mmarshall

Recently, there have been all kinds of rumors, news-reports, videos, gossip, all over the Internet and YouTube about everything from Stellantis (Chrysler) going out of business to Ram trucks being dropped to their products being boycotted by the public for poor quality and high prices to a major UAW strike coming up to even another government bailout. I won't go into all of this in detail, because there are just too many different pundits and writers all making videos of their own on the subject, trying to be armchair-experts and get clicks/viewers.

One prospect, though, which DOES seem to make sense to me, and may be a real possibility, is yet another Stellantis sale and/or reorganization. After decades of problems on its own, previous government bailouts, Mercedes ownership, Cerebus ownership, and Fiat ownership, Frank Rhodes, Great-Grandson of Walter P. Chrysler himself, who founded the corporation a century ago, now has plans for an all new Chrysler, American-Owned, with better management than what we have seen in the past. Indeed, the company prospered for decades after its founding and was quite successful, not showing any real problems until they forgot about quality-control and started putting out unreliable/poorly-built products in the late 1960s, although the well- documented quality problems of the "New-Look" 1957 models had hurt the company's image in to the early 1960s.

https://www.carscoops.com/2024/08/ch...ch-stellantis/

Chrysler Heir Wants To Save Chrysler, Dodge, Ram, Jeep From Stellantis

Frank B. Rhodes Jr. positions himself as the leader of a new Chrysler Corporation, seeking investor backing and worker support

by Thanos Pappas

August 28, 2024 at 12:04
96

• Frank B. Rhodes, Jr., wants to create a new Chrysler Corporation, proposing himself as a leader.
• His goal is to save Chrysler, Dodge, Ram, and Jeep, criticizing Stellantis for mismanagement.
• Rhodes made an open call to investors and workers for their support in creating the new entity.

Many Americans disagree with the way that Stellantis has treated Chrysler in recent years, reducing its lineup to the, now discontinued, 300 sedan and the Pacifica minivan. Frank B. Rhodes, Jr., the great grandson of Walter P. Chrysler who founded the Chrysler Corporation in 1925, stepped in with a rather ambitious proposal, calling investors and workers to collectively save the iconic brand alongside Dodge, Ram, and Jeep.

In a short video and a letter, Rhodes highlighted the importance of Chrysler in the American automotive history, and shared his views about the current state of the automaker. The Chrysler heir proposed himself as a leader for a “much-needed” change, asking the support of investors and workers for taking control of the brand ahead of its 100th anniversary next year.

More: We Asked You Which Stellantis Brands Should Die, These Are Your Picks

In an open letter to the people shared by Mopar Insiders, Rhodes wrote: “The Chrysler brand, once a symbol of innovation and American ingenuity, is now at risk of fading into obscurity due to what I believe are poor decisions and mismanagement by its current owners, Stellantis.”

Rhodes accused Stellantis for being “out of touch” with the American market, allowing Chrysler sales to decline and delaying new product launches. He believes that the automotive giant is risking the livelihoods of Chrysler dealers and workers, while spending millions for the salary of its CEO.

You Tube

According to Rhodes’ letter, the current management at Stellantis “cannot give Chrysler the necessary attention” due to overseeing more than 15 different brands. He admitted of having hope when Christine Feuell was appointed the new Chrysler CEO four years ago, but noticed that Chrysler products kept “being pushed further down the priority list” in favor of “slow-selling brands like Fiat, Alfa Romeo, and Maserati“.

Rhodes also mentions BYD’s potential entry in the US market as an even greater threat for the local automotive industry due to the influx of cheap cars from China.

Despite the shortcomings, the Chrysler heir is confident that “investors will see the potential in resurrecting this historic brand”. His goal is to convince Stellantis to offload all of its American brands to “a company that truly cares about their future”, creating an “American-owned” Chrysler Corporation. The new entity would have Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ramunder its umbrella and would focus “not only on profits but also on the people who build these cars”, with workers becoming part-owners.

Rhodes sent another 17-page letter to the Stellantis CEO, Carlos Tavares, and the Chrysler CEO, Christine Feuell. There, he highlighted the most important innovations in the history of Chrysler, expressing his “deep disappointment” for the current state of the brand. The letter concludes with an invitation to a “confidential discussion”, so he can outline his plan to the Stellantis top executives.

