past '72 are all crapolla.
Fr tho.
Get a clue! Chrysler committed suicide decades ago.
@@bokesnmokes how? The K cars were a sales success, the minivan totally changed the car world and was extremely successful, the cloud cars and LH cars were really good and even into the early-mid 2000s they were selling some good products. Things took a major turn for the worst when Fiat bought them.
@@bokesnmokes Even if you're right, you don't havta be so khunty about it. Don't be so trumpy.
Chrysler has/is being slowly killed first by Mercedes, then Fiat and now Stellantis. RIP Chrysler.
Cry Sler
Chrysler has been trying to die forever. Daimler tried to breathe some life back into Chrysler, but all it did was drain billions of dollars from Daimler. They've tried to go out of business 4 times during my lifetime, but they always end up on life support, just barely hanging on.
The Daimler Studebaker connection was no less disastrous. Not only did Mercedes suck up all of Studebaker Packard's prime dealerships between 1957 and 1964,, but when SPC proposed to revive the grand lux Packard in 1959, Mercedes objected fearing the new badge engineered Facel-Vega body, which was stunningly beautiful would be too strong of competition to it's antiquated 300 series. Well, we see which car companies survived. Studebaker had 114 years under it's belt before it's last car rolled off the line, talk about a waste!
Get me on Chrysler's board of product development I'll turn them around!
Get this man a seat.
I don’t know your credentials, but doing literally anything would probably help, so I support it!
@@vehicles_n_stuff i may have no qualifications, but still better than whoever's currently on the board
Without money, you can't do miracles...
@@MetalTrabant No need to develop new platforms, use the ram 1500 platform, plop a fancy suv body on it, use the interior from the new grand wagoneer, and give it a clever Chrysler model name
General Motors did the same thing to Oldsmobile. Chryslers cloud era cars were so variable back when you had color choices transmission choices the world power elite are destroying cars as we have known them. It’s a sad time in the American auto industry, sadder by far than it was in 1980.
With how few Sedans there are just make a line of hybrid Chrysler sedan and wagons using classic names like cordoba and new Yorker
I absolutely loved my Wife’s Dodge Magnum (3.5L V6 RWD). It over-delivered on reliability, longevity and power delivery (250hp/250lb.ft of torque going to the rear wheels). Not all 300/Magnum customer’s experiences were as good as mine, so I might not highly recommend. But in my case… I guess that I(we) got lucky. Thanks for the video.
Because people bought them used and they beat on them.
Most of them… absolutely. Like I said, I really feel like I got lucky. Also… I would never touch Chrysler’s 2.7L or any of their Hemi V8s. Both configured with any engine other than their 3.5L … typically those were driven hard and put away wet. Cheers.
Chrysler needs to bring a luxury minivan to china
Do what GM does with Buick over there.
Too late, looks like china’s premium market is tanking due to rich people not wanting to get caught with too much money, it’s supposed to be communist after all.
@@zerocool5395 Would people buy it?
Buick already has that market monopolized. A snowballs chance in hell.
Hopefully they stay out of Communist dictatorship china.
And the Gen 1 SLK was based on a shortened W202 ( C class from 1992 to 2001 )
love the analogy to BL makes chrysler look like worseley
It's Wolsley
Ta@@mybigfatpolishlife
Domestic Abuse was an appropriate title for that chapter. From accounts I've read, the Germans just bullied the Chrysler guys. Can't smoke in American offices? It's fine, because it's us, the Germans! What? Of course we can have wine with lunch, we do it everyday in Germany!
The Intrepid, Concorde and whatever else they built on that platform were known as the LHS models. Automotive pundits, and some Chrysler employees, said it stood for "Last Hope Sedan."
Those things were atrocious cars. Complete sht.
Chrysler was always ahead in styling and innovation but their plastics left a lot to be desired.
I had a 1986 Dodge Caravan and, literally, every single piece of trim either broke, cracked or fell off.
I knew a little about the Chrysler saga over the years. I didn't know Chrysler is now seriously on the ropes. Interesting video!
