The Auto Writer

Not Yet Gone Or Forgotten

Yesterday’s news that Chrysler LLC was considering selling off its iconic Dodge Viper line to investors was certainly a shock to many people. But, given that the automaker has been having the toughest go of it of all three American automakers this year (with sales down through July by 22.8%), something has to give.

Simply put, selling off the heart soul of your Dodge division sounds like a desperate effort to raise cash, which I suppose that it is.

The announcement by Chrysler LLC coincided with another important event for the Dodge Viper: 25,000 Vipers have now been built, a hand-built sportscar that began being built way back in May 1992. Though I haven’t had the pleasure of driving one, I’ve always admired that Chrysler had a car that could compete head on with Corvette. If anything, the Viper burnished the Dodge brand, which had for so many years lived in the shadow of Chrysler and Plymouth, selling variations on someone else’s them.

Good-Bye Viper = Good-Bye Chrysler?

After digesting this bit of news that Viper may leave the Chrysler fold I began to think that its sale would be a natural progression in the slow death of America’s #3 brand. Having witnessed its near demise in the early 1980s, the purchase of Jeep in the late 1980s, its sale to Daimler in 1998, and its new found freedom in 2007, I can say this: Chrysler has had many lives over the past thirty years, but selling off Viper would not guarantee its long term existence.

If anything, a Dodge division without Viper would get rid of the brand’s halo car, something that I’m not certain can be taken over by its Challenger model. I can’t imagine Chevrolet selling Corvette and relying on the Camaro as its sporty model, two very different cars as different as the Viper and Challenger.

Time To Call Carlos Ghosn

There is a natural solution for owner Cerberus Capital Management with its problem-child Chrysler LLC unit and that is to have a discussion with Carlos Ghosn, the turnaround king for Nissan, to see about hooking up Chrysler with Nissan and Renault. Ghosn is widely credited with saving Nissan back in the 1990s and is a CEO for both Nissan and Renault. Both companies own a chunk of the other, making the combined Nissan-Renault entity the world’s fourth-largest automaker.

Likely, Ghosn is privy to the goings on at Chrysler LLC as Nissan and Chrysler have had three major announcements this year regarding joint business deals including:

• Nissan has agreed to build a small car for Chrysler to be sold in the Latin American market.

• Chrysler will build or at least supply the platform for the next generation Titan, Nissan’s big pickup truck.

• Nissan will build a midsize car for Chrysler at its Tennessee factory.

You can find out more about this budding relationship here.

An Open Door For Renault

A relationship where Renault, Chrysler and Nissan were to work together would benefit everyone as Nissan would be able to handle capacity through its Tennessee plants, Chrysler would gain access to additional markets, and Renault could re-enter the US market by selling its cars through Chrysler’s existing dealer network. One option would be for Dodge dealers to sell Renault vehicles alongside Dodge vehicles.

If Ghosn and company were to come up with some sort of business arrangement, then the sale of the Dodge Viper would be a moot point. Chrysler would keep the Viper, enabling Dodge to retain its dignity, while everyone would thrive under a united business partnership.

I’m just having a difficult time of thinking of Viper being sold; killing off the model sounds like a better option then letting it go to the highest bidder.

Model #25,000 of the Dodge Viper just rolled off of the assembly line to great fanfare. Kurt Busch, Driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, is the recipient of the hand-built sportscar, a model which was first introduced in 1992.

The Hand Built Dodge Viper

Chrysler’s beautiful, hand-built sportscar, the Dodge Viper may be up for sale. No, I’m not talking about individual models, rather the entire model line. Parent Chrysler LLC said earlier today that they are exploring “strategic options” for the iconic Viper as part of its effort to focus on its core business. Chrysler, wracked by a huge drop off in sales for 2008, is looking at the Viper’s sale as one way to stoke its business.

Chief Executive Bob Nardelli spoke to Reuters today who reported that the company has been approached by investors interested in purchasing the Dodge Viper line. Chrysler LLC, which is owned by privately held Cerberus Capital Management, is looking for ways to raise cash to ride out the current economic storm. The company says that outside interest in the sportscar is behind the company’s decision to entertain offers.

From 1989 Concept To 1992 Production Car

First introduced at the 1989 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, the Viper went into production in 1992.  Currently, the car and its engine are built at the company’s Conner Avenue Assembly Plant, where as many as 11 Vipers are produced daily. Year to date sales are just 682 models, but Chrysler says that this number is 111% improvement over 2007.

No Other Car Lines Being Considered For Sale

Nardelli insists that the review of the Dodge Viper is a stand-alone decision, one that doesn’t include other makes or models. Earlier this year Chrysler LLC reached several agreements with Nissan including to have the Japanese automaker build a small car for Chrysler’s Latin American market while Chrysler agreed to supply the platform to underpin the next generation Nissan Titan pickup truck. Nissan is also expected to supply a midsize sedan to Chrysler in the near future, building the car at its own Tennessee factory.

(Source: Reuters)

At this year’s NAIAS in Detroit, MI I had the opportunity to see up close and personal the Hummer HX concept, a jeep-like vehicle that would compete against the Wrangler if it were brought to market. I admired its style and I enjoyed my interview with David Rojas, the 24 year-old designer who was part of a three person team behind the vehicle’s design.

Edgy and sporty, the HX alone could set the tone for a new Hummer, one featuring smaller but still very capable off-road vehicles that might appeal to a whole new generation of Hummer fans.

Well, as we all know gasoline prices have just about sunk Hummer with July sales down by almost 62% over July 2007. Clearly lacking a single model even remotely fuel efficient, Hummer seems like a throw back to the big barges of the 1960s and 1970s. GM knows this and has put the company up for sale.

When GM first hinted a few months ago that Hummer might be sold, many wondered just who would buy the brand and why. Overseas, Hummer has sold rather well as it is just the type of vehicle some people need for where roads are virtually non-existent or where vast stretches of open land beckon. A Jeep or Land Rover might do, but then nothing matches the Hummer’s high road (or trail) clearance, an advantage that serves some buyers just right. Truly, the brand’s “like nothing else” motto is appropriate especially for what Hummer can do off-road.

Until recently, GM has been mum on who might purchase Hummer if a buyer could be found in the first place. With sales way down and gas prices likely to stay high, the brand’s long term appeal would seem minimal especially in America. But, we now know that there has been some interest expressed by a pair of Gulf Arab investors, the names of whom GM isn’t revealing. Hummer is considered to be a status symbol in some countries and is remembered as the close cousin of the Humvee, the star of the first Gulf War.

Besides its status appeal, Hummer could thrive in places where gas prices are low as it is in some Arabic nations. Then again, with billions of oil money to burn, Hummer might survive to serve those for whom gas prices aren’t a concern.

Will people miss Hummer? Some might, but I see the brand as an experiment that lost its appeal when gas prices surged. I doubt that GM will fetch anywhere near a decent offer for the brand, but simply unloading Hummer for a rock bottom price is a lot cheaper than buying out dealers as the company learned with Oldsmobile.