Despite Frank B. Rhodes, Jr.’s good intentions, it is hard to believe that such a proposal could ever have an impact on a multinational corporation behemoth like Stellantis. Tavares has not expressed any interested in parting ways with their American brands, and even if he did, a potential buyout would likely require astronomical funds. In any case, it will be interesting to see if the Chrysler heir’s proposal gains any traction ahead of Chrysler’s 100th anniversary celebrations next year.

Motorola

This will amount to nothing and the only reason I see this guy doing this is because he wants to raise funds to create his own startup like Lordstown by capitalizing on American grievance.

mmarshall

Perhaps so......but this is a direct descendent of the corporation's founder, not just some corporate-raider. He seems to have a real interest in the company for its own sake...not just to use it as a personal fiefdom or a money-making machine.

Part of the reason for the mess that Stellantis is in today is simply the reputation they have for unreliable vehicles...with a few exceptions here and there, they are almost consistently at or near the bottom of reliability ratings. Except for a few years in the late 50s, that generally wasn't the case until the late 1960s.

Motorola

He doesn't own any stock in the company and his main business is running a furniture store. If he wanted to protect his late great grandfather's company, then waiting until now is a very weird way to be doing it.

I give him a month's time before he tries a Kickstarter to "make real Chrysler vehicles by real Americans just like we did back in the good old days when America was number one before the dirty feds ruined it" like what Ineos did to the Defender.

mmarshall

I agree it's overdue, but things have gotten so bad lately that it's probably now or never.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

what *is* stellantis?

"chrysler" is what, one model (pacifica) or maybe two (300)? is the durango a chrysler and atill sold? it's soooo old.
there's ram trucks, big seller
there's jeep, pretty big
alfa romeo? 2?
do they still sell the craptastic fiat 500 in the u.s.?

none of it seems to scream innovation except maybe ram and pacifica.

mmarshall

The official name of the corporation that owns Chrysler.

The 300 has either been discontinued or will be very soon...leaving only the Pacifica. Steve and his wife help keep Pacifica sales humming.

(just kidding, Steve)

The Durango is sold under the Dodge nameplate. An upmarket/luxury Chrysler-badged version of it, called the Aspen, was sold about 15 or so years ago, but was unsuccessful.




The Ram 1500 is going out of production.... I can't speak for any other Ram versions. I know that Josh (ArmyofOne) liked Rams.

https://www.reuters.com/business/aut...ds-2024-08-09/


Yes, but from what I understand, not for long....it will soon be driving off into the sunset.

Motorola

It was "bad" when it was owned by Mercedes. Then it was "bad" when it was owned by Fiat. Switching hands again just doesn't change the fact that good 'ol American-owned Chrysler died a long time ago and this man did nothing back then, just as he will do nothing now except make a buck off the grievance.

FrankReynoldsCPA

Chrysler is supposedly going to launch an all-EV lineup in the next few years. We'll see if they have the capital to do it.

Dodge is currently down to the Durango(a Grand Cherokee by another name) and Hornet(an alfa CUV clone). They do have the new EV and ICE Charger coming out in the next year or two. I assume some more crossovers will come.

Jeep and RAM will just keep doing whatever they do and finance the rest of Stellantis.

mmarshall

We've heard the same thing from Buick for the last several years (all-EV by 2030)...but, recently, that supposedly went on hold, or is being cancelled outright.

Striker223

Ram/Jeep lost the Hemi engines....a massive amount of people will simply never consider them going forward just for that and sales show it.

geko29

Pretty sure I read this weekend that his bid has already been rejected.

Edit: Yep, here it is: https://www.thedrive.com/news/stella...d-dodge-brands

Motorola

He never gave a bid or actual price offer, it was all a publicity stunt.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

a famous car brand with only one model is very sad.

ah right, thanks, i forgot about dodge. i suspect most everyone else has too.
so i looked up their model range.



i knew nothing about the hornet. the web page is pretty horrible with verbiage like "the streets aren't ready", "savage by design" and starting with financial promos of 'power dollars'. all very cheesy. i'm surprised though that the 'r/t' version is a plug in hybrid.

anyone ever driven one of these things?

https://www.dodge.com/hornet.html

i scanned that article and seems that's not correct... the 'classic' 1500 is going away but they now have a 'tradesman' trim, or something.

they sell over 30k of these things a month so it would seem dumb to cancel them!

as for mr. rhodes... he's an idiot boomer who will be ignored by stellantis.

Motorola

The 17-page proposal he submitted reads like he's trying to run for office lol