Oh goodie ! I've been waiting for this one.. So.. Unfortunate outcome for a once proud American brand.. I did think AIRFLOW concept had some promise, I wasn't as underwhelmed as you were, but even with that one, it's not nearly enough.
Thank you Ed. You did a great job with the content. The footage was great a long with your information. It is a sad state right now. It seems a lot of the American brands lost their way. It is not just Chrysler. Lincoln is not in good shape right now. That could be a video for you. There are so many brands you could do videos about. Thank you again.
On the topic of the 300 and Charger the only Diamler engine was the CRD diesel and it was only available in Europe. In the US you had the 2.7, 3.5, 5.7 and later the 6.1 which were all Chrysler designed. Also I appreciate you not saying the LX chassis was just an old E-Class cause it wasn't. Its suspension was based on the E-Class and S-Class but the actual Chassis was in development before the merger papers were even drafted.
Didn't you have the 6.4 Hemi in the 300 in the states? It was used in the later 300 in Oz
@@erroneouscode that came later, after the merger dissolved.
Lee Iacocca isn't walking through the doors at Chrysler anytime soon.
Why not. Chrysler’s been dead for fifteen years and yet somehow shambles along. Lee’s only been gone for about five, so his corpse must be in better shape.
This was an excellent two parter. Your distinctive voice adds much to your reportage. Keep the first-class videos coming.
My sister had an Eagle. She drove it for almost 20 years until an accident destroyed it. It was working just fine and she planned on keeping it for a few more years. I do not know if she got one of the good ones or they were that good.
Most recently, the Dodge division introduced a subcompact called the Hornet, reviving the old AMC model name. It's available with either a gas or electric motor.
Unfortunately, they're making the same mistake they did with the Dodge Dart - being just a rebadge of an existing Alfa Romeo model, and importing it from Italy. North Americans were not impressed and stayed away in droves - what makes Stellantis think the same approach will work this time? (Though I often joke that the Dart failed because consumers were upset that there was no Swinger model).
no, the Dart was a more extensive derivative from an Alfa Romeo. The sheetmetal was totally Dodge and so was most of its interior like HVAC, sound system, steering wheel and so on. What was not American at all was its powertrain.
The Hornet is pretty much badge engineering, and I don't think the current Dodge customer knows that but there's just no advertisement and the early quality flaws put people away from it.
I just saw my 1st Hornet in the streets 2 weeks ago: it was a rental...
What’s left of Chrysler is a shame. I always have had a soft spot for Mopars in my heart. I even briefly worked for them in the late 1970s, just before Iacocca arrived. By then all the cars were identical with interchangeable parts - different grill, different brand. Mix ‘em up and you have a car for the 3rd brand. Example - take a Dodge St Regis, slap on a slightly altered Chrysler Newport fascia, and voila!! You have a Plymouth Caravelle!! Make a few minor changes to it and get an NYPD Police Package Fury
That’s how I felt about AMC. Jeep was still a high quality vehicle when owned by AMC, but became plagued with Chrysler Corp’s low quality issues when they acquired them. IMO today’s Jeep is nowhere near the Jeeps of old, with quality as bad as the Bronco Sport.
I've seen the future for Chrysler, and I passed it up today running errands. It was a graasy field full of tombstones. Just what the late (but not great) Sergio Marchionne wanted when he force-fed Americans to Fiat and Alfa-Romeo.
If they want to keep Chrysler, they'll need a bit of corporate soup (The next Peugeot 5008, the hybrid and an all-electric 508 sedan, a stretched out, 7 passenger version of the Jeep Compass, and something from Opel; perhaps an off-road ready wagon version of the insignia formerly known as the Buick Regal Tour X here)
My faith in Stellantis? R.I.P. Chrysler, Lancia (lan-sha), and eventually Opel.
Awesome job, Ed! Keep them great videos coming! 🐰
Sergio always seemed like a desperate business man
Lancia and Opel are doing well, the new Delta will probably be a smash hit as people are starting to see that the SUVs are too big for our roads and also annihilate Toddlers and are just straight up unsafe.
