Since the formation of Stellantis a few years ago, speculation about what will happen with the low-selling but still iconic Chrysler brand has run rampant. Officials, led by CEO Carlos Tavares, assured there were plans for Chrysler. However, time has passed with just one product left, the Chrysler Pacifica minivan, and now someone wants to resurrect the brand: Walter P. Chrysler’s great-grandson.
Frank Rhodes Jr., great-grandson of Walter P. Chrysler, wants to acquire the Chrysler, Dodge and Plymouth brands from Stellantis.
Frank B. Rhodes Jr. wants to acquire not only the Chrysler brand but also the Dodge and now defunct Plymouth names. He claims he will resurrect them, creating thousands of union jobs in the process.
“My plan is to make the classic comeback for the Chrysler brands. Good for America, for the economy, good for the employees and just in time for its 100th Anniversary! Chrysler reborn is the plan for 2025. Let us stop the downward spiral under the Stellantis ownership,” Rhodes said in a statement.
The Plan
The Chrysler family descendant claims to have sent a proposal to acquire the three brands to Tavares, confirming his want for the trio in a video posted to YouTube.
Rhodes is highly critical of the handling of Chrysler and the other brands by CEO Carlos Tavares and Stellantis management, spurring his desire to acquire them.
Rhodes made the plan available for review online. However, the outline to create what he calls The New Chrysler/Dodge LLC is light on details and extremely long on criticism. It is clear he’s angry about the lack of attention — in his view — the company, and Tavares specifically, the Chrysler, Dodge and Plymouth brands have received.
He chides Tavares for investing billions into the expansion of “Italian brands” that sell in low volume in the U.S. He also claims the funds used for the $3.2 billion share buyback would have been better spent on product development and marketing of the Chrysler, Dodge, and Plymouth brands.
Aside from a passing reference to “American shareholders” in his press release, and his desire to create and lead the Chrysler entity, there are no details about how he would raise the funds needed to acquire them. It’s likely that would come out in the desired “confidential” meeting with Tavares.
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares in July said there were “no taboos” about potentially axing under-performing brands.
Focus on America
Rhodes’ proposal is nothing if not patriotic, with frequent references to the U.S. or America in a release as well as the video.
“I’m very proud of what this company did, and I don’t want to see it go away,” he said while showing off a framed picture and letter from Walter P. Chrysler to Rhodes’s grandmother. “We need to keep our American brands here.”
Part of the proposal centers on a group of “American stockholders” who would keep the companies in the U.S. while reinvigorating the brands and “bring back loyal buyers who are now limited to four uninspired car models.”
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Timing is important
Rhodes frequently mentions the 100th anniversary of Chrysler as being a great time to unleash the cache of the brand with new products — or, better still, in his eyes, new ownership.
Chrysler unveiled a “Graphite” variation of its all-electric Airflow Concept at the 2022 New York International Auto Show. It hasn’t made it to market.
However, Tavares noted there are “no taboos” or demands requiring Stellantis to keep any of the 14 brands under its control. “If they are not able to monetize the value that they represent, then decisions will come,” Tavares added.
Chrysler’s seemingly been ignored since the merger of the PSA Group and Fiat Chrysler. A recent plan aimed at reviving the brand, including the Chrysler Airflow EV concept, has been put on the back burner. A move Rhodes, a self-described brand ambassador, chastised Tavares for in his proposal.
Critical to any potential acquisition is the fact that Stellantis officials maintain that all the company’s brands are profitable. The company recently brushed off rumors that a deal with China’s BYD to acquire Chrysler was in the works. They added last week there are no talks with anyone about selling Chrysler.
Marching forward
The end of Rhodes’ video makes his feelings clear.
Despite the claims of company officials, Rhodes appears determined to secure the remnants of Chrysler Corp. in a deal that would be straightforward and simple. He just wants Tavares to sit down with him so he can present his offer.
“I believe that my plan would allow Stellantis a graceful exit from a brand that in my opinion it has no interest in keeping and has been steadily killing off its brands,” he said in a statement.
He later added, “I asked Mr. Tavares to schedule a confidential discussion to outline my plan, and I am certain that it would be of interest to all parties especially to the long-time terminated employees, the creative and marketing staff and loyal Brand owners who have been anxious to see this historical iconic brand brought back to life as part of Chrysler’s 2025 rebirth, a plan I am calling the ‘Chrysler 2025 Comeback’ creating new high paying Union jobs with exciting automobile concepts that never materialized under that much-touted unleashing of the Brand’s potential under the direction of Ms. Feuell, as Brand CEO.”
This is a pipedream
He knows as much about running car company as I do (or Nardelli).