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My Time at Chrysler and DaimlerChrysler – THANKS FOR THE RIDE!
My Time at Chrysler and DaimlerChrysler
THANKS FOR THE RIDE!
As Chrysler celebrates its 100th anniversary – since its founding in 1925 by Walter P. Chrysler – it caused me to reflect on my career at Chrysler. And with it, this: Never in my wildest imagination did I think I would be raising my family in Metropolitan Detroit and working for a major company like Chrysler Corporation.
I cut my professional teeth as a daily newspaper reporter for various small newspapers in the suburban Philadelphia and Allentown, Pa. markets, about as far as I could be from Detroit, the auto industry, and its impact on the national and international economies.
After eight years as a reporter, which required working nights, weekends and holidays, in 1984 I began job searching for a new gig that would be better for my career and better for my growing family. I answered a classified ad in the Allentown Morning Call for an ‘Editorial Services Manager’ at a national consumer finance company headquartered in Allentown and owned by the Bank of America. I got the job!
It was called FinanceAmerica. My duties included writing and editing a quarterly employee magazine, overseeing a monthly newsletter and – if ever needed – handling media relations issues for a company whose media relations consisted of a “no comment” by the head of the legal department.
The early to mid-1980s was also the time of a Chrysler comeback under ex-Ford executive and Allentown native, the mercurial CEO Lee Iacocca.
By that time, Chrysler was rebounding with the help of its $1.5 billion loan guarantee with the federal government. The loan was backed by a consortium of banks, helped Chrysler stay in business, and launch products like the revolutionary minivan, K-car, a convertible and even a station wagon, all built on the K-car platform. When talking about stretching a dollar…well, Iacocca could do it. In fact, Chrysler repaid the loan early with interest!
That was also around the time in 1987 when Chrysler purchased American Motors, the parent company of the Jeep brand which subsequently led to the launch of both the Jeep Cherokee and later Grand Cherokee, stoking America’s love of sport utility vehicles. Today, Jeep-inspired SUVs account for over 50 percent of all auto sales. And in the first 10 months of 2024 the category accounted for 54 percent of global auto sales.
As a result of these popular vehicles and Iacocca’s starring role in national TV advertising campaigns, Chrysler enjoyed sales success as the smallest member of the Big 3, behind the much larger General Motors and Ford Motor Company.
The success of Chrysler products benefited Chrysler Financial and its auto finance subsidiary, Chrysler Credit.
The increase in Chrysler’s vehicle sales meant more business for Chrysler Credit’s national branch office operations; those operations financed dealer inventories on the wholesale side of the business, along with individual retail consumer sales. And in a move toward diversification on the financial services side, Chrysler purchased E.F. Hutton Credit in Greenwich, Connecticut and FinanceAmerica in Allentown, PA.
Those company names were changed to Chrysler Capital, making commercial loans for projects like office building construction and nuclear power plant construction, and Chrysler First, which made small loans to consumers and small businesses.
Those businesses were funded by Chrysler Financial and operated independently. In fact, there were no job cuts – and only a few people (including myself) were transferred to Chrysler Financial headquarters, first in Troy, MI and then in Southfield, MI.
I moved from Chrysler Financial to Chrysler’s PR Staff at the headquarters tower in Auburn Hills, MI in 1996. That’s where I was assigned to cover finance-related issues and received greater exposure to the product side of the business, which is where the action was…and is.
The executives I covered were the CFO, Treasurer, Corporate Economist, as well as anyone who touched the financial side of the business including several purchasing execs. That exposure to those execs was like getting an MBA for non-finance majors.
At the same time, I gained exposure to the product side of the business and the strategies that went into new vehicle press launches, including the care and feeding of automotive journalists and connecting them with the proper execs on the proper issues. It’s where I adopted the PR mantra: “Good media relationships lead to good media relations.”
