Chinese Made Jeeps

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Looks like it's gonna happen after all, Jeeps will now be manufactured in China. It's a shame that we can't just build them here and export them to China the way everything else is made there and imported here. What are you gonna do. I just hope the ones that are made over there stay over there....

New GAC-Fiat chief Burton will lead Jeep's China push

2013-03-01T110303Z_1_CBRE9200UPC00_RTROPTP_3_FIAT-CHRYSLER_original.jpg

By Jennifer Clark and Norihiko Shirouzu

MILAN/BEIJING (Reuters) - Fiat-Chrysler's (MIL:F) plans to build Jeep into a global brand move forward on Friday when a new executive takes over at the company's Chinese joint venture to ramp up production of the sports utility vehicle.

Chrysler and Chinese automaker Guangzhou Automobile Group <601238.SS> joint venture GAC-Fiat aims to produce over 100,000 new Jeep models in China by as early as 2014, in a move that is key to Fiat's goal of selling 300,000 vehicles annually in China by next year.

Fiat-Chrysler is hoping that Jeep's wide brand recognition in China will help it catch up to competitors in China, as well as build Jeep's sales to a new record high.

GAC-Fiat has appointed a new general manager, John Burton, as of March 1 replacing Jack Cheng. Burton has nearly 20 years of experience under his belt running plants for General Motors (GM) in Poland, Germany and Britain. Most recently, he was in charge of green field projects for GM in Detroit.

"He has an immense task since Fiat is obviously one of the last automakers into China," said Bernstein analyst Max Wharburton. "They have some knowledge of China thanks to Iveco (trucks), but in passenger cars they are starting from scratch with an unknown brand, limited distribution, and a somewhat difficult local partner."

Fiat, which took management control of Chrysler after the U.S. automaker's 2009 bankruptcy, lags far behind other foreign carmakers in China, the world's biggest car market. General Motors and Volkswagen (VOW3.DE) both sold over 2.8 million cars last year, and together accounted for over 29 percent of total vehicle sales in China, according to IHS Global Insight.

Fiat sold 8,800 cars in January in China, according to IHS.

Fiat built its first factory in China in June 2012 in Guandong, where Burton will be based. It launched the Viaggio sedan in September, which shares a platform with the Alfa Romeo Giulietta and the Dodge Dart.

Fiat-Chrysler Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne is masterminding a four-year retooling of Jeep that is intended to establish it as one of the Italian automaker's core global brands.

(Reporting by Jennifer Clark; Editing by Clelia Oziel)

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/gac-fiat-chief-burton-lead-110303336.html?desktop_view_default=true
 

silverbackjk

New member
That's just a shame!! To tell you the truth it hurts me a little to see. Man I have a few friends and family with know jobs now and we just let china make everything for us!!!!
 

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
I wonder if smittybilt will be the leader in aftermarket accessories over there. :cheesy:

Smittybilt, TeraFlex and the like are companies in America that use Chinese manufacturers to make their stuff. There would be no need for them in China and companies like Shanxi Huana Manufacture Limited would probably just sell direct.

That's just a shame!! To tell you the truth it hurts me a little to see. Man I have a few friends and family with know jobs now and we just let china make everything for us!!!!

I don't know if this move will take jobs away from Americans per se but it certainly won't add any and that's what the shame is.
 

ichthus

New member
China structures its automotive market with such high import tariffs that nobody outside extreme niche vehicles (Ferrari, Rolls, etc) could ever hope to compete without local production...and you can produce locally without a government sanctioned partnership with a Chinese manufacturer. Marchionne has long stated that he believes Fiat/Chrysler needed global production to include China in order to maintain profitability.

It sucks that China has the balls and pride to enforce a trade market in their favor like this while the American government looks more cowardly than the French...but you can't fault a commercial entity for playing the hand it's dealt.