@Dexter037S4 Well, but if you remember, Carlos Tavares is in-charge of Stellantis and he gave all of those companies an ultimatum that they have ten (10) years to do better. Lancia (like Chrysler here) has only one model, the Ypsilon, and the "new Delta," won't be ready until 2028. Opel is doing much better than Lancia, but that's not saying much about Opel when Lancia sold about 44,000 models in 2023.
As far as "unsafe," no, it isn't the SUV, it's the driver. The problem is, people are so used to sitting in a driving a car, then they think an SUV can be driven the same way, so they roll it, wreck it and then scream "lawsuits" and "unsafe vehicle" when all they needed was to slow down and drive sensibly. It's the same lesson Americans learned back in the 1990s.
Chrysler is in the same boat as Buick. The mid-level luxury segment is niche, especially when people can buy a Chevy/Dodge/Jeep and opt for luxury trim levels. The Chrysler Aspen failed as their entry to the lucrative luxury SUV market, but they had plenty of opportunity to try again and now Jeep has beaten them to the punch with the Wagoneer. Their best option now is to move downmarket to what Plymouth used to be and offer affordable cars, contrary to what little brand image they have left.
"The extra Kosher salt, rubbed into that massive gaping wound" 😂😂🤣🤣
Still watching the pre-roll ads. Since this was posted Stellantis North America has confirmed to WJBK-TV and Detroit Free Press "a number" of the engineering staff was "released" this afternoon. WJBK rolled new interview footage with at least four of the affected on their 5 PM (Eastern) news report. Their story implited, without numbers, a large percentage are now gone.
I owned two different Dodge Caravans over the years. I had thre kids at the time.
The Grand Caravan that I had was the best vehicle that I ever owned for what it was designed for.
I could stuff all three kids, their friends, all their accoutrements and still have plenty of room inside.
Descent mileage, average handling, low maintenance and fairly reliable.
Excellent !
Sofar i know and had read the CEO of Stellantis gave each brand in the group 10 years to prove themselves.
The brands that make a profit will stay and those wo don't will be axed.
Chrysler, Dodge, Lancia, Alfa Romeo and Maserati are in the Dangerzone to be axed.
Jeep and Ram are the US brands that are build in numbers and also sold global those will stay around.
In my eyes Chrysler is nr 1 on the extinction list followed shortly by Lancia on nr2.
I feel like Maserati and Alfa should be able to stay. Maserati being a competitor to like high end BMW/Low end Porsche models, with Alfa being a sportier alternative to a BMW like X3 or whatever. Dodge keeps doing performance stuff, and for chrysler? IDK they could probably pull a Buick or a Mazda
@@bandombeviews6035 The problem Alfa and Maserati don't make a profit for decades.
Thats why the CEO is strict about the make a profit rule.
It all depends on how all Stellantis brands peform at the end of this decade.
Do we petrolheads want to loose any historic brands HELL NO!
but we must think logical.
The first 300c pic is my current vehicle -- same color, same year, same wheels (177K and still rollin' like a champ).
Another awesome video.
Always thought Chrysler should have stayed upmarket with Plymouth the low prices and Dodge as the performance name. But then I thought GM should have stayed Chevy, Pontiac and Caddy. Silly me.
Most likely, the only reason(s) the 300 survived as long as it did are that A) it shared a platform with the profitable Dodge Charger (the Challenger is also on this same platform, with somewhat lower avg. sales than the Charger.) The 300 typically sold less than 1/3 of the Charger yearly numbers. Beyond that, much of the 300 production seems to be purchased by rental companies from what I can tell....usually a sign that the model is not selling well in the new car market.
Great video! I love your viewpoints! I own a Pacifica Hybrid Pinnacle for my local transport buisness . It's a shame. The emblem is wings.... they could do so much with that theme and electric. You gotta Drive the Pacifica hybrid . It feels like your flying . 80 mph on all electric is ghost quiet and smooth . It's like you're flying ! That van is a perfect metaphor for those wings.. That's what chrysler always was to me. America's Audi . ... Chrysler should be the first American brand to go all electric. It makes sense ...
