Not sure if anyone has been keeping tabs on this story, but rumors are flying that FCA ( Fiat Chrystler ) are shopping around the company mostly to several Chinese Automakers. This would include all Jeeps and other major brands the group owns. Not sure how I feel about this or if it will actually go through, but I've seen this story being covered more recently among several news sites.
****Would this impact your loyalty to the Jeep Brand???? Makes me cringe a little bit knowing the origins/history of the Jeep.
According to that article you've got it slightly backwards- FCA wants to sell and it's at least one Chinese company that is interested, but FCA rejected their offer for being too low.
Marchionne, CEO of Fiat, has been looking specifically for Asian market buyers for 2 years. Several Asian car maker groups have been spotted at Auburn hills including Chinese delegates, so even though one bid was rejected, the Chinese govt has been putting pressure on all of its companies to expand outside of China. Hasn't happened yet, but it looks like there is a real potential for FCA to sell Jeep to a Chinese automaker. A Chinese Jeep......
We can't avoid Chinese parts in most cases but Chinese ownership? NO, I would not buy no matter where it was built. Chinese built? Also NO. The Buick Envision is built in China and I would never consider owning one.
The Jeep brand alone is a major cash cow and Marchionne has been looking for a dance partner for several years to combine factories and cut costs. I'm not surprised the Chinese have come knocking, it's a great opportunity for them. Will Chinese ownership effect my loyalty? The short answer is yes.
I'd like to think it would matter to me, and I'd like to think that I would buy at home, but honestly, if they make a quality vehicle without crappy craftsmanship, then I'd probably buy one and just keep internalizing the hate toward myself as I choke down the guilt for contributing to give my country away.
Chinese automakers have a consistently good track record making reliable cars ( i.e. Toyota ) but knowing that it was no longer an American brand is tough to swallow. Marchionne is retiring in 2019 and wants the sale of Jeep to be included in his final 5 year strategic plan. So it's not necessarily if this will happen, its just a matter of when. The US automaker companies have a bleak future and they know it, the Chinese are flush with cash and it would be a huge hit to Trump with his US manufacturing initiatives ( but a win for China ) if the Chinese picked up a few American car brands on the cheap. VW was evaluating the Jeep buy but due to the scandal over the past two years, have no cash to acquire anything. So the thought of buying a Jeep and that money going straight to China doesn't necessarily sit well with me, especially since its a communist party. Makes one think about the US form of government vs a Communist party.......i wonder who's doing better at this point.......
I've heard quite differently, especially those vehicles actually made in china.
If China companies intends to move jobs out of the US to china, then it may hurt Trump, but its no different than the current sending of money to Italy and the Dutch. Beside perhaps some US stockholders, there is no USA ownership or management of FCA.
Chinese automakers have a consistently good track record making reliable cars ( i.e. Toyota ) but knowing that it was no longer an American brand is tough to swallow. Marchionne is retiring in 2019 and wants the sale of Jeep to be included in his final 5 year strategic plan. So it's not necessarily if this will happen, its just a matter of when. The US automaker companies have a bleak future and they know it, the Chinese are flush with cash and it would be a huge hit to Trump with his US manufacturing initiatives ( but a win for China ) if the Chinese picked up a few American car brands on the cheap. VW was evaluating the Jeep buy but due to the scandal over the past two years, have no cash to acquire anything. So the thought of buying a Jeep and that money going straight to China doesn't necessarily sit well with me, especially since its a communist party. Makes one think about the US form of government vs a Communist party.......i wonder who's doing better at this point.......
1. The trade deficit between the US and China was $347 billion in 2016. The US exported $116 b to China, but imported $463 b. We are giving them all of our money.
2. China is the second largest lender to the US (after Japan), at $1.14 trillion dollars. ($ 1,140,000,000,000.00) They could call the debt, which would cause a massive US depression, but they won't because it would just hurt their own economy.
3. One of the reasons the Chinese can make stuff so much cheaper is cost of Chinese labor vs US Labor. Typical hourly wage for a Chinese worker is approximately 1/10 of the comparable US worker wage. This results in an overall lower standard of living.
4. The Internet has opened the eyes of many Chinese who are asking why they are living in Dogpatch while everyone else is living in suburbia. This will eventually result in a higher wage scale and higher standing of living, which will decrease the labor rate gap. The same thing happened in India.
5. Nearly all major corporations, including automotive, are really multi-national corporations. Many of the components that make up our Jeeps come from other countries and are assembled here.
6. Capitalism has nearly ruined communism in China. The Chinese government even has a name for it: Chinese Communist Capitalism; yes, it is state sanctioned capitalism. (No labor unions, though [yet]!)
Regarding the original question, I have a 2012 GC with 60,000 miles and a 2006 LJ with 32,000 miles. I expect I will just hang onto these until they take away my keys. If I had to replace one of them, I would still buy a Jeep. The Chinese are not stupid; they would keep the factory in the US and pay everyone in USD.
Yea so Jeep is getting even closer to being acquired by China. New reports from Reuters is saying that a bid for part or all of FCA is being requested. This is looking more and more serious each week. Marchionne is looking for a strategic buyer and part of his 5 year plan before his retirement is selling FCA or the Jeep/RAM brand. Here is the latest article https://www.reuters.com/article/us-fiat-chrysler-m-a-great-wall-idUSKCN1B10HU
US made accessories and products? Where? I thought China makes everything nowadays. The US will never again be leaders in manufacturing or building products, our costs compared to the cheap labor/parts overseas absolutely annihilates us. If you owned a business and had the option to pay someone $3 dollars a day versus the American worker $125 a day, what would you do? Simple example but that's essentially why US auto manufacturers are going out of business or moving overseas. It's sad but unless we have a huge culture change for "pro American" products, we stand no chance.
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