One morning in May, 1998 I was driving into work listening to the all-news radio station in Detroit when I heard the news that shocked the automotive world: Chrysler had merged with German luxury automaker Daimler-Benz in a so-called ‘merger of equals’. WOW! Up until that announcement the fact that the two companies were even talking was perhaps the best-kept corporate secret ever.
The announcement was made from London and was not leaked to the media until the companies were ready to announce the deal. Essentially, the announcement went out at the same time for both companies on two different continents.
I doubt that kind of surprise announcement could be kept under wraps until both companies were ready to pull the trigger in today’s hyper-kinetic social media environment.
It was the largest industrial merger in history. The companies operated as DaimlerChrysler for a few years before the next global economic downturn happened in the late 2000s; the companies split, going back to their respective markets.
At that time, I was working at DaimlerChrysler Financial Services. My internal clients were Mercedes-Benz Financial Services and Daimler Truck Financial Services. My PR colleague was responsible for Chrysler Financial Services. In 2013 I was offered and accepted a corporate buyout and set my sights on relocating from Detroit back to the East Coast. After a two-year search I accepted a position with a Washington D.C. trade association that specialized in consumer financial services. In fact, a large part of its membership consisted of automotive financial services companies.
I worked in downtown D.C. until 2019, when I retired. My PR jobs combined with my eight years as a daily newspaper reporter equaled 42 years, going back to the late 1970s. But I wasn’t quite ready to hang up my notebook. I got gigs as a freelance auto writer for some automotive publications and websites. I was not so much a freelance writer as a content provider.
Looking back, I was fortunate to work in the automotive industry for great companies with great people. I had no automotive background except what I learned on the job. One of those things I learned is that everyone who drives a vehicle is an expert on that vehicle, its performance, its reliability, its safety, its durability. And automotive journalists and content providers should remain alert, as their next great source may live next door!
From 1986 to 2001, Chrysler Corporation introduced a wide array of vehicles across its core brands: Chrysler, Dodge, Dodge Truck (later Ram), and Jeep. Here’s a curated list of notable introductions by brand. JF
Chrysler
- Chrysler Conquest (1987) – A sporty coupe rebadged from Mitsubishi
- Chrysler TC by Maserati (1989) – A luxury roadster collaboration with Maserati
- Chrysler Imperial (1990 revival) – A front-wheel-drive luxury sedan
- Chrysler Concorde (1993) – Sleek LH-platform full-size sedan
- Chrysler LHS (1994) – A luxury variant of the Concorde
- Chrysler Cirrus (1995) – Mid-size sedan, part of the “Cloud Cars”
- Chrysler 300M (1999) – Sporty luxury sedan reviving the 300 name
- Chrysler PT Cruiser (2001) – Retro-styled compact crossover
Dodge
- Dodge Dakota (1987) – Mid-size pickup that bridged compact and full-size
- Dodge Dynasty (1988) – Conservative mid-size sedan
- Dodge Stealth (1991) – Sporty coupe co-developed with Mitsubishi
- Dodge Intrepid (1993) – LH-platform full-size sedan
- Dodge Neon (1995) – Affordable compact car
- Dodge Stratus (1995) – Mid-size sedan, another “Cloud Car”
- Dodge Durango (1998) – Mid-size SUV based on the Dakota
- Dodge Viper (1992) – Iconic American supercar
Dodge Truck / Ram
- Dodge Ram (2nd Gen) (1994) – Redefined full-size pickup styling
- Dodge Ram Van (1994 refresh) – Updated full-size van
- Dodge Ram Quad Cab (1998) – Introduced rear-hinged back doors
Jeep
- Jeep Wrangler (YJ) (1987) – Replaced the CJ series with modern updates
- Jeep Cherokee (XJ) – Continued production through 2001 with refinements
- Jeep Grand Cherokee (ZJ) (1993) – Mid-size SUV that elevated Jeep’s luxury appeal
- Jeep Grand Cherokee (WJ) (1999) – Second-generation refinement
- Jeep Comanche (MJ) (1986–1992) – Pickup based on the Cherokee