DAMN!!!!! I know it's gonna be a great day when I get a notification that there's a new E.A.R. video!!!!!
I need to chime in here and put my 2 cents. First of all this is a great two part documentary and it really exploits Chrysler's true colors in the sense of every form of failure. Having to work in the automotive industry especially dealing with Mopar parts have been a real hassle even up to now. Also being an automotive technician of plus 22 years I can certainly say of the big 3, Mopar was by far the worst to deal with when it came vehicle repairs, part failures & returns, and recall control issues.
I once had to take a field trip to a Dodge dealership to get an insight of how they operate back in the 90s. This was at a time where I going to college for automotive technology. In the showroom just about every student was ooing and awwwing over the Plymouth Prowler but me. I saw how much cladded plastic was on this car and didn't think nothing of it of being anything special. It was all aesthetics and short on performance. This was also at a time when I was driving a Dodge "Die-Nasty" something that was purchased used by my grandfather for me to drive them around town while I was there for college. At a first glance I didn't think much of the car other then being a confortable ride. But then the real problems showed it ugly head. I soon found out this vehicle had that awful leaking and noisy Mitsubishi 3.0L engine. The vehicle had the tendency to vapor lock once in awhile since we were living in the Texas heat. Idle control issues developed while the transmission would literally stall the vehicle and shut it down. Which eventually the transmission gave out and that ended my time owning a Chrysler product! All this gave me the impression on how Mopar vehicles are in general and I wasn't far from the truth! Learning about the mergers, the poor quality control builds on top many I had to fix over the years literally gave me a bad taste of this manufacture.
What made it worse for me was that at the first independent repair shop I worked at when I turned 20, just about every other vehicle I worked on had to be a Mopar with some sort of problem. Tons of minivans (leaking water pumps, heater cores, etc), Intrepids with erratic idle surges or electrical issues, Jeeps....oh gawd what didn't they have that needed to be fix!!!? The only reliable dodge vehicle that I worked on was this customer who owned a 80s Dodge Diplomat. Only basic maintenance was it required on this thing. The 90s into 2000 Chrysler products were just awful! I kept telling myself if I wanted to just work on Mopar then I should of been working at a Dodge Dealership because 70% of the vehicles that came into our shop was a Mopar product!
To this day if anyone of my customers ask me about what I think about Mopar (because they are thinking of buying one) I tell them DON'T! Unless you got deep pockets and want to keep spending $$$ trying to keep a sinking boat, afloat...just don't do it.
Mopar should of went down when the recession happened and unfortunately it didn't and to this day it's still being runned into the ground.
BTW: Stellantis just recently announced that they are letting go about 400 white collar jobs. "Down-sizing" is the name of the game. But in reality they are sending those type of jobs to other places like India, Brazil, & Mexico for profits over the US People. Nothing has changed over the years and nothing will with this mind set. If the quality of their product isn't already bad as it is, it's only going to get worse.
I had a 2005 Chrysler 300. Never a problem!
It's shocking to me how a company that can seemingly print money on the sales of a handful of aging models until they're milked for all they're worth can struggle to find the budget to build new models. It's not like they don't want to - presumably a large number of those Jeep concept vehicles they build every year are both feasible for production and in high demand - they just drag their feet with everything they do, until whatever they do manage to do is too little too late.
With the new Dodge Charger coming out, I'm honestly surprised there's no talk of a Chrysler version, despite them confirming there will be Alfa Romeo and even Jeep branded vehicles based on the platform. They just need SOMETHING, ANYTHING to sell.
Ed, this is SO good! Some of the best car content on CZcams. You produce a kind of art. Exceptional work! Cheers! 🍸🍸🍸
Loved my Crossfires. Had two Roadsters and drove one for 3, the other for 11 years. Great and inexpensive fun cars with perfect reliability. Without Covid I would still drive my beloved Crossi!
liked them too , was on my list of 2 seat fun cars
Stellantis is really doing it's job reviving the "dead" brands. It was not only the chrysler, but also Lancia, which for many years had only the ypsilon in the lineup, or the DS, which it's more and more clearly to see that it's not only rebranded citroen. Though i dont personally like that much their approach to the electric future, i have to admit that in every lineup of each brand there are some
excellent cars
The salt in the wound was extra kosher? I like that detail
Every single time
I have drove Chrysler cars and trucks since the early 80's. My last one I bought was a 2011 Dodge Avenger. They are not what they used to be for sure! I'll keep my old Dodge Ram running as long as I can.
