Chrysler CEO Outlines Brand Direction

AUSTIN, TX – Chrysler has started on the path to becoming an “American brand that is deeply rooted in the mainstream,” remedying a failure under the watch of a number of different owners, says CEO Al Gardner.

“We need some discipline with this brand, because it has been moved left, right and center for a long time,” Gardner tells WardsAuto at a media event here. “If we don’t make it mainstream American and affordable then we’ve lost the whole essence of what this brand has to be.”

Chrysler currently has just three products, the 200 midsize sedan, Town & Country minivan and the all-new ’15 300 fullsize sedan. But to achieve its ultimate goal of being a full-line manufacturer, with the exception of trucks, the marque must expand its showroom, Gardner says.

“We need to be in the compact, midsize, and large car, minivan and the two CUV markets,” he says. “We don’t need to be everything to everyone, but we need to be in the super segments.”

At a May 6 presentation outlining future plans for its divisions, Fiat Chrysler executives announced Dodge would be the performance division, while Ram would handle trucks and Chrysler would fill in the gaps.

Plans call for Chrysler to add a small car in 2016, the 100 sedan, and expand its lineup with a fullsize CUV in 2017 and a midsize CUV in 2018.

The expanded lineup will allow Chrysler to broaden coverage of the North American market to segments that combine for 11.1 million units annually, up from about 3.5 million today, Gardner says.

The new products will put Chrysler in better position to take on the mass-market brands, with the new 100 aimed at such competitors as the Ford Focus, Chevrolet Cruze and Honda Civic, and the fullsize SUV targeted squarely at such models as the Ford Explorer and Toyota Highlander.

The new midsize CUV will go up against such competitors as the Chevrolet Equinox and Nissan Rogue.

Just having entries in the top automotive segments won’t be enough to succeed, Gardner says.

Chrysler vehicles have to have an “elegant look on the outside, but when you get into these cars they really have to knock your socks off,” he says.

Many top competitors don’t have the “wow” factor Chrysler strives for, Gardner says, mentioning vehicles such as the Chevrolet Impala and Toyota Avalon.

“They’re nice cars, but they are all going to be priced north of us and not going to drive (like a Chrysler), and are not going to have the technology or an interior that says, ‘This is something special.’”

The all-new ’15 Chrysler 200, launched last year, was the first step in Chrysler’s long-term plan. The midsize sedan replaced a poorly executed model of the same name that was widely panned and largely relegated to rental fleets.

The new version is vastly superior and is starting to gain traction with consumers. Through November, Chrysler 200 sales were down 13.4% vs. year-ago to 101,134, according to WardsAuto data. But that number doesn’t tell the complete story, as the automaker was heavily discounting the old model and funneling units into rental fleets.

In November, Chrysler sold 14,317 units, a respectable figure and 154.7% higher than year-ago. While the monthly result was solid, Gardner says the 200 has not yet reached its final goal.

“When you look at products like the (Ford) Fusion, (Honda) Accord and (Toyota) Camry, those are products that have been around for a long time and they’re brands within brands,” he says. “We don’t have that.

“We have a long way to go from a customer base and awareness standpoint,” Gardner adds. “The awareness is kicking in and rising quickly, but it will take years before we are ever able to compete at the pure volume levels of an Accord or a Camry.”

Chrysler isn’t necessarily taking the same approach with the ’15 Chrysler 300, which gets new interiors and revised sheetmetal, including a grille that is 30% larger than that of the outgoing model.

When the 300 launched as an ’05 model, it caught the attention of consumers with its dramatic exterior styling, which earned it the nickname “Baby Bentley.”

Sales of the 300 continue to hold up, with November deliveries jumping 18.3% to 4,871, according to WardsAuto data.

But the large-sedan segment in which the 300 resides is facing hard times, as an increasing number of consumers flock to CUVS and SUVs.

Gardner says he doesn’t think the that movement will have much of an impact on the 300.

“There is going to be a market for big cars, and frankly we do it better than most. And we stand apart because we’re rear-wheel drive, and that gives us the ability to get the look we want,” he says. “We’re confident the large-car segment is going to be solid and stable for at least the next five-plus years.”

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