Chrysler Design Chief Possessed by Demon
Published: August 22nd, 2007
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Chrysler design chief Trevor Creed better watch his back. According to Wards, Creed's obsessed with producing the Dodge Demon, the small, inexpensive roadster his team designed to take on the firmly entrenched Mazda MX-5. "Building a production version of the Demon is 'foremost in my mind,' Creed confessed. If that wasn't enough of an alarm bell for boss Boot'em Bob Nardelli– whose company needs a mainstream hit more than Los Del Rio– Creed said there's no rush to build the Demon. Its "classic proportions" give it "plenty of shelf life," just like… the Chrysler Crossfire. Low margins. Niche model. Declining niche. Another Crossfire. I'm thinking incubus.
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A lot of the mainstream media is hyped about this car but I just can't get over the styling. Even if Dodge could make this perform well, I wouldn't be interested. If it does ever see the light of day, I'm thinking it will just be another Prowler.
Two-seaters appear to have limited market appeal. Well, everybody wants one but few follow through and buy a car with just two seats. Could Chrysler steal a trick from their minivan line and build it with a fold-flat second row of seating? That might do the trick. Sometiems you feel like a roadster, sometimes you don't.
I doubt Chrysler, or GM/FOMOCO has the time or money to spend on improving the breed, as opposed to searching for profit-laden HITS that might take off....or not. I doubt they have the patience to cultivate anything resembling a decent, sustainable product like the Camry/Accord. The era of short-term thinking will have to come to an end, and it's not just the U.S. auto industry that's guilty of it.
Given how Chrysler seems to rely on a halo car after every doldrum-infested period, they may in fact be due for one about now.