Larry P. VellequetteLARRY P. VELLEQUETTE 2 million extra doors was the best call Daimler made during 'marriage of equals' 12:35 pm U.S. ET | May 17, 2013  It's easy to criticize the way Daimler AG ran and ultimately left Chrysler during the disastrous "marriage of equals" era. I know because I've done it on a regular basis. But even the worst marriages can produce spectacular kids -- or in this case, products.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Lights, camera -- uh, boss, we have a little problem here . . . 12:01 am U.S. ET | May 13, 2013  I love wordplay, so when photos arrived of the big blue Pacific crashing against a floundering Ram heavy-duty pickup during a beach photo shoot gone wrong, my mind just raced Larry P. Vellequette covers Chrysler Group for Automotive News.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Ram photo shoot goes horribly, horribly wrong 12:00 pm U.S. ET | May 7, 2013  I love puns, so when photos arrived of the big blue Pacific crashing against a floundering Ram heavy-duty pickup during a beach-photo-shoot-gone-wrong, my mind just raced.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Fiat ad or (Arianna, Pitbull) music video? 7:42 am U.S. ET | May 4, 2013  I present to you Fiat's latest video in North America, "Sexy People." Some things just need to speak for themselves. I am left without words.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Chrysler hopes many hats make broad experience 12:01 am U.S. ET | April 29, 2013  The top-level management changes at Chrysler Group this month may be rooted in the cultivated tension of a criss-crossed management structure that has high-level executives wearing many hats. But the changes at the top of four of the automaker's brands also ensure that Chrysler's next leader knows the business inside and out Larry P. Vellequette covers Chrysler Group for Automotive News.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Why the auto industry needs to slow down 2:55 pm U.S. ET | April 29, 2013  I'd like to offer a bit of counterintuitive thinking, at least in terms of technology. Here it is: The auto industry needs to slow down. We have arrived at a point where the pace of technological advancement -- how fast automakers and suppliers can make their products better -- has vastly outstripped their own manufacturing abilities to keep up.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Why it's no big surprise Diaz left Ram 12:01 am U.S. ET | April 22, 2013  On paper, Fred Diaz got a promotion this month when it was announced that he had agreed to become vice president of Nissan Division sales and marketing. But in the real world, the 47-year-old former head of Chrysler's Ram brand and of Chrysler de Mexico likely got his life back with his new job Larry P. Vellequette covers Chrysler Group for Automotive News.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Why Diaz' departure from Chrysler wasn't a surprise 12:01 am U.S. ET | April 14, 2013  On paper, Fred Diaz got a promotion Friday when it was announced that he had agreed to become vice president of Nissan Division sales and marketing. But in the real world, the 47-year-old now-former head of Chrysler Group's Ram brand and of Chrysler de Mexico likely got his life back with his new job.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Confused by pickup claims? That's the idea 3:01 pm U.S. ET | April 8, 2013  The five automakers that build full-sized light-duty pickups must hate tree-grown fruit because they sure go out of their way to avoid apples-to-apples comparisons.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Economic indicators: Sales of cars, trucks and ... tchotchkes? 1:47 pm U.S. ET | April 3, 2013  Economists have long known that certain retail-level transactions -- such as the number of packages handled by UPS or FedEx -- are good indicators of the economy's overall strength or weakness. But does the same hold true for branded automotive tchotchkes?... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Why the stakes are high for Chrysler's new minivan 2:48 pm U.S. ET | March 29, 2013  After way more than a year of debate back and forth, Chrysler Group has settled on a design for its next generation minivan. But in an interview with the Detroit Free Press at the New York auto show this week, Chrysler design head Ralph Gilles wouldn't disclose whether the single minivan would remain a Chrysler Town & Country or stay as a Dodge Grand Caravan.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Re-engineered Durango punches its ticket to the ball 12:01 am U.S. ET | March 28, 2013  Since its relaunch as a 2011 model, the Dodge Durango has been the large and largely ignored stepsister of its much-celebrated platform mate, the Jeep Grand Cherokee.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Can today's diesels erase Olds memories? 12:01 am U.S. ET | March 23, 2013  I've been wondering lately just how long it takes sustained execution to erase previous experience. Or put another way: What's the statute of limitations on reputation?... