Comments on: Chrysler slips to fifth in US, may take over Lancia name

By: Major Hassle

Major Hassle — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 22:15:23 +0000

1978, many readers were not even born at this time… Fiat was in the U.S., Lancia, it was barely here…. I was a young light infantry airborne LT. at West Point New, York… Young and dumb was I, I bought this really neat Lancia Beta Coupe… sliding roof, electric windows, shifter on the floor, 1.8L double over head cam engine (FIAT), and it was a screamer in the urban driving area… the brakes, would stop on a dime… but within the first year, rust was showing through. The electrical system really sucked… My Mazda Rx4 was more maintenance free, and it too was a real screamer… the Lancia timing belt, if you did not change it at 18000 miles, you had better have a tow truck ready… the exhaust system after 2 years, the bolts and springs were falling out of it… exhaust head noise was horrible… Independent rear suspension, it broke on the right rear, over $1000 in 1979 USD and 4 months waiting on parts… door panels coming apart within 3 years… the leather seats were cracking within 2 years… and the clutch cable, stretched beyond adjustment within 2 years… the dash was cracking within 3 years…. and at that time, the 1.8L, if you didn’t adjust the valves, or if the belt slipped, I could guarantee you that you would be replacing valves… The Bosch alternator, BBQ’d the regulator twice in 3 years… Worst of all, the warranty was horrible… it took forever to get your car fixed… Parts availability was despicable. I could repair a John Deere tractor faster… The Lancia Zagato, it was a gorgeous coupe, but so way underpowered… and Lancia Beta wagon, it won the ugly contest, I would have rather been seen in a Saab…

Was I a happy camper… that should be an easy answer… after 4 years of ownership, American Express, and Master Card told me that I had shelled out almost as much money in maintenance and repairs as I had originally paid for the POS… and now they want to re-badge a Lancia as a Chrysler??? OMG… this will kill any Chrysler loyalty that was built over the past 100 years…

By: Marcoz

Marcoz — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 01:10:00 +0000

+ 1 here…

By: PRM

PRM — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:12:37 +0000

I have a soft spot for the Lancia name and I think it should be preserved. But it’s sales figres show just how week it is. In 2008 Chrysler sold more 300 models than Lancia did for its entire line. Simple math like this dictates that Lancias, in one form or another, will become more like Chryslers. And to kill the Chrysler name would be corporate suicide. The more one looks at Fiat the more one sees that it needs Chrysler as much as Chrysler needs Fiat.

By: jojo

jojo — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 11:34:26 +0000

Agree with most of the comments here. Lancia have a great niche product offering with some clever engines MultiAir etc.

Better off building the Lancia brand across europe and keeping the Chrysler brand for the North American market.

There are more lancias sold in Italy this year than Alfa Romeos whith less than half the model product range.

By: Myke

Myke — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 09:10:21 +0000

Lancia these days are nothing more than a brand name, most of their current products are pretty ordinary anyways. As long as Alfa Romeo is safe, I don’t mind.

By: Captain Mainwaring

Captain Mainwaring — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 08:23:55 +0000

What is this guy smoking? How could swapping ‘Lancia’ for ‘Chrysler’ in Europe possibly achieve anything but euthanasia for both brands? He may as well swap the Fiat badge for Plymouth. Or Alfa Romeo for DeSoto. Down at the betting shop, the odds for survival of the Fiat/Chrysler conglomerate just went out to 20:1.

By: Jake02

Jake02 — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 05:32:01 +0000

God that new Delta is STUNNING!!!! I wouldn’t mind a piece of that action!!!!

By: Speak your mind, as long as it's not about Mercedes

Speak your mind, as long as it's not about Mercedes — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 03:19:31 +0000

Not only that, but they haven’t really been relevant for over a decade. It’s becoming painful to watch this once great company die a slow death.

By: Reckless1

Reckless1 — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 03:01:18 +0000

“Regain” implies they lost leadership, but they never had it.

Chrysler is truly irrelevant in the motoring world now.

By: CarZ

CarZ — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 02:46:28 +0000

I agree with the above comment.I’d much prefer a Lancia badge. That being said, i’m not surprised in the slip for Chrysler. They have a lot of work ahead to regain any position of leadership.