Close your eyes. Picture Chrysler products from the last decade that you like. We imagine that your mental list is similar to ours. The 300 (and its derivatives), the Challenger and the Viper. Well friends, the savvy investors car guys over at Cerebus have shuttered the doors on the Pacifica Advance Product Design Center which gave us two of three (hint — not the Viper). Perfect. Chrysler is of course spinning it as a good thing. Here, you have to read for yourself: "Increasingly, we are leveraging resources worldwide, forming new joint ventures and alliances and consolidating operations in order to better achieve global balance. These moves are designed to help Chrysler become a more globally focused manufacturer, with design, engineering, sourcing and a local presence to serve local customers." Right, they'll be helping out the local customers in California (where one in eight cars are sold in the US) by, wait, what? Bottom line: all future design work will be taking place in Auburn Hills, a plan that has worked marginally for decades.
14 Comments on “Chrysler Shutters its Pacifica Design Center...”
Back to TopLeave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
You can also login using Facebook Connect.
I always thought the exterior design of the 300/magnum/charger etc was quite striking. The interior sucks. It’s like 10 years ago they flipped a coin and kept the exterior design team and fired the interior one.
One of chryslers problems tends to be horrific residuals/depreciation on their rides. Makes it tough to be a Chrysler customer.
You know when a strip shop like Cerberus talks in holistic terms; “balance, focus, presence” that they’re hiding something. In this case, they are likely trying to dump payload (cut expenses) out of their faltering airship faster than fuel is running out (eroding income). In other words, there’s nothing wrong with the work that came out of that office, it just cost too much money.
But even if they manage to land safely in friendly territory, then what? With zero altitude, zero airspeed and a damaged vessel, what value will remain in the good ship Chrysler?
Honestly, styling has never been Dodge or Chrysler’s major issue. The Ram, the Viper, the Charger, the Avenger, The 300, are all quite handsome if you ask me. I don’t even hate the Crossfire, I think it looks rather unique.
The Sebring and the minivan could use a spitshine, but for each of those looks theoretically take a backseat to practicality.
Really, I think the issue with ChryCo products has always been the interior, build quality and, numb steering, and less than amazing powertrains.
The Caliber.
Did they get some third graders to draw pictures, or what?
As for the 300, yeah, it looks pretty good, but I woudn’t drive anything with those slit windows. Same w/ the Magnum. The Charger doesn’t do much for me. Trucks, yeah, they can make a mean looking truck. But they don’t stand up next to some of the meanies of yore, like the ‘48-’53 Buicks.
Besides, the Magnum and the 300 look good, because everything else looks so bad. The parking lot of today is a depressing venue, compared to 40 years ago. I mean, these days, refrigerators often look better than a lot of cars. The state of styling is depressing.
Why not? Auburn Hills has proven its ability to design generic fleet fodder. That seems to be the extent of Chrysler’s ambitions today.
One of two things are happening with Cerberus’ ownership of Chrysler;
One: they realize that to turn Chrysler/Their Awful Investment Idea around, they need to drastically re-write the rules and operating standards of the US auto industry, including consolidating resources into one place to save money, or
Secondly: the common consensus anyway; they’re prepping for sale.
Regardless of how much Cerberus speaks of “…leveraging resources worldwide, forming new joint ventures and alliances and consolidating operations in order to better achieve global balance”
their main objective is to turn their investment into a profit.
I don’t think too many of us would disagree that drastic changes are needed to save the US auto industry. This is but one small change. Unless you worked there.
Everything that can be outsourced, will be outsourced. Outsourcing is an integral part of how private equity firms do business.
Unless Auburn Hills is an office building in India, I wouldn’t expect much design to be coming from there, either. Design is a logical thing to outsource, and they may as well offshore it while they’re at it.
Chrysler has long has slick exterior design to make up for the so-so NVH control and low-rent plastics within.
That seemed to expire in MY 2006. The Caliber, Nitro, Avenger, Sebring, Compass, Commander, Liberty, and new minivans all have a blocky, amateurish, low-res look to them, as if Chrysler couldn’t afford more polygons.
I was really impressed with the look of the Concorde refresh/update of about 10 years ago:
Concorde
Very attractive. Of course, I had far too many friends with junk Intrepids and Concordes to actually consider buying one.
The current Chrysler/Dodge product line runs the gamut all the way from “inoffensive” (the Pacifica) to “ugly” (everything except the Pacifica but especially the pillbox-like 300s).
Put a fork in these guys. Cerberus will get tired of the bleeding and move on. Come to think of it Tower and GMAC aren’t doing much better for Mr Snow and his three headed dog that guards the gates of hell.
“Increasingly, we are leveraging resources worldwide, forming new joint ventures and alliances and consolidating operations in order to better achieve global balance. These moves are designed to help Chrysler become a more globally focused manufacturer, with design, engineering, sourcing and a local presence to serve local customers.”
“Bullshit Bingo” gold.
I recently drove a rental-grade Charger; while I was surprised by the relative lack of body lean (no doubt due to its Daimler underpinnings); but its lack of refinement was evident of a product trying to hit a price point. The 2.7l V6/4sp auto combo was poorly matched, the steering didn’t exist 1″ either side of center, the ride was like a car with partially-inflated air shocks, and the interior was, well, utilitarian. I suppose that a Hemi model might correct some of these issues (for another 6-8k), but the bones are still there. A shame, really, but it’s evident of a warmed-over design, rather than something lovingly designed from the ground up.
Design? We don’t need no stink’n design!
I second the poster on Autoblog:
Tom Gale, please come back!
I am soooooo thankful that snow-plow like understeer turned me away from the Charger R/T a couple years ago. Time should prove that I successfully avoided the orphanage.
That being said, it is truly sad to see what Walter P. started and Lee fixed get flushed down the sewer.
Maybe they should hire Ricardo Montalbán back for another commercial. He’s 87, but still ticking.