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China-FCA merger could be a win-win for everyone but politicians

NEW YORK — Fiat Chrysler boss Sergio Marchionne has said the car industry needs to come together, cut costs and stop incinerating capital. So far, his words have mostly fallen on deaf ears among competitors in Europe and North America. But it appears Marchionne has finally found a receptive audience — in China. FCA shares soared Monday after trade publication Automotive News reported the $18 billion Italian-American conglomerate controlled by the Agnelli family rebuffed a takeover from an unidentified carmaker from the Chinese mainland. As ugly as the politics of such a combination may appear at first blush, a transaction could stack up industrially, and perhaps even financially. A Sino-U.S.-European merger would create the first truly global auto group. That could push consolidation to the next level elsewhere. Moreover, China is the world's top market for the SUVs that Jeep effectively invented, so it might benefit FCA financially. A combo would certainly help upgrade the domestic manufacturer; Chinese carmakers have gotten better at making cars, but struggle to build global brands, and they need to develop export markets. Though frivolous overseas shopping excursions by Chinese enterprises are being reined in by Beijing, acquisitions that support the modernization and transformation of strategic industries still receive support, and the government considers the automotive industry to be strategic. A purchase of FCA by Guangzhou Automobile, Great Wall or Dongfeng Motors would probably get the same stamp of approval ChemChina was given for its $43 billion takeover of Syngenta. What's standing in the way? Apart from price (Automotive News said FCA's board deemed the offer insufficient) there's the not-insignificant matter of politics. Even as FCA shares soared, President Donald Trump interrupted his vacation to instruct the U.S. Trade Representative to look into whether to investigate China's trade policies on intellectual property. Seeing storied Detroit brands like Jeep, Chrysler, Ram and Dodge handed off to a Chinese company would provoke howls among Trump's economic-nationalist supporters. It might not play well in Italy, either, to see Alfa Romeo and Maserati answering to Wuhan instead of Turin — though Automotive News said they might be spun off separately. Yet, as Morgan Stanley observes, "cars don't ship across oceans easily," and political considerations increasingly demand local manufacture of valuable products.

2019 Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn is here to satisfy your cowboy dreams

The new 2019 Ram 1500 made its debut at the Detroit Auto Show last week. At the reveal, Ram rolled out several variants, including the Ram 1500 Limited and Ram 1500 Rebel. That was just a taste, a brief bite to whet your truck-loving palate. As you can see in these spy photos, there are far, far more models to come. FCA just released details on the new Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn, and it looks to carry on its predecessor's Southwestern-inspired theme. The Laramie Longhorn can best be described as a Western ranch on wheels. The choice of colors, materials and details are there to bring about a sense of Texas-style luxury. Though the two-tone paint and LED headlights are nice, the real meat is inside the truck. It's easy to see why Ram calls out cowboy boots, pocket watches and horseman's saddles. Just take a look at the metal buckle on the back of the seat pockets. View 19 Photos The dashboard, door panels and armrests are done in full-grain leather. The center console, instrument cluster, seats and door panels are embossed with an alligator skin pattern. There are chrome and nickel accents throughout and a "Longhorn" emblem branded onto the wood on the dashboard. There's also wood on the doors and center console. There are two interior color options, both with contrasting piping: Mountain Brown/Light Mountain Brown and Black/Cattle Tan. Both are full leather. In addition to the optional two-tone paint, the Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn gets a chrome grille, bumpers and tow hooks. Side steps and wheel flares are standard. The standard wheel is a new 20-inch design, though a larger 22-inch wheel is available. The Texas theme continues outside with "belt-buckle badging" on the truck's side. All the rest of the 2019 Ram 1500 features are here, too, including 4G WiFi, a 12-inch touchscreen infotainment system, 5 USB ports and a center console large enough to bathe in. The Laramie Longhorn model should get Ram's tried and true 5.7-liter Hemi V8, now available with the eTorque mild-hybrid system. Pricing hasn't been announced, but expect to see a full breakdown soon. Related Video: Image Credit: Ram Design/Style RAM Truck Luxury Off-Road Vehicles

Lexus tops JD Power Vehicle Dependability Study again, Buick bests Toyota

It shouldn't surprise anyone, but Lexus has once again taken the top spot in JD Power's Vehicle Dependability Study. That'd be the Japanese luxury brand's fourth straight year at the top of table. The big news, though, is the rise of Buick. General Motor's near-premium brand beat out Toyota to take second place, with 110 problems per 100 vehicles compared to Toyota's 111 problems. Lexus owners only reported 89 problems per 100 vehicles. Besides Buick's three-position jump, Scion enjoyed a major improvement, jumping 13 positions from 2014. Ram and Mitsubishi made big gains, as well, moving up 11 and 10 positions, respectively. In terms of individual segments, GM and Toyota both excelled, taking home seven segment awards each. The study wasn't good news for all involved, though. A number of popular automakers finished below the industry average of 147 problems per 100 vehicles, including Subaru, (157PP100), Volkswagen (165PP100), Ford/Hyundai (188PP100 each) and Mini (193PP100). The biggest losers (by a tremendous margin, we might add) were Land Rover and Fiat, recording 258 and 273 problems per 100 vehicles. The next closest brand was Jeep, with 197PP100. While the Vehicle Dependability Study uses the same measurement system as the Initial Quality Survey, the two metrics analyze very different things. The VDS looks at problems experienced by original owners of model year 2012 vehicles over the past 12 months, while the oft-quoted IQS focuses on problems in the first 90 days of new-vehicle ownership. Like the IQS, though, the VDS has a rather broad definition of what a problem is. Because of that, a low score from JD Power is no guarantee of extreme unreliability, so much as just poor design. In this most recent study, the two most reported problems focused on Bluetooth connectivity and the voice-command systems. The former leaves plenty of room for user error due to poor design (particularly true of the Bluetooth systems on the low-scoring Fords, Volkswagens and Subarus), while the second is something JD Power has already confirmed as being universally terrible. That makes means that while these studies are important, they shouldn't be taken as gospel when it comes to automotive reliability. News Source: JD PowerImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Jeremy Korzeniewski / AOL Buick Fiat Ford GM Hyundai Jeep Land Rover Lexus MINI Mitsubishi RAM Scion Subaru Toyota Volkswagen Auto Repair Ownership study