Chrysler involvement

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

tacho d

Active Member
Joined
Mar 18, 2014
Messages
86
Location
Brundall, Norwich
Car
Mercedes Benz W209 CLK 220 CDI
I heard a few years ago that Chrysler has been involved with Mercedes Benz and recently I have seen a Chrysler Benz label somewhere on my w208. Was this a collaboration, takeover or what?. To what extent has Chrysler been involved? Has this effected the famous Mercedes attention to detail and build quality? And what is the history and reason behind this?:confused:
 
There was a merger between Daimler and Chrysler in 1998, which didn't go down very well.
Plenty of stuff online if you google around, such as this article:
How Culture ended the Daimler-Benz Chrysler Merger | resources
One of the problems was a completely different perspective on costs, like a Chrysler front seat costing $150 to make vs about $600 for a Merc. The American car market is all image and marketing and few drivers seem interested in driving to the extent that looking where they are going seems an imposition - this is the land of the cup holder. The Chrysler Crossfire was about the only noticeable result of the collaboration which was a re-skinned old model SLK320, even then it was built in Germany.

In the world of Ford and Jaguar, Fiat and Ferrari, VW and Audi it probably looked right, but Chrysler were and are a fur coat and no knickers sort of car maker whereas Merc have always been serous about quality and had their fingers burnt when they've tried to compromise.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom