2005 Chrysler Town & Country on 2040-cars

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Strains between France and Italy risk Renault-FCA merger

PARIS/ROME — Fiat Chrysler's proposed $35 billion merger with Renault has cheered investors, won conditional support from Paris and Rome and even earned cautious backing from trade unions. Beneath this veneer, however, the bold attempt to create the world's third-largest carmaker risks becoming rapidly embroiled in the fraught relationship between France's europhile President Emmanuel Macron and Italy's euroskeptic leaders. For while Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini hailed the proposal as a "brilliant operation," Italy's creaking, state-subsidized Fiat factories are likely to bear the brunt of any production-related cost savings. FCA and Renault said this week that more than 5 billion euros ($5.6 billion) of annual savings would come mainly from combining platforms, consolidating powertrain and electrification investments and the benefits of increased scale. Salvini and France's Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, who called the deal a "good opportunity" to build a European industrial champion able to compete with China and the United States, have both said they want guarantees on local jobs. "It's not every day that I agree with Salvini," said Le Maire, whose government appears to hold the trump cards. When it comes to where any job cuts fall, France will be helped by its existing 15 percent holding in Renault, whose superior efficiency at its five French plants makes it better placed to handle a supply glut, the demise of the petrol engine and the investments needed for electric and autonomous vehicles. "It will take many, many years to find real savings, and ugly political and operational realities can often swamp the potential of such new entities," Bernstein analyst Max Warburton said of the FCA-Renault plan to rival Japan's Toyota and Germany's Volkswagen. Advantage France? As well as Italy's government having to cope with the aftermath of European elections, which coincided with news of the FCA-Renault plans, political leaders in Rome were only informed shortly before the deal was made public, an FCA source said. This contrasted with the way the French government was treated, with Fiat Chrysler Chairman John Elkann, a fluent French speaker, letting it know of his merger proposal to Renault weeks ago, a French government official said.

Chrysler Airflow Vision concept pairs today's platform with yesterday's name

Fiat-Chrysler has a number of notable announcements at this year's CES, including a formal announcement of its plug-in hybrid plans and branding, as well as the North American debut of the Fiat Centoventi concept. But it's also bringing something new and forward-looking to the show in the form of the slippery-looking Chrysler Airflow Vision concept. If that name sounds familiar to you, it's because the Airflow name was used on some streamlined and highly distinctive-looking Chrysler products of the 1930s. One thing both the old and new Airflows share is a slippery shape. The new Airflow is nothing but soft organic curves, looking like the automotive equivalent of Disney/Marvel robotic hero Baymax. It even has spats that cover the wheels, which are translucent to show off the big, copper-accented wheels underneath. While not unattractive, the modern Airflow does look a bit generic compared to the bold original, since so many modern EVs have a rounded rounded shape that's undoubtedly aerodynamic, but also unexciting. Maybe Chrysler should give it big hood strakes to evoke the stretched grille of the '30s Airflow. Peel away the pearly white exterior and you have a blend of future and contemporary technology. The interior shows off pedestal mounted seats swathed in suede and leather. The dashboard is minimalist and curvy like the exterior, and it features many screens as is the modern custom. In the center are dual displays for infotainment and climate controls like in an Audi. A small instrument screen sits ahead of the steering wheel, and the passenger gets a screen directly ahead of their seat. Chrysler says a unique feature will be the ability to swipe different menus and functions over to other occupants' screens so they can fiddle with things. Chrysler hasn't explicitly said what powers the Airflow Vision, but it makes mention of using the floor of the Pacifica Hybrid. It could share that van's powertrain, a hybrid V6 arrangement that might even preview the reported electrified all-wheel-drive version. We'll hopefully get more details on the powertrain after the reveal.

Marchionne's pay as Fiat CEO falls to $5M

Sergio Marchionne will be buying fewer of his iconic sweaters, as his 2013 pay from Fiat took a dip from $6.24 million to an even $5 million. Marchionne, who was also CEO of Chrysler, made $307,989 thanks to some stocks and benefits from the American company, although he didn't take a salary. Of that $5 million paid by Fiat, $3.19 million came from Marchionne's fixed salary while the remaining $1.8 million was paid for hitting unspecified performance targets.
The news comes from Fiat's compensation reports, which also showed that the 61-year-old, who already owned three million shares in Fiat at the end of 2013, was able to receive an additional 2.3 million shares through a stock incentive program. According to Automotive News Europe, the additional shares would be worth about $25 million at today's prices, although so far, Marchionne has declined to claim the extra shares.
According to ANE, Fiat reported a 2013 trading profit of $4.7 billion.