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Dodge Viper saved from crusher by students, but will it last?

The saga of the Washington state community college hoping to keep its allegedly pre-production Dodge Viper out of the maw of the crusher is going strong. Not only does the school still have the car, but there's a chance that the college might even get to keep it.
The whole situation flared up in March when the South Puget Sound Community College in Olympia, WA, received a notice from Chrysler Group that requested that the school's Viper be destroyed. The automaker had loaned the muscle car to it about a decade ago to use for educational purposes in its auto tech classes. With the Dodge growing long in the tooth, "it is unlikely that these vehicles offer any educational value to students," the company said in its press release on the matter.
However, the college balked at destroying its Viper, despite the fact it had signed a contract with Chrysler Group to do so. The school further claimed that its car was incredibly special because it was a pre-production example and just the fourth one made back in 1992. Although, as we pointed out at the time, the photos of the school's vehicle showed a coupe that looked like a newer Viper GTS.

GM seeks appeals court ruling to continue legal fight with Fiat Chrysler

DETROIT — General Motors on Friday asked a U.S. appeals court to allow it to continue pursuing its civil racketeering suit against rival Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, rejecting a lower court judge's belittling of the complaint. The automaker's filing with the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals comes less than a week after U.S. District Court Judge Paul Borman called GM's suit against Fiat Chrysler a "waste of time and resources" at a time when both automakers should be focused on surviving the coronavirus pandemic. Borman ordered GM Chief Executive Mary Barra and Fiat Chrysler CEO Mike Manley to meet by July 1 to negotiate a resolution. "As we have said from the date this lawsuit was filed, it is meritless," FCA said on Friday. "FCA will continue to defend itself vigorously and pursue all available remedies in response to GM's groundless lawsuit. We stand ready to comply with Judge Borman's order," it added. In its motion, GM asked the appeals court to throw out Borman's order and reassign the case to a different district court judge. It called Borman's order "unprecedented" and "a profound abuse" of judicial power. GM sued Fiat Chrysler last year, accusing the Italian-American company's executives of bribing United Auto Workers union officials to secure labor agreements that put GM at a disadvantage. Fiat Chrysler is under investigation by the U.S. Justice Department as part of a wide-ranging probe of UAW corruption. GM's accusations came as Fiat Chrysler and French automaker Peugeot were in the early stages of preparing for a merger. Fiat Chrysler has said the suit was aimed at disrupting that deal. GM has said the suit has nothing to do with the merger. In a statement, GM rejected Borman's characterization of the suit as a "distraction" and defended its decision to press the case. "We filed a lawsuit against FCA for the same reason the U.S. Department of Justice continues to investigate the company: former FCA executives admitted they conspired to use bribes to gain labor benefits, concessions and advantages. Based on the direct harm to GM these actions caused, we believe FCA must be held accountable." Related Video: Government/Legal UAW/Unions Chrysler Fiat GM

Poor Chrysler 200 sales blamed for 1,420 layoffs in Sterling Heights

FCA will indefinitely lay off a total of 1,420 workers from its Sterling Heights Assembly and Stamping plants on July 5, according to The Detroit News. This decision will cut a 1,300-person shift that builds the Chrysler 200, and it will also affect 120 people who stamp the sedan's components. The company's statement said the decision would "better align production with demand." FCA plans to give these folks open full-time positions as they become available. Chrysler 200 sales are down 63 percent to just under 18,000 units so far in 2016. After the cuts, there will still be one shift to build the 200, but even then the model won't have much of a future. In January, CEO Sergio Marchionne announced that FCA would discontinue production of the 200 and Dodge Dart because customers were no longer interested in small sedans. All of the roughly 3,000 hourly workers at Sterling Heights have been on a temporary layoff since February 1, according to The Detroit News. They don't go back to work until next week. United Auto Workers Vice President Norwood Jewell released a statement saying that while the "shift reduction at Sterling Heights Assembly is unfortunate, it is not unexpected." However, he was fairly upbeat about the cuts because FCA plans to increase production capacity for trucks and SUVs. "I believe that in the long term this move will be a positive one for our members and the company," he said. During last year's labor negotiations, the UAW's deal reportedly included an agreement for FCA to move 200 and Dodge Dart production to Toluca, Mexico, but the company promised to build the Ram 1500 at Sterling Heights Assembly. FCA spokesperson Jodi Tinson gave no comment about future vehicles at the factory when asked by Autoblog. Related Video: Statement Regarding Indefinite Layoffs at SHAP In order to better align production with demand at its Sterling Heights Assembly Plant, FCA US notified the State of Michigan, the City of Sterling Heights and the UAW today that it intends to return the plant to a one shift operation, beginning July 5. The Company will place indefinitely laid off employees in open full-time positions as they become available within the Detroit labor market based on seniority. A Statement from UAW Vice President Norwood Jewell on FCA Announcement about Sterling Heights Assembly: While today's announcement of a shift reduction at Sterling Heights Assembly is unfortunate, it is not unexpected.