Chrysler reports $690 million first quarter loss

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP-EXCITE

DETROIT (AP) — Chrysler Group lost $690 million in the first quarter due to charges related to its merger with Italian automaker Fiat SpA.

Fiat paid $3.65 billion to acquire Chrysler's remaining shares in January. As part of the deal, Chrysler agreed to pay $700 million to upgrade its factories.

Chrysler took a $672 million charge in the first quarter to meet those commitments. It also booked a $540 million non-cash loss to extinguish debt.

FULL story at link.


Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20140512/earns-chrysler-4df72d98e3.html

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In this March 14, 2014 photo, an assembly line worker builds a 2015 Chrysler 200 automobile at the Sterling Heights Assembly Plant in Sterling Heights, Mich. Chrysler Group LLC reports quarterly earnings on Monday, May 12, 2014. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

[TreasonousBastard]

1. For a while I've been asking...

just how bad was Chrysler that it couldn't meet Fiat's standards?

[Spitfire of ATJ]

2. "Fix It Again Tony!" ;-)

[TroglodyteScholar]

4. Fiat has actually come a long way in the SEVERAL decades since that was a saying

But I guess it's still a good way to be dismissive and nationalistic.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

5. I had an X-19 back when they got more mileage going up on the lift than horizontally.

[TreasonousBastard]

11. I had an 850 Spider that was...

absolutely the most fun car I've ever had,

For the 18,000 miles I had it until the block cracked.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

20. I was impressed with the shifting, considering it was through linkage to a rear engine.

[TreasonousBastard]

23. Me too-- much better than VW...

although it was a shorter connection.

Not quite up to Porsche's standards, though.

(And the second gear synchronizer blew out at around 10,000 miles)

[Spitfire of ATJ]

29. That's a LOT further than the 10 blocks I got.

[snooper2]

10. I'm think about getting a 500 as a commuter car

Of course it would have to be an Abarth-

And, I would have to put a couple grand in some upgrades (still end up being under 20K)

[ballyhoo]

3. Ya know, I don't understand. We have a 2005

Sebring Convertible Limited. It is just turning 100,000 miles. It is one of the best cars, maybe the best, we have ever owned. Compared to my wife's Mercedes SLK 280 and my daughter's CLK 320 I would take take the Sebring. What happened? What happened to Chrysler Corp. That Sebring is the last American car we will ever buy. I try and keep it like new so I can remember what American cars used to be.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

7. It's part of a merger deal. $700 million to upgrade their factories....

Ya see, companies aren't supposed to DO that anymore. They're supposed to hand over ALL of their profits to Wall Street to make the already rich much richer.

[ballyhoo]

17. Roger that.

[snooper2]

9. you would rather drive a disposable Sebring than a CLK 320 LOL

funny

[ballyhoo]

15. Absolutely. And I do the work

on all our cars. My daughter took her CLK into the dealership because it was leaking oil. The dealer wanted $900.00 to replace the valve cover gaskets. I did in a little over an hour for $45.00, the price of the gaskets. To have the oil changed on my wife's SLK is over $200.00. I bought an oil extractor (one-time buy) and did for roughly $35.00 going through the dipstick hole in about 20-25 minutes. My Sebring is not disposable. It will look new and run like new as long as I own it.

[TreasonousBastard]

12. Huh? The 200 looks like a worthy update to the Sebring...

even if Consumer Reports hates it.

(CU has always hated my favorite cars)

[ballyhoo]

13. No. I looked at them. Not the

same.

[edhopper]

14. When Daimler owned Chrysler

they made really good cars.
We have a 2004 Dodge Caravan with over 100,000 and is probably good for 50,000 to 75,000 more.
Not saying they aren't good now.

[ballyhoo]

16. Take some outside calipers and

measure the thickness of the door right behind the seam on your Caravan and then on the Fiat/Chrysler--any model. See what you find. Keep the Caravan.