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Chrysler's hot sales streak faces tough test in March 12:01 am U.S. ET | March 18, 2013  Chrysler Group's string of 35 months of year-over-year sales increases may be about to end. The streak goes back to April 2010 and equals the company's longest run of consecutive U.S. gains, which stretched from February 1992 to December 1994. The reconstituted company's electronic records only go back to the early 1980s.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Is that available with the Luddite package? 2:59 pm U.S. ET | March 15, 2013  This month the iconic British motoring series Top Gear stumbled into a fantastic idea for automakers to pursue on future vehicles.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE The car salesman and the faux test drive from hell 2:49 pm U.S. ET | March 13, 2013  I admit it: I was initially fooled by an online video making the rounds online that allegedly shows a used car salesman from North Carolina taking the test drive from hell in a hot Chevy Camaro, courtesy of four-time NASCAR champion Jeff Gordon.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE A prenatal nose job for the Jeep Cherokee? Or... 2:19 pm U.S. ET | March 6, 2013  Is Jeep planning a nose job for the 2014 Cherokee, even before its official unveiling this month in New York? A mule spotted last week by an Automotive News reporter in Los Angeles shows that they're at least testing the idea.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Why this Jeep should sell -- whether you call it Cherokee or not 3:08 pm U.S. ET | Feb. 25, 2013  Here's the thing about the 2014 Jeep Cherokee that Chrysler Group was forced to reveal on Friday: It's a really good, modern take on the AMC Eagle. But it's not a Cherokee -- and that to me is what had many Jeep enthusiasts wailing and gnashing their teeth last week when the Web site Jalopnik showed the first images of the coming crossover.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE With stellar detective work, today’s recalls are not like yesterday’s 10:44 am U.S. ET | Feb. 22, 2013  People in this industry have a love-hate relationship with recalls. Dealers can love them if they ring up service reimbursements from the factory and give people a reason to visit their stores. But they can hate them if the recall leaves a customer inconvenienced or worse, gives consumers a reason to question the integrity of their vehicle.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Newborn Chrysler Capital shows up at NADA 3:42 pm U.S. ET | Feb. 9, 2013  There are lots of young companies on the expo floor at the NADA convention pushing this product or that service to help dealers. But as far as I can tell, there's only one so young that it ought to be wearing diapers.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE New Chrysler council chairman slips in a sale wherever he can -- or bottle 12:00 pm U.S. ET | Feb. 8, 2013  The difference between regular auto dealers and successful auto dealers is simple: successful auto dealers never stop selling, even when they're hundreds of miles from home.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Gassed at work: Was there a question in there somewhere? 10:36 am U.S. ET | Feb. 2, 2013  I’m going to let you in on a little secret: The quarterly analyst calls that automakers conduct are like gold mines -- filled with valuable nuggets, but with dangerous pockets of trapped gas threatening at every turn. For the most part, the problem is not the automakers or their executives. Oh no, the dangerous gasbags are the analysts.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Sergio promises updated Chrysler product plan next week 3:52 pm U.S. ET | Jan. 24, 2013  Sergio Marchionne said he will update the five-year product plan that the automaker laid out in November 2009 when Chrysler Group announces its earnings Wednesday. Speaking to Automotive News last week during the Detroit auto show, the Chrysler-Fiat CEO said that enough changes have been made to the original product roadmap to warrant a redraft.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Chrysler pays tribute to 1963 concept car 9:51 am U.S. ET | Jan. 14, 2013  Chrysler Group dropped a surprise concept on its stand this morning, a Chrysler 300S Turbine edition that pays homage to the 50th anniversary of the automaker's famous 1963 turbine-powered concept car.... Read More »
LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE Hanger-on Avenger mars the Dart's start 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 7, 2013  It's not yet quite fair to compare monthly Dodge Dart sales with sales of such segment stalwarts as the Ford Focus, Chevy Cruze and Honda Civic. And several Chrysler dealers in recent months have told me that one of the prime factors holding down Dart sales is in their own showrooms: a deeply discounted Dodge Avenger Larry P. Vellequette covers Chrysler Group for Automotive News.... Read More »
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