2004 Chrysler Crossfire Limited Edition One-of-a-kind Low Miles 1-owner!!! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

FCA and PSA sign merger agreement

Confirming an earlier rumor, PSA Group and Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) signed a binding merger agreement to create the world's fourth-largest automaker. The partners hope to leverage the benefits of economies of scale as they develop new technologies and expand their global presence. The announcement ends FCA's years-long search for a partner, which nearly ended earlier in 2019 when it came close to merging with Renault, PSA's rival. It brings Fiat, Chrysler, Dodge, Ram, Jeep, Alfa Romeo, Maserati, Lancia, Peugeot, Citroen, DS, and Opel/Vauxhall under the same roof. That's a huge portfolio of brands that often overlap, but executives pledged to keep them all open, as well as all their respective factories as a result of the transaction. They're committed to making this big family of automakers work by building on each one's strengths, whether they're technical or regional. FCA and PSA jointly predicted they'll sell about 8.7 million cars annually around the globe, while posting an ˆ11 billion (about $12.2 million) profit. North America, a strong market for FCA, will provide 43% of its revenues, and 46% will be generated in Europe, where Peugeot's brands are doing better than ever. Together, they plan to achieve ˆ3.7 billion (about $4.1 million) in annual run-rate synergies. They'll notably have the purchasing power to negotiate a better price with suppliers, and they'll merge their research and development efforts where it makes sense to do so. Over two thirds of the group's annual volume will be built on two shared platforms. One will underpin about three million small cars annually, and the other will serve as the foundation for approximately three million compact and mid-sized cars. Details about these architectures haven't been made public yet, but a quick look at both companies' product portfolios reveals the small car will very likely come from Peugeot. Recent additions to its range, like the second-generation 208, are built on a new architecture named Common Modular Platform (CMP) developed with electric powertrains in mind. Meanwhile, Fiat is still making the cheeky 500 on an evolution of the platform found under the second-generation Panda released in 2003. The bigger architecture could come from FCA, however. The group's brands will share engines, transmissions, electric powertrains, infotainment systems, various sensors used to power electronic driving aids, and other components like wiring looms, but each one will retain its own identity.

Here are all the vehicles sold by the 12 brands of the Fiat Chrysler PSA merger

Sven Gustafson and Ronan Glon contributed to this report. Whether or not the formal merger between Italian-American automaker Fiat Chrysler and European conglomerate PSA Group means the return of Peugeot to the U.S., one thing’s for certain: The combined company will have a truckload of different brands. Sorting out what the deal means for all of them, including where they are sold and built, and whether and where there is product overlap, will be a key question for the two companies as they formalize the merger over the next 12 to 15 months. So far, both sides have steadfastly insisted that no job cuts or plant closures will result from the tie-up. WeÂ’ll see about that. In the meantime, weÂ’ve compiled an alphabetical list of all the vehicles currently sold in Europe and in North America by the various FCA and PSA brands, along with the years they debuted. We've gone into more detail about the European vehicles you might be less familiar with. The joint empire also has an antique store's worth of heritage-laced models and dormant brands, like Plymouth, Imperial, Simca, and Panhard, and it would have been even bigger had FCA not spun off Ferrari in early 2016. Alfa Romeo A legacy Italian sports car brand with roots in racing, Alfa Romeo has been struggling with declining U.S. sales. Giulia (2015): AlfaÂ’s rear-wheel drive sports sedan competes against German luxury sedans in North America and Europe. 4C (2013): The lightweight mid-engine rear-wheel-drive sports car is being phased out. Stelvio (2016): The Stelvio is a small luxury performance crossover that competes against the likes of the Porsche Macan and BMW X3 and is sold in both Europe and North America. Giulietta (2010): Sold in Europe, this compact hatchback is AlfaÂ’s entry-level model. After initially planning a rear-wheel drive 2020 update, the Giulietta is reportedly being nixed as part of FCAÂ’s latest product plans.   Chrysler Despite lending its name to its parent company, questions abound about the future of this legendary but faded brand, which is not offered in Europe. 300 (2011): Despite rumors of its pending demise, the four-door sedan lives on mostly unchanged for the 2020 model year, at least. Pacifica (2016): The successor to the Town & Country is ChryslerÂ’s bestselling model by a long shot and comes in gas-only and plug-in hybrid versions. Voyager (2019): ChryslerÂ’s newest minivan launches as its entry-level minivan for the 2020 model year.

How fracking is causing Chrysler minivans to sit on Detroit's riverfront

It's fascinating the way that one change to a complex system can have all sorts of unintended consequences. For instance, there are hundreds of new Chrysler Town and County and Dodge Grand Caravan minivans built in Windsor, Ontario, sitting in lots on the Detroit waterfront because of the energy boom in the Bakken oil field in the northern US and parts of Canada.
The huge amount of crude oil coming from these sites mostly use freight trains for transport, and that supply boom has resulted in a shortage of railcars to carry other goods. According to The Windsor Star, North American crude oil transport by train has gone from 9,500 carloads in 2008 to 434,032 carloads in 2013. Making matters worse, some North American rail infrastructure is still damaged because of this year's harsh winter, and that's slowing things down even further.
Chrysler admits to The Star that it has had some delivery delays due to the freight train shortage. In the meantime, it's using more trucks to deliver its vehicles. Trucking is a far less economical solution, partially because a train can carry so many more units at one time, but alternatives are slim. The Windsor plant alone has a deal for 33 trucks to distribute the minivans around Canada and the Midwestern US.