 | | |
|
PTCCmike
Cruiser Veteran
/ Moderator
PT Cruiser Club Member
Posted: Mar 6, 2003, 6:17 PM
Post #1 of 5
(864 views)
Shortcut
|
|
Chrysler wants to build cars like Sony TVs
|
Can't Post
|
|
Chrysler wants to build cars like Sony TVs
Thursday March 6, 4:20 PM EST
By Tom Brown
AUBURN HILLS, Mich., March 6 (Reuters) - A senior executive at the Chrysler division of DaimlerChrysler AG (DCXGn) (DCX) said on Thursday that he wants to build vehicles like Sony televisions.
Don Dees, Chrysler's head of corporate quality, was not suggesting the company has set it sights on some radical new product line. But he hopes that someday people will see Chrysler's cars and trucks as every bit as dependable as the TVs produced by Japan's Sony Corp. (6758).
That's a tall order for a company that saw an embarrassing increase in recalls due to vehicle safety defects in the United States last year. But Dees, who joined Chrysler 2-1/2 years ago from Toyota Motor Corp. (7203), said his goal is to make the automaker the Sony of the car business.
"I want to buy a Sony TV because I know it's never going to break in 20 years, right? That's what we want people to think about Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep," Dees said.
"Zero recalls - that's where we've got to get to," he added.
Speaking to reporters during a briefing at Chrysler's headquarters in this Detroit suburb, Dees said the company was currently probably no better than General Motors Corp. (GM) and Ford Motor Co. (F) in terms of quality.
A consumer survey Chrysler conducted last summer even showed most people think GM builds better vehicles, he said.
He pointed to a 50 percent decline in Chrysler's dealer warranty work in the past six years as evidence its quality was improving, however. And he said a 21 percent drop in Chrysler's warranty costs between the 2001 and 2002 model years was a sign of more good things to come.
"Our goal short-term is to pull away from GM and Ford in actual product quality and perception and longer-term catch up with the Toyotas, Hondas, and Mercedes of the world. That's where we need to get to," Dees said.
All automakers like to brag about quality improvements, which can bolster per-vehicle profit margins and overall sales in a fiercely competitive industry.
But Dees said Chrysler had an iron-clad plan to lock in improvements through investment in new powertrain technology and the selection of tough and durable "bullet proof" components by teams set up 18 months ago to study each of the more than 1,000 parts that go into new vehicles.
By 2007, he said it was Chrysler's goal "to be the best quality producer in our market."
It remains to be seen if Chrysler and Dees will make good on that promise. He acknowledged, however, that Chrysler may still be perceived, in surveys like the one it conducted last summer, as a low-quality manufacturer for years to come.
"Our product quality has been improving quickly but the image is going to lag that, it's going to lag that for years," Dees said.
----------
Mike Challis - PT Cruiser Club Founder
PT Cruiser Club is built around a community of people with the same interest (the Chrysler PT Cruiser), nowhere else will you find so much PT Cruiser information and as many enthusiasts.
 Join the Club Today!
Join the Club and get Member Discounts at PT Cruiser Club Store on PT Cruiser Accessories.
|
|
Posts: 4946 | From: Long Beach, WA
| Registered: Sep 1, 1999, 12:00 AM
|
|
| |
|
Jake
Cruiser Addict
Posted: Mar 20, 2003, 8:42 AM
Post #2 of 5
(864 views)
Shortcut
|
|
Chrysler wants to build cars like Sony TVs
|
Can't Post
|
|
My experience with Sony electronics has not been all that good. Also I don't think Sony tops the Consuemr Report reliability ratings either. Perhaps DC should strive to build vehicles like Toyota.
|
|
Posts: 788 | From: Columbus, Ohio, Franklin Cty
| Registered: May 21, 2000, 12:00 AM
|
|
| |
|
Grouch60
Cruiser Expert
Posted: Mar 20, 2003, 9:37 AM
Post #3 of 5
(864 views)
Shortcut
|
|
Chrysler wants to build cars like Sony TVs
|
Can't Post
|
|
Same here Had a 6 year old Sony 32" T V that they couldn't get parts for. Would never buy Sony again
|
|
Posts: 139 | From: Hammonton New Jersey
| Registered: May 13, 2002, 12:00 AM
|
|
| |
|
silencer
Cruiser Buff
Posted: Mar 28, 2003, 7:21 AM
Post #4 of 5
(856 views)
Shortcut
|
|
Re: [PTCCmike] Chrysler wants to build cars like Sony TVs
|
Can't Post
|
|
Or maybe build them like Merecedes-Benz! 
----------
|
|
Posts: 74 | From: N/A
| Registered: Sep 7, 2000, 12:00 AM
|
|
| |
|
pooh1bear43113
Cruiser Newbie
Posted: Mar 29, 2003, 1:32 PM
Post #5 of 5
(837 views)
Shortcut
|
Re: [silencer] Chrysler wants to build cars like Sony TVs
|
Can't Post
|
|
Good lord, I HOPE they don't start building them like Mercedes Benz! I got an '82 380SL that has caused me NOTHING but trouble
At just 5 years I had to have the timing chain replaced (over $2K!). Seems that's the year MB decided to "improve" their product by going from a dual chain dual sprocket to a single chain single sprocket.....We got stuck in the crosshairs!
Hope my new little PT Cruiser performs for us.
----------
|
|
Posts: 1 | From: Ohio
| Registered: Mar 24, 2003, 12:00 AM
|
|
| |
|
|
What's New? |
 |
|
MAIN
SEARCH
WHO'S
LOG 
