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Chrysler And Lancia To Reveal Joint Product Plan In Geneva

 
9 2,505 views February 8, 2010

Chrysler-badged Lancia

Chrysler’s lineup, both in North America and Europe, is in for a major shakeup over the next couple of years now that the expanding Fiat Group and its demanding CEO Sergio Marchionne are pulling all the strings. We’ve already seen hints of some of the plans with the unveiling of the Chrysler-badged Lancia Delta hatchback at last month’s 2010 Detroit Auto Show and Marchionne pretty much gave it all away when he revealed that the Chrysler and Lancia divisions could be merged within the year.

Now, as the 2010 Geneva Motor Show approaches, Chrysler and Lancia have announced they will hold a joint press conference where they are expected to reveal their future product plans.

While we’ll have to wait until next month’s show for all the official details, reports coming out of Europe claim Fiat has already shown a plan to Italian government representatives and worker union officials that reveals four Chrysler models will be imported from North America and rebadged as Lancias for sale in Italy in 2011. In other European markets the cars will remain as Chryslers.

The models are to include a redesigned Sebring Sedan and Convertible, a facelifted Town & Country minivan and the next-generation 300 sedan. In return, the Lancia Delta hatchback will be sold in North American markets as a Chrysler.

The move makes good sense as Marchionne pointed out in a previous interview.

“In Europe, Lancia is an undersized, underdeveloped brand, with nothing bigger than the Delta. Chrysler, which has a true global reach, has nothing smaller. Put them together and you have a full lineup,” he explained.

Whatever Chrysler and Fiat intend to do, we'll keep you updated with the latest.

[Automotive News, sub req’d]


HI-RES GALLERY: Chrysler-badged Lancia




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Comments (9)

  1. By Bret Posted: 2/8/2010 6:35am PST

    Wow, four cars for the Delta, yep that's fair for me. Anyway, I don't understand, what's the point, how big the Italian car market can be so they will rebadge Chryslers as Lancias only for it, and that can be strange, I mean in the whole Europe the Chryslers will be Chryslers and the Lancias will be Lancias, wile in Italy they will merge, I still can't see the point.
     
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  2. By Nick Posted: 2/8/2010 9:48am PST

    Lancias are only sold in Italy as far as I know. Since neither Lancia nor Chrysler has much of a presence in the rest of Europe, they simply chose one of the 2 to go with.
    It's similar to the Vauxhall-Opel relationship. Opels are sold all over continental Europe while Vauxhall is only sold in the UK and Opel isn't sold there at all. At the end of the day, they are the same cars sold under different badges.
     
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  3. By bepsf Posted: 2/8/2010 9:57am PST

    Seems to me that the Lancia brand would have a better name-recognition/public opinion in Europe than the Chrysler brand...
    ...particulary after a decade of PT Cruisers precluded by another decade of crappy Neons.
     
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  4. By io Posted: 2/8/2010 4:31pm PST

    Lancia is sold in "a variety of countries", but it is sold in signifiant numbers only in Italy, as all their models except Delta are in fact rebadged Fiats
     
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  5. By NoNameDenton Posted: 2/8/2010 4:41pm PST

    The Neon and Caliber both were not great cars, so anything Fiat uses to replace them will be a massive inprovment.
     
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  6. By  r4 Posted: 2/8/2010 7:11pm PST

    I would be excited if I was an enthusiast over there, but factors like gas prices, economy taxes, and emissions taxes are going to kill anything with a Hemi in it. They already have 300 Tourings (Magnums) with diesel’s in them, so beyond a rebadge job for Lancia I don’t know what they could possibly get besides cars built for Hemi’s with underpowered oil-burners in them.
     
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  7. By NoNameDenton Posted: 2/8/2010 7:48pm PST

    r4, what do you mean underpowered oil burners? Yes, oil burners do not have high hp numbers, but they have loads of low end torque which is what really matters.
     
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  8. By  Marco Posted: 2/12/2010 10:04am PST

    The Lancia cars are not rebranded Fiats and are sold in all Europe. Ypsilon, Musa and Delta are beautiful and classy cars, as you can see if you click on my name...
     
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  9. By joe Posted: 2/15/2010 9:53am PST

    I and others in Las vegas drive our lancias often- even though they are 30 years old
    great fun cars
    only problem with this or any other plan like this-Italian cars enthusiasts like myself are not likely to buy one build in the USA-
    not that our workers are not the best in the world
    it is a culture thing. I am concerned that Fiat thinks a fiat built in mexico is the same as a fiat built in Italy
    they are wrong
    alfas are to be build in Milan not Detroit
    this is a huge issue fro us Italian car guys.
     
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