I bet that other car companies calling Chrysler - "The Jeep (and Ram) Holder".
I cannot believe that Chrysler is now gone!
Once great brand .
Actually 32 years ago the Chrysler 300 sedans were prototypes built on an elongated rear-wheel drive LH platform. One of them even made its rounds at the 92 American Auto Show
I honestly feel like Chrysler has no reason to exist anymore, at least not attached to Dodge. Its kind of like Pontiac in the way they were supposed to be the slightly more exciting Chevrolets, but just ended up being a Chevy by a different name. The Chrysler is considered by no one ti be considered even mid level luxury, let alone luxury.
I would do things for Chrysler.
1. Luxury SUV that's NOT a crossover and bubbly- that's a tired old look now. Boxy is sorta coming back. Yes they have Jeeps, but not everyone likes Jeep styling, so a Chrysler styling might be the key here.
2. Bring back the Eagle as a Chysler, give it a good value entry price at less that $25K new, can be head with loads more features and style too if you wish. I know so many people who get crossovers and SUVs simply for the AWD, but wish they could get it in a Civic or a Corolla.
Can I add to that? How about a new 300 muscle car? And an entry level convertible sports car.
Bring back Plymouth instead of Eagle. Eagle was a blip compared to the time Plymouth existed.
The former Chrysler Corporation also includes Jeep, Dodge and Ram, as well as the Chrysler brand. So they have more than one model left.
I have owned 2 Chrysler vehicles over the past 20 years and their biggest problem is that, while GM and FOrd did, Chrysler could never get their quality control in check enough to offer competition with Japanese and South Korean brands.
Ed, alway enlightening to hear your Dutch/European insight on automobiles especially our American models.
I've only owned one MoPar product and that was a new 1994 Chrysler LHS/New Yorker sedan with its stunning cab forward look and faux classic Jaguar Mk II rear roofline. It's chameleon Charcoal Gold metallic paint and its taupe leather interior was just stunning. Alas, I watched subsequent models devolve into mediocrity and then into that gangsta rap design Chrysler 300.
Chr
They had the first plug in hybrid mini van on the market and they squandered it
Henry Ford, Lee Iacocca, Robert Macnamara Walter P Chrysler are my personal heroes!
Always enjoy Ed’s videos.
For as long as I've been alive i don't think Chrysler has ever been considered a legitimate luxury car company. Stelantis needs to change that.
Is there really a place for luxury cars anymore? Maybe you were not being specific, I can only see a profitable future for pick up trucks and SUV’s. But I hope cars will not die altogether.
@@Jack_Russell_Brown Imperial was the most luxurious car around more than Cadillac until the 1970's..Imperial was more expensive than a Rolls Royce and the Imperial was a far better car than any car on the road for luxury!
They had models that were luxury and models that were mid level and even base..Like Mercury and Buick Chrysler had models that competed against Lincoln and Cadillac,they covered everything.
@@louislopez55 Pretty sure the BMW 4er and 3er were BMW's highest selling models in 2023, if not second to the x5 and x3 and such.
I never owned a Chrysler product with the exception of a mid-90s Grand Cherokee which was passable with the exception of poor brakes. In 2001 we switched to an M-B ML430 which was more luxurious and had actual brakes.
FFWD to 2024, in January we rented a Chrysler Minivan from Enterprise to ski in western Canada with our college age kids. So four big duffels and three sets of ski-gear. When I opened the tailgate I realized that my worrying on the flight westward about stowing our luggage in the rental car was complete nonsense, a giant cave that we didn't even fill half :). Can't speak to reliability and didn't pay too much attention to build quality but we loved the functionality! It had all the mod-cons our own (mostly European) cars have. It was super comfy for our three hour drive from airport to slopes and it performed pretty good on snowy roads. So yeah, I'm convinced by that product but only needed the rental.