[edhopper]

18. Is that your way of saying

they are crap now?
I will keep my caravan until it dies.
(or i win the lottery and by a Mercedes S550)

[ballyhoo]

19. That would be nice. Yes, pretty

much, that is what I'm saying. I drive a Tacoma myself. I've had it for almost eight years and nothing has ever gone wrong with it. And it is soooo easy to do simple maintenance. Good luck winning the lottery. If I win it, I'll be in New Zealand within a month. To each his own...Good luck to you.

[edhopper]

22. I guess if i end up on St Johns

or the South of France I won't need the 550.

[woodsprite]

21. So if I want a Dodge Caravan, I might be better off to buy used?

I was looking at the new Town and Country's minivan. Not too fond that they made the shape really boxy and T&Cs are expensive, but I have LOVED the two Caravans we previously owned. The only reason we traded our Sebring is because we need space for playpens and baby stuff. Both Caravans lasted quite awhile. Right now, we are all Ford (F350 for towing and a 2006 Taurus for a family car), but really miss the space of the Caravan now that kids want friends to travel with us.

[ballyhoo]

27. Yes. In many ways: Style, Comfort, Durability,

Emotional Stress. Same way with me and my old Toyota. You get older and some of the desire for new plus bells and whistles (car makes pancakes using the lighter) diminishes. You just want something nice that is not hard to live with.

[edhopper]

28. Considering the price depreciation of new cars

I always found used cars to be a better buy.

[Omaha Steve]

25. Our 1999 Intrepid was a POS!

We did all the recommended maintenance. Our model engine had a flaw. Sludge killed the engine. Dodge wouldn't cover it. The extended warranty covered the dead transmission two years earlier at 45,000 miles. Several years of the 2.7 were trash!

AFTER we had traded the car in at close to ZERO value, dodge started paying for the mistake. We were never notified and missed out.

The sludge problem with the 2.7 is because of high heat. there is not enough airflow through the bumper cover, the hood sits right on top the engine, and the catalytic converters are right there under the hood. the heat is what cokes the oil, forms the sludge, then its starts to plug passages. another good thing to do is an oil cooler if you can find one to work.

[Swede Atlanta]

6. I don't see this as bad news.......

The losses were unrelated to sales or recalls (such as GM is experiencing)...they were related to factory upgrades Fiat required as part of the acquisition and to extinguish some debt. Both of those are good things.

I am going to guess that Chrysler, hard pressed for several years and having undergone bankruptcy, had not upgraded some of its facilities to make them more efficient (I know that means fewer jobs). So that investment is good for the long-term health of the company.

As well paying down debt to improve the overall balance sheet is usually a good thing.

I don't see anything in the brief article that suggests Chrysler is in trouble.

[taught_me_patience]

8. You have to look at operating income $486MM vs. $166 ly

Revenue up 23%. The results are strong, but maybe not strong enough for the street that may have been looking for more due to the cycle refresh on the Grand Cherokee.

[liberal N proud]

24. They knew this was going to happen

Taking this hit now makes them more viable going forward paying down some debt.

[wercal]

26. I've had some...ummm...lets say Disappointing experiences with Chrysler

I work on lots of cars, and the Chryslers in my small fleet have had their share of problems.

That's fine. (rear end of truck locked up @105k miles, and exploded transfer case)

But they are unusually difficult to work on....ok. (its nearly impossible to install a transfer case, without taking the bed and cab off, because of the strange mount configuration)

But the kicker - they seem to deliberately set up their parts to be difficult to replace, without buying expensive 'assemblies'. (While replacing the rear end, I built new brake line...the point where the brake line connected to the rest of the brake system...the flared end, flare nut connection...was a special thread. Not one of the two most common sizes/threads used almost universally. Not one of the selection of around a dozen options that every auto parts store has. Nope, it was a very special size. So I go to the dealer, expecting to pay $10 for $0.50 worth of metal. Nope, they don't sell the nut on its own - you've got to buy a $275 "brake line assembly". I just re-used the old one.)

After a while, its too much. I'm turned off to Chrysler.