Quite frankly, it makes sense to use local manufacturing WHEN it can be quality controlled to a decent standard
 

silverbackjk

New member
I don't know if this move will take jobs away from Americans per se but it certainly won't add any and that's what the shame is.

That's what I was getting at. I would of been really nice to see jeep add jobs here to keep up with demand in china.
 

JAGS

Hooked
If only china import rules were the same as US. I read and heard reports the reason why Jeep is doing this is it can't export jeeps into china to make it effective financially for the worldwide brand. A 40k sport just wouldn't sell. Or something to that effect.

Note to us here is that American jeeps will remain made in America....for now. In fact, jeep has expanded in the US.
 

JAGS

Hooked
China structures its automotive market with such high import tariffs that nobody outside extreme niche vehicles (Ferrari, Rolls, etc) could ever hope to compete without local production...and you can produce locally without a government sanctioned partnership with a Chinese manufacturer. Marchionne has long stated that he believes Fiat/Chrysler needed global production to include China in order to maintain profitability.

It sucks that China has the balls and pride to enforce a trade market in their favor like this while the American government looks more cowardly than the French...but you can't fault a commercial entity for playing the hand it's dealt.

Quite frankly, it makes sense to use local manufacturing WHEN it can be quality controlled to a decent standard

Lol. You just beat me.

This is the same point I was making/trying to make.
 

ichthus

New member
Keep in mind too that we can THANK China for enabling a comeback for Buick. The company should have been favored for the same treatment bestowed upon Olds, Saturn, Pontiac and Hummer, if not for their fame in China. Designing Buick cars for the Chinese market has reinvigorated a brand that had given up on sales to anyone under 75 or rental car fleets.

American Jeep production seems safe thus far as most factories have been vastly upgraded and retooled for the newest line of vehicles. They're even opening a brand new transmission plant in Indiana in addition to the current expansion of plants already running at full capacity.
 

ichthus

New member
If a base Wrangler built in the US to be sold in China was under $80,000, I'd be surprised. Chinese import tariffs are ridiculous
 

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
While I understand Chrysler/Fiat's reasons for doing this, I have to say that it still leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth. Also, I do have to wonder about the future of OE replacement parts. If the same thing can be made in China, I have a hard time believing that they won't end up at our dealerships here in America. Not trying to be an alarmist, just a realist.
 

Tackerdown

Banned
My concern is they will start shipping to other counties over there that we now ship to but won't once they start to manufacture them.

Sent from my PC36100 using WAYALIFE mobile app
 

silverbackjk

New member
While I understand Chrysler/Fiat's reasons for doing this, I have to say that it still leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth. Also, I do have to wonder about the future of OE replacement parts. If the same thing can be made in China, I have a hard time believing that they won't end up at our dealerships here in America. Not trying to be an alarmist, just a realist.

I did not even think of this. If china starts to making OE parts I would think there is a 99% chance they would not make them in the us. Just like apple why would you pay a us worker $18+ hr when you can pay $1hr in china for slave labor. Sad but true.
 

MTG

Caught the Bug
I don't know. I can't tell the difference between my wife's authentic designer purses and the ones sold in Chinatown. Maybe I can pick up a fully loaded Rubicon on vacation for like 10K in the future?

:cheesy:
 

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
I did not even think of this. If china starts to making OE parts I would think there is a 99% chance they would not make them in the us. Just like apple why would you pay a us worker $18+ hr when you can pay $1hr in china for slave labor. Sad but true.

Yep, that's a valid concern. A lot of parts on our Jeeps are already manufactured in other countries like Cananda and Mexico and ultimately assembled here in the U.S. If Jeeps are made in China, the is a very real likelyhood that even more parts will be made there and brought here for assembly.
 

jhires

Member
I think as long as there is a quality control problem with Chinese manufacturing, then I think our manufacturing and parts production will be ok. However, if their "volume at any cost" mentality changes, then we will be in trouble. Not just auto manufacturing, but all manufacturing.
 
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