Chrysler fell victim to the misguided decisions by US automakers that they only needed to design and produce EVs....I think Hertz has proven that is not a viable strategy at this time. I also do not understand all the badge engineering of US models for sale in Europe, Europeans find most of these cars too big, heavy and thirsty, not to mention the road taxes and insurance premiums they attract. Equally selling FIATs in the US was always going to be a limited niche. Too bad, I like that their overall brand portfolio was broad and had a following.
Neons were a huge success and were everywhere around the turn of the millenium.
The new Airflow looks great, tho it has an eerie resemblance to the Porsche Cayenne
Another topic, when this video ended the clip "A Struggle Called Cadillac" was suggested. Of course I've already seen it, but it made think of a clip I saw at another channel a few days ago, about a wonky looking, four seated, huuuge luxury EV that they seemed to feel would be agreat success. I don't remember what is was called.... Celestial? Celestienne?
If you have seen it I'd love to hear your thoughts about it. I'm a GM guy and love Cadillac, but I kinda fear that they don't where they are going.
Thanks for uploading! Greetings from Sweden
Celestiq, pronounced “seh-LESS-tick” and priced over $300k.
…yeah.
@@RobCamp-rmc_0 Oh yeah, that was it! Thank you. 😁
Ed, I have loved your videos for years. Just one correction, which I noticed in the first part of this series as well - only the Cirrus, Breeze and Stratus were known as the "cloud cars". The Intrepid and its siblings were known as the LH cars or cab forward cars. My second car was a 1997 Dodge Intrepid I acquired in 2000 - we thought it was quite advanced for the money, for the time.
Well the same forces that killed other storied names are still afoot... not the end of Mopar tho.....great episode Ed!
When Chrysler tried to sell the Neon in Italy I worked in the adv agency their Italian importer hired.
My immediate idea was: This car will be a thunderous flop. And it was. Almost nobody bought it and most of cars you could see going around were just trade-exchanges (i.e. cars given to media companies in exchange for adv spaces and then re-sold at far below-cost, often to those companies employees.)
Was I a marketing genius? I don't think so. But think about it: a 2000cc car of medium-large size was considered - in those times - almost a "luxury" car, in Italy. But the Neon - being a base-line model in USA - had fittings and build quality comparable to the cheapest European citycars.
So, you had a very cheap-looking car but sized, priced (in Italy) and fuel-guzzling as a medium-luxury one. And without the street cred of German brands, too.
Here before 500 views. Epic vid
They should just bring back all the old models updated and see what happens I would definitely be picking myself up a new Intrepid
My mom just bought a 2021 Toyota sienna Platinum awhile back. I had to ride in a 2024 mid trim Pacifica for a trip for a college class. The sienna beats the Pacifica in every category other than being "An Minivan". The Pacifica was just very generic, with nothing really going for it. While I know the Sienna is a higher trim level, even looking past that, the Sienna is still just a better van in general. The Sienna is more spacious, has more comfortable seats, and is styled far better. Add to that that the Toyota, from base to lux trim, is a regen hybrid with 36 mpg and over 600 miles in range, compared to the Pacifica's 30 mpg and a 552 mile range combining both its electric and gas capacity, assuming you even buy the plug in hybrid model and not just the regular, which gets even worse performance, because for some reason your minivan needs a V6? Add to that that it is a Toyota engine under the hood, it has almost no mechanical issues. The only thing I found that the Pacifica did better was infotainment software. It had a far cleaner looking software, though I was unable to use it. The cherry on the top of this? The Sienna's models are all cheaper than their comparable Pacifica counterpart.
So lets recap, The Pacifica is a minivan that is: has less room than its competition, is less fuel efficient, less reliable, all for a higher price. WTF is this business model?
Excellent job Ed, I'm a Mopar guy and bipolar!
