Coupe Red Leather Manual Bose Sound Climate Controls 17" Black Wheels on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Marchionne to take his sweater and go home after 2018

The end is in sight for Fiat Chrysler boss Sergio Marchionne, who confirmed in an interview with Bloomberg that once FCA's sweeping five-year plan is completed, he'd be stepping down from his post to "undoubtedly" do something else that didn't involve turning around global corporations. That would mean he should finish up after 2018 if all goes according to plan.
"It's as important to walk away from the table as it is to sit down," Marchionne told Bloomberg.
Marchionne has been at Fiat since June of 2004 and is one of the chief architects behind the Italian company's acquisition of Chrysler. Despite his successes, he does sound quite ready to move beyond the auto industry, rhetorically asking his Bloomberg interviewers if there "are other things I like to do apart from this?"

Tom Hanks' custom 1974 Fiat 126p has sold for $83,500

Actor Tom Hanks has sold his custom 1974 Fiat 126p at auction for $83,500. It's a notable sum for a 23-horsepower Polish-built microcar, but it's not even the most interesting part of the story. That would be how the Saving Private Ryan star came to possess the car, which was never officially sold in the U.S. in the first place. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The "Polski" Fiat 126p was built in Cold War Poland under license from Fiat while the country was still under communist rule. A successor to the original Fiat 500, the model was particularly long-lived. Fiat built about 1.4 million of them in Italy from 1972-1991. However, that number pales in comparison with the estimated 3.3 million additional cars from Bielsko-Biala, Poland, where the car was manufactured until 2000. Cars built in Poland were denoted 126p, and locals nicknamed them "Maluch," or "small one" in Polish. They were still prevalent in former Eastern Bloc nations like Hungary in 2016 when Hanks visited the country. As an apparent joke he posed next to a few street-parked examples that he came across, posting the subsequent photos to Twitter with the caption "So excited about my new car!!" According to The Drive, a Hanks fan named Monika Jaskolska, a resident of Bielsko-Biala, saw the tweets and made it her mission to get one for him. Jaskolska ended up raising enough money, along with corporate sponsors, to not only restore a 126p, but build a custom interior for Toma Hanksa, as he's known as in Polish. Because the Philadelphia actor was known for collecting typewriters, they customized the interior switchgear to resemble keys from a vintage one. Some of the money raised also went to a local pediatric hospital. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The car was given an unveiling ceremony in Poland before it was delivered to Hanks in Los Angeles via cargo jet, just in time for his birthday. In addition to the custom interior, the car features some exclusive badging and a Forrest Gump quote on a plaque affixed to the dashboard, so there's no confusing it with a regular Polski Fiat. Now, however, it's time to move the car on to a new owner. Hanks is donating the full sale amount to Hidden Heroes, which supports military caregivers, the spouses and parents of injured or ill servicemen and servicewomen.

Fiat Chrysler denies GM's 'preposterous' bribery allegations

DETROIT — Allegations by General Motors that Fiat Chrysler Automobiles bribed union officials are “preposterous” and read like a script from a “third-rate spy movie,” FCA lawyers wrote in court documents filed Monday. GM, in a court motion last week, alleged that Fiat Chrysler used foreign bank accounts to bribe union officials so they would stick GM with higher labor costs. But in a response, the Italian-American automaker fired back, calling GMÂ’s claims “defamatory and baseless.” GM alleged in a court filing last week that FCA spent millions on bribes by stashing the money in foreign accounts. The allegations of new evidence were made in a motion asking a federal judge to reconsider his July dismissal of a federal racketeering lawsuit against Fiat Chrysler. In trying to revive the lawsuit, GM alleged that bribes were paid to two former United Auto Workers presidents, as well as a former union vice president and at least one former GM employee. In its response, Fiat Chrysler said GM has to know that the prospect of getting the judge to overturn the dismissal is slim to none. “So this motion is apparently a vehicle to make more defamatory and baseless accusations about a competitor that is winning in the marketplace.” FCA denied allegations by GM that FCA paid two “moles” to infiltrate GM and send inside information. The company also denied that foreign bank accounts were involved. “That GM has extended its attacks to individual FCA officers and employees, making wild allegations against them without a shred of factual support, is despicable,” FCA lawyers wrote. GM's claims are based on the alleged existence of foreign bank accounts, which are legal, Fiat Chrysler wrote. “There is not one well-pled allegation in the proposed amended complaint (by GM) that these foreign bank accounts were used to pay bribes or facilitate any other illegal conduct,” FCA's response said. GM contends that bribes were paid to former United Auto Workers Presidents Dennis Williams and Ron Gettelfinger, as well as Vice President Joe Ashton. It also alleges money was paid to GM employees including Al Iacobelli, a former FCA labor negotiator who was hired and later released by GM. GM alleges that payments were made so the officials would saddle GM with more than $1 billion in additional labor costs.