As far as the Fiat 500, it is not a Smart-class car. It is an A-segment car much closer in size to the BMW Mini.

Jim Sachetti Says:
November 5th, 2009 at 8:32 am

“The new Chrysler-Fiat will have WAY too many models, and obviously none of them will do well. Similar to the problem GM had for decades, but much worse.”

Unlike GM in the past, Chrysler/Fiat will be selling all of these cars at the same dealers. It doesn’t cost much more to call a 300C a Chrysler, a minivan a Dodge, and a Wrangler a Jeep than to call all three Chryslers, as long as you have a single dealer network.”

Not really. This is far from enough to be profitable. You are forgetting the huge additional marketing costs to make the consumer aware what the hell each of these low-volume models are. COmpare and contrast to Honda, Toyota, and maybe even Ford, who make only ONE of each, and everybody knows what an Accord, a Camry, a Corolla and a Civic are.

Why do some of you trash the Fiat name plate? Fiats have been around forever and one of the biggest companies world wide.”

So has GM ans Chrysler, but they are bankrupt. FIAT always made very UNreliable, cheap cars, with cheap parts (fortunately). They are the worst dog of European Automakers, worse than Renault-Nissan and even than Peugeot-Citroen.

” When Fiat brings the 500 to the US it will sell like hot cakes, if it is at a good price. ”

If it is at a low price, they will lose $ on every one of them. Like the SMART, it will be too tiny and opverpriced for US tastes. A NICHE vehicle, it will not sell like hotcakes at all. The SMART was lucky to be introduced at a time of $4 gas, but last month it was down 70% (!!!), and its sales are negligible.

“I was hoping the Fait just wanted the dealer network of Dodge to bring Fait back to the us.

You never heard any horror stories from US Fiat owners in the 70s? The 128 Fiats that rusted thru in 2 years? Very forgettable, and at the end both Fiat and Alfa had to leave the US market in defeat.

“I know of a lot worse name plates out that people pay big money for, Land Rover, Jag, etc”

FIrst, these are both Luxury brands, the4 exact opposite of FIAT, and both are British, and we know what POS cars the Brit Auto industry made. No wonder they went broke even after all UK companies united in British Leyland in the 70s.

“The new Chrysler-Fiat will have WAY too many models, and obviously none of them will do well. Similar to the problem GM had for decades, but much worse.”

Unlike GM in the past, Chrysler/Fiat will be selling all of these cars at the same dealers. It doesn’t cost much more to call a 300C a Chrysler, a minivan a Dodge, and a Wrangler a Jeep than to call all three Chryslers, as long as you have a single dealer network.

I know of a lot worse name plates out that people pay big money for, Land Rover, Jag, etc

But I like the Acura TSX wagon coming up. The Cross-tour is just too big. And in Canada it would probaly cost 10k more than the American version.

And re-badging Fiats and calling them Dodges is another stroke of Genius…why would one bother to call a Fiat by an even worse name, and make the consumer mad when he realizes he is being fooled again?

I am afraid Chrysler-Fiat will die a slow and painful and very expensive death… if we keep giving them billions…