Chery – Chrysler deal hurt bailout hopes
December 17, 2008 by Matt Brogan
Chinese manufacturer Chery had planned to build cars for Chrysler to sell in to North America as early as last year in exchange for a vital cash injection, there’s no secrets there, but with a distinct lack of the engineering talent required to make cars of a quality acceptable to the US market, coupled with US politics and an anti-Chinese bias, the talks were abandoned.
It seems that despite Chrysler hurting, Washington is unwilling to help the car maker if Chrysler’s turnaround plan includes closing local operations while spending millions of dollars to help a Chinese manufacturer build cars that they will in turn sell back in to the home market.
You see unfortunately the US consumer seems to blame China for job losses over the last decade and although the critics don’t mention that inexpensive goods from China lower Americans’ cost of living, or that automation has taken a huge toll on American manufacturing jobs, and while it is now considered the Chery – Chrysler alliance is being made a scapegoat for Chinese – US relations, in the eyes of the politicians at least, the risks of a deal with Chery were too high.
Perhaps it is just the US trying to protect their manufacturing jobs, or perhaps it is a case of history repeating itself for twenty odd years ago much the same could be said of Japanese manufacturers. Japanese automakers were blamed openly for the loss of American factory jobs. Auto workers made sport of smashing Japanese cars with sledgehammers.
Now Japanese automakers are widely embraced in the US. Why? Japan’s automakers invested there. They opened factories and dealerships across the country. They became a strong part of the American economy.
There in lies a lesson for the Chinese, they should follow the same path. Chinese companies need to think globally and start investing in operations in America and Europe instead of holding so much of their operations base (and wealth) at home, and though it is probably too late to win back any hopes of an alliance for Chery and Chrysler, future co-operations could make for stronger operations across foreign shores helping car makers become less vulnerable to economic tough times.
Print it: 
I’m confused, does this story mean the Chinese can’t build cars as badly as the Americans or as well. I suspect it would be a toss of the coin.
It seems that despite Chrysler hurting, Washington is unwilling to help the car maker if Chrysler’s turn-around plan includes closing local operations
Chrysler shouldn’t have indicated what they would do once they got the money… they should have waited untl they actually got the money before announcing thier intentions to cease production and pull out of the USA..
Because have no doubt there would be some execsutives at both GM and Ford who are thinking about of moving some of their US based operations overeseas – if they have to inorder to survive.. it’s just that they haven’t said anything yet.
Unfortuanately though as more and more companies in various inductries including the automotive industry pull out of countroes where they are located at the moment and move operations to China
What will eventually happen is the Chinese government will gradually increase fees carges taxes and wages etc which will make it as expensive to build cars in China as it is in Europe the USA or Australia.. if not more so; and the car companies will be stuck there as it will cost so much to start up production in the countrise where they used to be.. like Europe the USA and Australia
So even though its cheaper to make things in Chian at the moment it won’t be forever.
That’s why our government should do whatever it takes to protect their local car industries. both here and overseas
i reckon this is more-so some government bearucrat trying to come up with a reason why they bailed the banks who predominately caused the current pain and not the Auto groups. AS the article said, the talks were abandoned, IIRC this happened a while ago.
I’m with Alex II,
If the Chinese invest in auto making plants in the US, who will be reponsible for the (lack of) quality standards?
Maybe the US/Chinese management should hire a japanese person.
I have been reading countless internet boards and the main complaint by Americans is that GM built POS cars but american consumers felt it their patriotic duty to continue buying them.
I agree that Chinese greed in retaining all manufacturing and wealth in their own land will be a major constraint on them taking over the world.Lol. Thank goodness.
Isn’t it good MR07 speaks Mandarin???????