It´s funny to me that some people in the comments are talking about how Stellantis has a terrible strategy, but in my country they´re selling cars like hot bread:
-Jeep that used to be a niche "luxury" brand back in Daimler´s era, now turned into a power house, even the outdated Compass and Renegade are in the top10 selling SUVs, and counting with Fiat options, Stellantis has 5 of the top13 selling SUVs;
- The Top selling 7 seater SUV is the Jeep Commander;
- They are outselling Ford pickups (Ranger and Maverick) with their Rampage and Toro, and leading the big pickup segment with the RAM family (1500, 1500 classic, 2500 and 3500);
- Also, Stellantis it´s leading the market with the top selling car here in Brazil (small pickup Fiat Strada) and has 2 other compact hatchbacks in the top10;
- Not only that, but they also increased the sales of Peugeot and Citroen, two brands that almost died here because of reliability issues.
Chrysler´s problem is that their sister´s companys got the most profitable segments with SUVs and Pickups, they could produce cheaper SUVs like Fiat does here, but I don´t think that this strategy fits Chrysler character... But selling fullsize sedans and minivans today??? Not the most promising future.
You should give credit to Sergio Marchionne from Fiat because he made Jeep and Ram desirable brands. Stellantis hasn’t done a damn and so far they’ve killed the last two Hemis and the Chrysler 300. They’ve only made it worse.
@@mrgurulittle7000 The Hemi was on it's way out, it's an antique by engine design standards and you can't make it fit emissions standards like an LS or Ford Modular V8, they had to make an I6 that can be turned into an I4 for Lancia's rally efforts.
I think Chrysler will make a big comeback with a Le Mans Hypercar powered by the I6.
@@Dexter037S4I hope you’re right because I really want Chrysler to win.🙏
I have a Chrysler New Yorker 1966 coupe 440 and I love it!!! Then I also have a Chrysler voyager 3.3 v6 awd and I hate it 😂
The 200 and 300 are great options, they just needed more spice. Maybe bring an Imperial and Valiant to the lineup. And bring the classic united states car back: RWD, Automatic (with an optional manual) and a huge trunk.
cutting up the videos into parts is an old youtube strategy from 10 years ago Ed. now watch time is the thing. the longer you can get somebody to stick around the more likely they will finish the video. usually the parts are hard to find and i don't even both. luckily part 2 was at the top of my feed. youtube doesn't offer your videos to me very often. i like your take on cars. a lot of guys make their videos to sell something and the video is crap. i'm here to be entertained not buy into a crypto scam.
POOR CHRYSLER!!!
For some reason, dying car brands think that a 60k electric suv will revive the brand. Because it works of others, and RISKING something would be an OUTRAGEOUS idea because it could make 1% less money. Cheap cars are the way to go. Not buying a prius for 50k.
Ah u good man. Delivery is spot on
Thanks for another great video Ed! :^)
The issue with the Chrysler Crossfire is that it looked like a convertible version of the Chrysler Sebring, which was nothing more than an unimpressive and cheap midsized car. If they had given it unique styling, it likely would have done better in the marketplace. But, as you as you said it also made little sense to continue a 10 year old platform for a brand new car.
When a car is neither ugly nor inspiring, the word I like to use is, inoffensive. Alot of Corollas are inoffensive, and hondas
Had Chrysler brought the Aspen SUV and Pacifica crossover back after the recession and focused a little more on perhaps a luxury or mid-range SUV market, much like Buick is currently attempting, they might’ve actually had a chance. But I guess doing nothing was easier, sad to see the brand be treated so poorly..
I love your videos. I like driving a 300S big dumb, coarse but likable in an odd way
I remember selling new Dodge Avengers for $14999, Caravans for $18999, Jeeps for $16999, and Rams for $24999. Now the cheapest vehicle we make is $40000
A Ram 3500 6 wheeler is $ 100,000 !! 🤨
Had Bob lutz had stayed on the team would have stayed on. I can imagine the future for Chrysler - Chrysler would have flourished. Bob Eaton with zero emotional attachment to Chrysler. . He damn well knew what was going on, saw a PHAT check and put himself 1st. No other way to look at it. Period.
Eaton received 70 million out of it
Awesome episode Ed!