Chrysler Moving Michigan Plant to Russia

6 news wlns.com ^ | Apr 17, 2006 | wlns.com

[vertolet]

Another auto plant is closing in Michigan. This time it's a Chrysler assembly line moving to, of all places, Russia. A Russian automaker says it's buying the Sterling Heights assembly line from Daimler Chrysler. That line builds the Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Stratus. The company will now produce the cars in Russia under license from the German-American automaker.

[Thunder90]

GM is the next set of cooperate idiots to sell this country down the river. We should NOT be putting production plants into countries that represent near term threats, and Russia certainly qualifies.

[Thunder90]

Ping. Another mistake by a US company.

[Spktyr]

I'm guessing that you're not real familiar with the Stratus.

Hint: This isn't a plus for Russia, believe it or not.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Good. Get the heck out of Michigan and stick it to the corrupt unions and that commie Governor Granholm.

[restornu]

Thank you Chrysler, for taking US welfare from US Citizens in the 80's, only to take your A$$ to Russia

[Iris7]

Corporations that sell their stock to the public are required by law to put the shareholder's interests first. This means corporations must maximize profits. Exxon NOT going for every cent possible is illegal. Diamler-Chrysler is in the same boat.

If this is bothersome to you (it is to me), should then the folks in Exxon do what is illegal? Especially when they will be out of there like a rocket?

Does not the fault lie with the laws involved? Doesn't it?

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Thank you Chrysler, for taking US welfare from US Citizens in the 80's, only to take your A$$ to Russia

Chrysler is not an American company anymore.

Besides, they paid back the loans.

[F.J. Mitchell]

That move is soooooo damn appropriate. The last few Chrysler vehicles I owned were about as dependable and durable as a Yugo.

I just hope this doesn't piss off Russia to such a degree that they launch their entire nuclear arsenal at us. But if they did, my last dying thoughts would be,"forgive them Lord. They only do what we would do, under similar circumstances."

[Iris7]

Diamler-Chrysler is a German company. Daimler (Mercedes-Benz) bought Chrysler's assets and got rid of the parts they did not want to keep.

Daimler-Chrysler is no more an American company than is Daewoo or Toyota.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Chrysler has produced some great vehicles since their merger with Daimler-Benz. Chrysler has always been on the cutting edge of design and risk taking, something that the other two hair-brained auto companies can't accomplish.

[vertolet]

LOL!
Isn't you the very person who writes anecdotes? :)

[FreedomCalls]

That move is soooooo damn appropriate. The last few Chrysler vehicles I owned were about as dependable and durable as a Yugo.

Yugos were made in, well, Yugoslavia. The Russian car made for export was the Lada.

[Citizen of the Savage Nation]

I just noticed Dodge stopped selling the Intrepid, since what, 2004? Another incompetant mistake by Detroit - taking once-popular models, neglecting them, and tossing them aside and replacing them with nothing at all, ala Ford Taurus. Idiots. You'll never see Toyota or Honda do that with the Camry/Accord.

[Southack]

Russian wages are less than China's wages.

The average Russian wage is $303 per month. The average Ukranian makes only $165 per month. http://english.pravda.ru/main/18/87/347/15919_salary.html

The Chinese urban worker earned $0.95 per hour in 2002, $1.07 per hour in 2003, and $1.22 per hour in 2004 (http://www.morganstanley.com/GEFdata/digests/20060407-fri.html)...and was likely up to $1.54 by this year.

For the 2640 hour average Chinese workyear (10 hours per day, 22 days per month, 12 months per year), that's $4,065.60 per year....$338.80 per month.

[Arrowhead]

LEGALLY, Daimler/Chrysler, i.e Chrysler AG, is an American company. And you would know that if you had read the corporate "merger"-assuming you understand all the legal jargon. Ownership is in name only. But as far as how the investment rules are played, they are ruled by US law, therefore making Chrysler AG an American company.

You may want to get your facts straight before inadvertantly misleading others.

And as to those who want to lump Chrysler into the other misleading comments in this thread-with an exception of Mr. Exremely Extreme-Chrysler is on a swing upward in meeting quality benchmarks that is game to surpass Toyota by 2008. Innovative design is a given, but the benchmarks I speak of are those most notably given to Toyota.

As a matter of fact, the company has been hiring Smart Manufacturing troubleshooters from Toyota and they think that Toyota is becoming complacent and saying the Chrysler track has the momentum to surpass Toyota in terms of quality benchmarks by as early as 2007.

At the risk of boasting, I should know...I have worked for Chrysler for the last 11 years.

[Lorianne]

Oh, cool. Can't wait to see the sequel to Roger and Me on this one.

[sine_nomine]

Thanks for the info. That's why I love Free Republic. I enjoy the insider comments. I learn a lot.

Chrysler has had ups and downs. I had a Dodge Aspen, one of the all time lemons, but we loved that little car for some reason. We had a Fury III that must have been the test bed for the Abrams tank. It had a 383 engine with a 4G acceleration when the engine was completely tuned. It was black. I waxed it once a week and kept the body in good shape, in spite of Michigan salt. One mechanic said with awe, "You can see that Fury III a block away."

Our current car was stolen from our driveway. It was a Sentra, very reliable. Making autos is rough work. I admire the people who make such good cars.

[F.J. Mitchell]

If you have taken one Commie made auto for a test drive, you have experienced the same walk back to the dealership so representative of them all.

[durasell]

Where do the profits go? Back to Germany or to American stockholders?