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more merger talk :(

4K views 7 replies 7 participants last post by  kyjeepster41 
#1 ·
The People's Chrysler: Volkswagen Open to Merger with FCA [Update: FCA's Marchionne Responds]

http://blog.caranddriver.com/the-peoples-chrysler-volkswagen-open-to-a-merger-with-fca/



General Motors' Mary Barra may choose to ignore Sergio Marchionne's emails, but Volkswagen chief executive Matthias Müller is at least checking his spam folder in case the outspoken Italian sends a proposal to merge Fiat Chrysler and Volkswagen.
The VW CEO told reporters during the company's annual investor conference that he is "not ruling out a conversation" with FCA CEO Marchionne to discuss a merger between the two automakers, Reuters reported. Weeks earlier, Müller (pictured below) had publicly denied any interest in speaking with Marchionne, saying, "We have other problems."

The two automotive giants have winked at each other before. During the summer of 2014, rumors peaked that VW and FCA would merge their combined 20 car brands into a giant entity. Both companies denied any possibility, only to see Marchionne aggressively court General Motors beginning in March 2015 (through at least one direct email to CEO Barra, if not by other methods). At the end of the following month, Marchionne made an unusual public pitch to investors-and specifically, to any automaker executive willing to listen-to promote industry mergers and decry what he called "unacceptable" capital spending and the "pure economic waste" that occurs when competing automakers develop the same parts and technologies. He said FCA was not up for sale but was searching for a "partner," a word he has continued to use, for instance while discontinuing the Dodge Dart and the Chrysler 200 for lack of, you guessed it, partners.

Despite taking the equivalent of a $6.7 billion charge for the diesel scandal, the VW Group was still highly profitable in 2016, raking in $5.7 billion after taxes. It lost $1.5 billion in 2015 when the scandal broke in September that year. FCA recorded a net profit after tax of $1.9 billion, or nearly five times its net profit, in 2015. No other discussions between the two automakers are known at this time.

UPDATE 3/16/2017: Marchionne on Wednesday denied he was pursuing Volkswagen for a merger. According to Automotive News, which quoted the CEO following remarks by President Trump in Detroit, Marchionne said he "will not call Matthias. I have no interest.

"If he wants to come, he knows where I live," Marchionne said. "I didn't chase him and I have no intention of chasing him. But if I'm right on consolidation and the fact you need to build scale, we're the natural place to go for him."
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Why can't he take no as an answer?

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#4 ·
more Bad news if it is remotely true

Hyundai to place a bid for FCA?
http://www.leftlanenews.com/hyundai-to-place-a-bid-for-fca-97999.html

The rumor persists even after Hyundai's denial.
Industry rumors indicate Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) might have finally found a buyer. Hyundai-Kia executives are allegedly evaluating a takeover in a bid to become the world's largest automaker by sales.

Buying all or part of FCA would give Hyundai-Kia access to more SUVs, crossovers, and pickup trucks, all of which it sorely needs to remain competitive. Alternatively, FCA could benefit from the hybrid and electric technology found in recent Hyundai-Kia models like the Niro and the Ioniq. Many of the Koreans' smaller cars (like the Rio, pictured above) would overlap with those built by the Italians, however, especially on the European and South Korean markets.

There's no word yet on how much FCA is worth, or which parts of the business would fall under the new South Korean leadership. Hyundai has denied it's getting ready to absorb FCA, but the rumors persist. Analysts believe it would be the right move.

"Hyundai is denying the merger, but the need to acquire a company is higher than ever due to the crisis in the Chinese and U.S. markets," noted analyst Lee Jae-il in an interview with the Korean Herald.

FCA hasn't commented on the report yet. The brand has been surprisingly candid about potential acquisitions in the past, so we'll learn more details soon if the rumors turn out to be accurate.
Like I Have said before,.... If It is making a profit (AND IT IS) LEAVE IT THE HECK ALONE!!

Hyundai will only drag down the quality further. AMC JEEP and any of its New owners have NEVER HELPED IT. Only took what they wanted.
 
#5 ·
Hyundai will only drag down the quality further. AMC JEEP and any of its New owners have NEVER HELPED IT. Only took what they wanted.
I can't imagine Hyundai (or anyone except maybe the Chinese) dragging quality down any more, FCA has consistently been bottom of the barrel in quality rankings by a wide margin. They may be making better stuff than the junk that was being cranked out at the late-Daimler/Cerberus era, but they are still well below just about every other major automaker (at least the ones selling vehicles in the US), there isn't really anywhere to go but up.
 
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