Oh dear, the American Delta

[Fingers]

http://jalopnik.com/5445216/delta-forced-first-lancia-rebadged-as-chrysler

I wonder if they'll go through with this? Found this on Lancisti.

[retro-gnome]

If its this or nothing Ill take it.

[andymc]

And at least it's a Lancia badged as a Chrysler and not the other way round...

[Club LanciaSport]

I can see why you'd do it - it sells volume quicker than building a new brand in the USA.

But if it's a Lancia badged as a Chrysler, then it says something about the preferred direction for other new markets.... like the UK?

Maybe there's an upside we don't know about yet....  maybe the next range of Lancias to be engineered with be a lot different - hence the existing Lancias moving to Chrysler badge.

I wonder, it's too early to say if this is good or bad news.

[Integrale Tim]

Oh god no.................I wonder how they've sorted out the suspension for the American market?....Probably removed the anti roll bars and all the oil from the dampers...I drove one of these last year in italy as a rental... My god it was awful, but this just takes the cake...Fiat don't have a clue what too do with the Lancia brand do they?...

[Fingers]

A better write up here, at least this reporter has a few clues.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2010/01/surprise-lancia-shows-up-in-detroit-wearing-chrysler-badge/1

Maybe the 2003 Fulvia concept will be the next Crossfire, ha ha.

[l3hou]

I've been reading some more about the move to make RHD Lancias badged as Chrysler.

I wonder if they ever remember what happened to Rover when all the brand was, was rebadged Concerto, Accord and Legend.

Maybe we'll get grill and badge kits in the aftermarket

The only thing I am thinking is that if they make all present Lancias into Chrysler, there's a long term strategy possible to wind down Lancia brand and replace with Chrysler in all markets.....

..... and in a few years relaunch Lancia with really innovative cars again - rather than what is out there today which has lost it's way

thoughts?

[LittleSwill]

I think they'll just drop the Lancia brand as they've no idea what to do with it. 

Or maybe sell it to Lotus or Prodrive.    Pretty please!

[nunesaf]

Though we all pretty much love our deltas and acknowledge the sport character and pedigree these cars have (Stratus, 037, 038 (S4), etc) the reality is Lancia is all about a) innovation, b) prestige, c) luxury. Putting into perspective, Lancia is mostly a high-performance luxury brand.

I therefore think that Fiat Group will use Lancia as the premium brand for more upmarket and innovative (green) vehicles whereas Alfa Romeo will aspire more to the sport character. In this scenario, Chrysler will help Lancia in going for higher car segments. I mean, I love the new Fiats and the new Bravo with sports equipment looks fantastic. But next to the new Lancia Delta (that is far more more impressive in the real world that these photos show), it is a shy and more "consensual" car.

The American market is... weird. They have horrendous cars in all possible ways (sorry, my opinion) but even if Chrysler gets a small share of the market, the new Delta will help financing much more and even better developments (who knows, the introduction of the new Lancia Prisma and Thema?).

[nix038]

personally if they were going to create a new delta the alfa romeo brera should have been the starting platform.

[nunesaf]

Sergio Marchione is a very cleaver guy. I saw a paper he wrote, really really good. He is a genius, and correctly focussed in making money. Indeed sharing the Brera platform would make enable a performance Delta.  But the Brera is too heavy. And the Chrysler platforms are heavy and expensive to build - even sharing a large car range.

A sports Lancia would be welcome by you, by me and by us. But not by the majority of the consumers - as they are increasingly automotive illiterate. And the Brera is a good example - quite a nice car it is. And really fast!  But the Audi TT beats it in a matter of 0.3 seconds here and there... (yeah right, that makes s big ownership difference), making the Brera the underdog sports car.  How many people would buy an Audi TT instead of a Brera? Too many I am afraid.

And even the new Delta (or the new Fluvia concept car) - there are lots of ideas to revamp Lancia. The problem is... money my friends...

[Club LanciaSport]

The debate as to what happens with Chrysler-Lancia is quite interesting to compare to Vauxhall-Opel.

With the latter, I can't see the reason to have Vauxhall: It's a mass brand, no identity yet British. Not as British as JLR or perceived British as Ford.

With the former, this is completely different.  Lancia is not a volume brand and Chrysler is. You could see a future where Chrysler is the mass-lusso brand and Lancia is the quirky-eco cum lusso brand.

In many ways, Mini has become such a brand for BMW.  The innovator from Issigonis, Mini E (EV), the quirky clubman, the new "big Mini". 

That's where Lancia is going if anything - or at all.

Something Like a new sporty Lancia Fulvia, Stratos or real Delta is I'm afraid really unlikely without killing off Alfa Romeo

But genious' are unpredictable - so this might all be blown away next year....

[Club LanciaSport]

More on this story on

ITALIASPEED

http://www.italiaspeed.com/2010/cars/lancia/06/dealers/0606.html

and PISTONHEADS

http://www.pistonheads.com/news/default.asp?storyId=22038

I've posted on Pistonheads.

For info.  The FIAT plan is Lancia in MAINLAND Europe, Chrysler in UK and Ireland.  Same cars, a la Vauxhall-Opel

Woopie-doo

[the colonel]

Surely that will mean r/h drive Lancias   (after you purchase the european badge pack)

[Club LanciaSport]

Yep

It will be like Vauxhall-Opel - or if you're a fatalist, like Rover.

To be honest, I like the idea of the new Chrysler minivan thing.  To have it badged a Lancia would be totally anathema to me