Suzuki may be back story in the jousting between Piech and Marchionne
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It's no secret that Volkswagen Chairman Ferdinand Piech wants to pry Alfa Romeo away from Sergio Marchionne's Fiat Group.
Marchionne says he won't let it happen, but maybe he's just angling to snag a piece of Piech's VW turf: VW's estranged Japanese partner Suzuki.
Marchionne told Japan's Nikkei business daily that he wants to strengthen ties between Fiat and Suzuki.
Fiat already sources its Sedici small crossover from Suzuki. And it supplies Suzuki with diesel engines. The diesel deal helped drive a wedge between Suzuki and VW, after VW took a 19.9 percent stake in Suzuki to become Suzuki's top shareholder.
Suzuki wants out of its capital alliance with VW, but VW has no intention -- publicly at least -- of letting Suzuki go.
Enter Marchionne. He said he wants an extended partnership to cut costs and aims to do "whatever possible" to strengthen ties with Suzuki, according to Nikkei.
With Sergio stirring the pot, yet another chapter in the tug of war between Marchionne and VW could be brewing.
