Chrysler Sends Unripe Cherys To Mexico
We've known for a quite some time that Chrysler's partnership with Chery is a long ways off from bearing, um, fruit for the U.S. market. Automotive News [sub] reports that Chrysler has sent engineers over to China to ready the A1 for American importation. Again. Still. "We need small cars," says Chrysler CEO Tom LaSorda, offering a piercing glimpse into the obvious while riffing on that old flick "Mars needs women." "Chery's cars are still not ready for that exposure into these markets." Nor will they be until that mythic 2010 debut date. LaSorda said China-built cars probably can't meet U.S. safety and emissions standards for "three years or more." Chrysler can't wait to pop its Chery in the North American market. The company announced it will be selling death traps Cherys in Mexico under a Chrysler nameplate while engineers ready the diminutive Chinese whips for the American market. The Bertone-styled Chery A1 will be imported to Mexico by year's end. While "lucky" Mexicans get to enjoy Chinese-market standards in reliability, build quality and emissions, Yanks will just have to wait before experiencing the joys of Chrysler-branded Chinese personal transportation. Or not. Meanwhile, what?
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Menno the Japanese did exactly the same thing to get started. Copy Copy Copy. and ignore the infringements. The first car Toyoda built was a copy of the Chrysler airstream with a copy of a chevy 6 drivetrain. the Toyota museum will tell you all about it.
Menno, Bricklin is a fool and a con artist. Chery was right and smart to dump him like a hot potato. It was the Daimler part of DaimlerChrysler (the only part that really mattered to Stutgart) that mistreated Hyundai and Mitsubishi (and REALLY mistreated Chrysler). While I share your worries about the Chinese penchant to beg, borrow, and steal the ideas of others, in the case of a small B class car, what are they going to steal? Does Chrysler or any other automaker have a super secret proprietary way of bending steel or making catylitic converters? Chery will learn to make a good car by copying what others are doing. Assimilating and applying the knowledge will take time.
I think you have a very good point, windwords, that Daimler also ended up treating Chrysler very poorly. May kizmet (karma?) bite them where it hurts in Stuttgart for the ruination of a storied and once-great auto company.
Um, does anybody see any issue with continueing to bolster China's economy? Maybe the West Coast would adopt a car like this from China, but I have to imagine it would be a tough sell in the Heartland. Of course, we all spend billions at China, er, Wal-mart so what do I know?