Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne was hounded by media at the Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto Wednesday, to spell out his intentions for this country.
“This is not a game for the faint-hearted it takes resolve and it takes cash,” says Marchionne.
Cash the federal government has committed via the Auto Innovation Fund, if Chrysler will guarantee long-term Canadian investment.
But a source close to these talks tells CTV News, Chrysler is planning to spend far less in Canada than the $3.6 billion floated by Marchionne. Rather this source believes a large portion of the money would likely be spent on work in the U.S. on things like engineering and design.
Local auto analyst, Tony Faria agrees.
“Chrysler is designing those vehicles outside of Canada and that’s not going to change,” Faria says.
Chrysler has said it's preparing to bring six new or improved vehicles to market, including the minivan, two crossovers, as well as all three Brampton vehicles, the Charger, Challenger and Chrysler 300.
Faria says the government can ask for a commitment, but he's not even sure Chrysler knows the answer because the company still hasn't decided where to build each vehicle.
“That’s an awful lot of activity to undertake. It’s probably very difficult to pinpoint where all the dollars are going to be spent because it’s so complex.”
The auto analyst says on one hand Chrysler has to please shareholders and not accept the first offer it gets. While on the other, the federal government can't be seen to offer up taxpayer dollars without doing all it can to ensure Canadian jobs are tied to any funding.
