Chrysler Intends to Save by Using 'Imported' Parts

To cut costs, Chrysler is outsourcing beyond North America and employing frugal plans to reduce expenses by $1,000 per vehicle.

"We are willing to import with the focus on being competitive," said Tom LaSorda, Chrysler head during the Beijing International Automotive Exhibition. LaSorda also stated that within 6-12 months, Chrysler would point out cost reductions averaging $1,000 per vehicle, a portion of which comes from outsourcing. He added, "We are going to source where we can get good low-cost components and high quality."

LaSorda also noted that the automaker will concentrate on increasing sales beyond North America. It can be recollected that in said territory, Chrysler usually generates 85-91 percent sales.

Further, LaSorda reported talks about a production alliance with China's Chery and a non-Chinese company. However, LaSorda did not give further detailsabout the possible alliance. Chrysler, an American automobile manufacturer, existed independently from 1925 to 1998. Then, Chrysler and its subsidiaries became part of DaimlerChrysler AG when merger with Daimler-Benz was acknowledged in 1998.

It can be recalled that last year was one of the most remarkable years for Chrysler. Last year, a bench trial in Wilmington Delaware has started. The parties of said trial are Kirk Kerkorian and DaimlerChrysler AG. It was all about the allegations about Jürgen Schrempp of Daimler Benz AG, regarding uttering lies and manipulating the Security and Exchange Commission as well as the Chrysler Corporation's shareholders. Kerkorian was one of the biggest stockholders then. Said case delved on merger of the companies as a merger of equals and not an outright acquisition. Further, the judge favored DaimlerChrysler. Nevertheless, another case was amicably settled for $300 million in 2003.

Nowadays, Chrysler takes extra effort to clear the clouds blurring its reputation. It is also concentrating on how to cut costs without compromising the quality of Chrysler car parts hence; the decision of outsourcing from other territories.

Critics in the auto industry are eyeing on the workflow and performance of Chrysler vehicles. Moreover, the automaker is struggling to put up a good fight with other automakers. Now it is devising several plans to augment its production and sales.

By Joe Wayne.

Chrysler Parts-A Legacy of Innovation

Chrysler was founded by a man who had a reputation for saving foundering companies. Walter Chrysler rose from the ranks to become the president of Buick. He resigned from his position and was hired by Willy's Overland Motor Company to supervise the rehabilitation of its ailing operations. He did a similar job by turning around the Maxwell-Chalmers Company. In 1925, he purchased Maxwell's assets to form the firm that still bears his name - Chrysler Corporation. Aside from the Chrysler marque, the Plymouth and DeSoto marques were created to cater to the low priced and medium priced ends of the market, respectively. Chrysler acquired The Dodge Brothers Motor Company and by spinning off Imperial as a separate luxury brand in 1955, Chrysler has assembled a five-brand lineup to compete with General Motors, which has a similar offering.

What sets Chrysler Corporation apart from other car manufacturers is its emphasis on automotive engineering rather than styling. Walter Chrysler supported engineering research and continued funding the department even through the Depression era. Because of this, Chrysler cars have been at the forefront of automotive engineering since Chrysler Six, Chrysler's first car introduced in 1924. The Chrysler Six is touted by many as the first modern car, scoring several firsts in the industry such as an oil filter, air cleaner, high compression engine, four-wheel hydraulic brakes, and other advanced Chrysler parts. Innovation also resulted in part from the input of brilliant engineers throughout Chrysler's history who invented those Chrysler parts and pushed the envelope of automotive engineering. The Three Musketeers, a trio of talented engineers composed of Frederick Zeder, Owen Skelton, and Carl Breer set the direction during Chrysler's early years.

The Chrysler Corporation has gone through a series of financial difficulties, but it has always pulled through. The Plymouth and Dodge brands sustained the company during the Depression, when its introduction of the world's first aerodynamic car, the Airflow, proved a failure. National recession again put the company in the red in 1957 but continuing innovations like the now-standard unibody helped the company recover. The 1970's proved costly to Chrysler. Its big investment for a new full-body lineup went down the drain as demand for large vehicles plummeted during the first gas crisis in 1973. It was saved in turn by a spike in sales of its old but smaller compacts. Unsuccessful product launches and the second gas crisis would have killed Chrysler if not for the 1 billion dollars the government loaned in 1979 to bail out the company. With Lee Iacocca at the helm and with a new trio of talented car designers, the Gale-Herlitz-Creed team, Chrysler steadily recovered and became once again, a dominant force in the American automotive industry. in 1998, Chrysler merged with Daimler Benz to form the DaimlerChrysler AG company.

The Chrysler history is one in which innovation holds the key for long-term success. The passion for upgrading, refining, and looking for ways to improve Chrysler parts and Chrysler as a whole is what the company is all about. Chrysler parts like the air filter, transmission modulator, torque converter, and brake systems all contribute to make Chrysler what it is today. A car, after all, is a sum of its parts.

By Catherine Covarubias.