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Chrysler 300C gets Sport Appearance Package option

In 2017, Chrysler added the option of a Sport Appearance Package to the sporty trim level of the 300 sedan, the 300S. The package added trim pieces from the hot-blooded 300 SRT sedan that we don't get in the U.S., namely the front fascia with LED foglights and SRT-style side skirts. Mopar Insiders reports that as of this month, the same upgrade is available on the top-level 300C trim as the Performance Appearance Package. Whereas the Sport Appearance Package on the V6-powered S model costs $1,795; the 300C's Performance Appearance Package is said to cost $695. We're sure Chrysler knows this isn't the performance upgrade that U.S. 300 buyers want. For reasons best known inside Chrysler, only Australia, New Zealand, and the Middle East get the 300 SRT and its 6.4-liter V8 with 469 horsepower and 469 pound-feet of torque, limited-slip differential, Bilstein dampers, and Brembo brakes. It's possible the absence of the 300 SRT here is because Chrysler wants North American audiences to see Dodge as the performance brand. At this point, however, anyone intending to buy a 300 should be happy the four-door is still on sale. The model is eight years old and hasn't been the subject of anything close to hard news since last September. That's when Automotive News Canada said the car would die in 2020 to make room for the six-passenger Portal concept. The last hard nugget before that was in 2016, when the late Sergio Marchionne told Reuters the 300 could go front-wheel drive on the Pacifica platform — a fate arguably worse than killing the car. Now all we have is rumor and speculation, such as when Road & Track writes a "major refresh [is] ... supposedly being planned already," and sees a possibility that the 300/Charger/Challenger trio live into the next decade. The moral of the story is: The 300's irons could be as hot as they're ever going to get right now. FCA hasn't announced the upgrade package, but Mopar Insider says dealers can get it right now, order code AJU.

FCA withdraws its offer to merge with Renault

UPDATE: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles released a statement confirming that it has withdrawn its merger offer, saying "it has become clear that the political conditions in France do not currently exist for such a combination to proceed successfully." The full statement can be read below our original story, which continues below. Fiat Chrysler has withdrawn its $35 billion merger offer for Renault, the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday. A source said that FCA had informed Renault it had withdrawn the offer after Renault's board of directors failed to reach a decision on the merger during a meeting that ran late into the night Wednesday. Instead, the board granted the French government's request to postpone its vote. The government wanted time to persuade Renault's reticent alliance partner Nissan. Renault's board issued a press release that said simply that it was "unable to take a decision due to the request expressed by the representatives of the French State to postpone the vote to a later Council." WSJ reported that Nissan's two members on Renault's board were balking, while the rest of the board favored the merger. The French government wouldn't it back the deal unless Nissan agreed to maintain its role in the Renault-Nissan alliance, sources said. Nissan had received little advance warning of the merger proposal and was balking. Apparently the French government thought Nissan could be brought around if given more time. "We should take our time to make sure that things are done well," French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told French television on Wednesday. When the French requested a delay and Renault's board granted it, FCA withdrew. The French state, which owns 15% of Renault, had also been seeking more influence over the merged company, firmer job guarantees and improved terms for Renault shareholders in return for blessing the $35 billion tie-up. The merger would have created the world's third-biggest automaker with combined sales of 8.7 million vehicles per year, and was intended to cut costs as the parties develop electric and autonomous vehicles. Read Fiat Chrysler Automobile's full statement below: FCA withdraws merger proposal to Groupe Renault June 5, 2019 , London - IMPORTANT NOTICE The Board of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. ("FCA") (NYSE: FCAU / MTA: FCA), meeting this evening under the Chairmanship of John Elkann, has resolved to withdraw with immediate effect its merger proposal made to Groupe Renault.

Who are Mike Manley, Louis Camilleri, and Suzanne Heywood?

MILAN – Fiat Chrysler aid on Saturday that boss Sergio Marchionne, 66, would not be returning to work because he was gravely ill. In addition to being FCA chief executive, Marchionne was also CEO and chairman of luxury sports car brand Ferrari and chairman of truck and tractor maker CNH Industrial, which were spun off from FCA in recent years. Following is a brief summary on the executives who have been appointed to replace him in the various roles: MIKE MANLEY The 54-year-old Briton picked to become the FCA's new CEO has been leading the group's top brand Jeep since 2009, first as Jeep President and CEO at Chrysler and then as FCA's Jeep head. In 2015 he was also appointed head of the Ram brand. Under his tenure, Jeep turned into a global brand becoming, together with Ram, FCA's profit engine. Jeep sold nearly 1.4 million cars last year compared with less than 338,000 in 2009. Manley had worked as DaimlerChrysler's head of network development in Britain since 2000, having earlier worked for several years in car dealership. At Chrysler, he headed product planning and all sales activities outside of North America and then became the group's chief operating officer for Asia and the lead executive for the international activities outside of NAFTA. LOUIS CAMILLERI The new Ferrari CEO was already a board member at the luxury sportscar maker before his latest appointment. He is also the chairman of Philip Morris International, where he also held the job of CEO from 2008 to 2013. Born in 1955, Camilleri had joined Altria Group, which controls Philip Morris, in 1978 holding various positions until he became chief financial officer in 1996 and then CEO in 2002. Camilleri was also chairman of Kraft Foods from 2002 to 2007. Malta's Prime Minister Joseph Muscat wished Camilleri luck on Twitter saying he was proud to have "a bit of Malta in Ferrari" thanks to the new CEO, who was born in Egypt to Maltese parents. SUZANNE HEYWOOD The new, British-born chairwoman of CNH Industrial has been since 2016 the managing director of EXOR, the holding company through which the Agnelli family controls FCA. Heywood, 49, started her career at the British Treasury and then joined McKinsey in 1997, leading for many years the consultancy firm's global service line on organization design. She eventually became a senior partner there. Heywood sits on the board of The Economist, which is controlled by EXOR, and the board of the Royal Opera House, where she is also deputy chair.